Thurston County

Jasmine Vasavada is running for the District 1 seat on the Port of Olympia being vacated by the retiring Commissioner Joe Downing. Vasavada is the director of policy and government affairs for the Washington State Department of Commerce where she strives to help Washington communities and economies thrive. She has worked in public service for years and, before that, she used her law degree for public interest advocacy and legislation.

Vasavada is running on a broadly progressive platform to generate community economic prosperity, protect Thurston’s ecosystem, and build a culture of diversity and belonging at the port. She wants to invest in broadband for rural farms and ranches, innovate support for small businesses, create living wage jobs, clean up Budd Bay, restore the Deschutes Estuary, and collaborate with the community, including seeking partnerships with tribal governments. In this race, Vasavada has been endorsed by progressive elected leaders at the state and local level and community organizations including political, labor, and advocacy groups.

Vasavada is facing two opponents in this race: Bill McGregor and Skye Campbell-Ragsdale. Former commissioner McGregor served on Olympia’s elected port commission for 15 years. Before that, he spent his decades-long career working at a number of different Washington ports in high-level operations positions, including at the Port of Olympia. McGregor is also active on a number of community boards. If elected to serve again, he wants to improve economic investment in the community, prioritize environmental stewardship, and lead by engaging the community.

Campbell-Ragsdale is a first-time candidate with a professional background in fulfillment and assembly. Campbell-Ragsdale served as a member of the planning commission and credits their campaign to a lifelong commitment to environmental stewardship. In this race, they want to push the port further on climate commitments and employ a local-first and ecologically mindful approach to all economic development initiatives. Campbell-Ragsdale wants to lead the port so that generations to come can benefit from Olympia’s economic and environmental vitality.

We recommend Vasavada for Port of Olympia, District 1 because of her strong platform and impressive endorsements from progressive advocates.
 

Maggie Sanders is running for the newly created District 4 seat on the Port of Olympia. Sanders identifies as a “triple citizen” of the United States, of the Washington community at-large, and of the Makah tribe. She has dedicated her career to public service, working in environmental stewardship, workforce development, and community advocacy, particularly for tribal representation and within the Makah tribe. In her most recent position, Sanders advocated for clean air, representing local tribes as a commissioner on the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Tribal Air Association.

If elected, Sanders wants to be a staunch advocate for environmental and community concerns on the port. She believes that there can’t be economic development without both community and workforce development to ensure that port investments can lift all boats. Her extensive experience in public service and expertise in public administration paired with her demonstrated progressive values position her well to execute her campaign priorities. In this race, Sanders has far outpaced her opponents in progressive endorsements.

Sanders faces three opponents in this race for the new commissioner seat. Rose Chiu Gundersen is a first-time candidate and business leader. Gundersen grew up in Hong Kong and has established herself strongly in the community as a small business owner, liaison for small businesses to the Washington State Department of Labor, and most recently in high-level retail services for the Washington Retail Association. She co-founded Washington Trafficking Prevention. In this campaign, her top priority is to beautify the waterfront to make Thurston County a destination, and she also wants to combat human trafficking, create living wage jobs, and invest in some environmental clean-ups.

Also in this race is Joanna Manson, a professional city planner. Manson has held community leadership positions with the International Division of the American Planning Association and her church, and she volunteers with The Nature Conservancy and with the county’s Earth Day programming. While she displays a strong grasp of port procedures and issues, she lacks a bold progressive vision. If elected, she wants to ensure effective and responsible port governance that reflects the needs of all residents, including rural voices.

Bill Moomau is the final candidate in this race. Moomau spent three decades at the Department of Labor and Industries. He volunteers for a number of AIDS-related advocacy groups and previously served as the director of the Thurston County Fairboard. Moomau’s campaign platform is heavily focused on economic planning for the port and lacks some of the community and environmental considerations of his opponents. However, he does have some ideas for using port resources to mitigate the housing crisis.

We recommend Maggie Sanders for Port of Olympia, District 4 to bring her progressive vision and public service experience to the commission.