Here’s TNT’s endorsement for Pierce County Council District 5
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TNT Election Endorsements 2025
Ballots are due on Tuesday, Nov. 4. Here are the endorsements we made this fall:
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CORRECTION: Editor’s note: This story has been updated to remove a name listed as one of Bryan Yambe’s endorsers. The TNT is working to confirm more details.
Editor’s note: Since making this endorsement, new information has come to light. As a result, The News Tribune Editorial Board has withdrawn its endorsement of Bryan Yambe. The board did not endorse his opponent, Terry Wise, instead. The board will not endorse a candidate in this race. Read more here.
Original story: This November, there is one Pierce County Council seat on the ballot. The candidates are an incumbent who’s been in local politics for over a decade and a political newcomer from the business community.
While that’s a familiar story, this race has some unusual twists to it. For one thing, the incumbent, Bryan Yambe, has only been in this office since January. Yambe, who is running as a Democrat, was appointed to replace the previous council member, Marty Campbell, who left to become the county’s assessor-treasurer.
Yambe, 39, served on the Fife City Council for 11 years before his appointment. That’s in the heart of District 5 on the Pierce County Council, which includes Northeast and East Tacoma, Fife and Parkland, as well as some adjacent unincorporated areas. He also served on regional bodies like the Pierce County Regional Council and the Tacoma-Pierce County Board of Health.
It’s on the strength of that background and his record of diving deep into public policy in search of ways to improve his community that Yambe wins the support of The News Tribune Editorial Board.
But it has to be said: The board was disappointed that Yambe’s experience and solid reputation didn’t come across during our endorsement interview with both candidates. We were surprised by the vague answers he gave, and if we had to ignore everything else about him, we would have been hard pressed to endorse him.
Yambe’s opponent, Terry Wise, has worked 40 years in real estate and highlights land use as his area of expertise. Wise, who is running as a Republican, is campaigning on the strength of those skills. He argues he can help accelerate badly needed development in the county by eliminating redundancies and unnecessary delays in permitting processes.
Wise, 67, answered many questions through the lens of his profession. That makes sense, as land use is a topic that pervades county governance. Wise’s perspective was at times very apt, including his thoughts on building affordable housing more quickly and his familiarity with infrastructure priorities in the district.
In other areas it was a distraction. Asked about the council’s relationship with the Puyallup Tribe of Indians, Wise focused on his frustration with requirements to look for tribal artifacts during construction projects.
Wise lists a range of endorsements, including Republican County Council members, the Pierce County Republican Party and the Mainstream Republicans of Washington, as well as the Master Builder’s Association of Pierce County. Other endorsements include both the county’s sheriff, Keith Swank, and the Pierce County Deputy Sheriff’s Guild. Notably, he’s backed by two former mayors of Fife. But in quotes published on Wise’s website, neither gives a reason for preferring him to Yambe.
Yambe’s experience ultimately gives him a broader perspective, which is reflected in the relationships he’s built. In addition to an endorsement from the Puyallup Tribe, he lists a cavalcade of people in local government who support him.
That includes Fife City Council member Dee Dee Gathers and Fife Public Schools board member Cheryl Reid. Also listed are Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards and council members Joe Bushnell, Sarah Rumbaugh, Jamika Scott, Kiara Daniels, Olgy Diaz and Kristina Walker.
While we wanted to see more from Yambe in the interview, his commitment to and enmeshment in the region wins our support.
The News Tribune Editorial Board is: Laura Hautala, opinion editor; Stephanie Pedersen, TNT president and editor; Jim Walton, community representative; Justin Evans, community representative; Bart Hayes, community representative.
This story was originally published October 10, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
