We endorse: Stokesbary, Robertson a good fit for Pierce, King in Legislative Dist. 31
For the past four years, youth has been served in Washington’s 31st Legislative District — and so have the people of the trans-county Pierce-King suburban commuter corridor. They’ve been fortunate to see a pair of politicians in their early 30s make an impact in Olympia.
Reps. Drew Stokesbary of Auburn and Morgan Irwin of Enumclaw are typical of millenial-age family men in their district, tending to careers, raising kids and juggling other domestic demands. Add to that the atypical pressure of serving in the House, accepting caucus leadership assignments and running for election every two years.
They signified a bright future for Puget Sound Republicans, despite years of Democratic dominion.
Stokesbary still does. The 35-year-old attorney and chief budget writer for House Republicans is running for a fourth term. By far the strongest candidate in his primary election contest, he earns our unreserved endorsement.
Irwin, however, decided not to run again. In his place, we endorse Eric Robertson, a retired Washington State Patrol trooper and former two-term Republican House member.
Robertson, 57, lives in the unincorporated Puyallup Valley community of Alderton and seeks another go-round representing the 31st District after a 22-year hiatus.
For House Position 1, Stokesbary has excelled in his role promoting cautious state budgets for the minority party. He’s also a respectful foil for Gov. Jay Inslee and legislative Democrats; he praised the governor for vetoing $445 million in new spending early in the COVID-19 shutdown but has called on him to do more, such as suspending union employee 3-percent pay raises.
While we often disagree with Stokesbary’s party-line votes, he does pursue middle-ground policy that fits his district’s purple politics. On homelessness, for example, he shows liberal generosity (he proposed a local option tax allowing cities to fund services for unsheltered people) combined with conservative guardrails (his proposal was tied to a ban on supervised drug injection sites and camping on public property, so Democrats never gave it a hearing).
It’s also easy to like Stokesbary’s maverick streak. He introduced a bill allowing fair compensation for Washington collegiate athletes for use of their name, image and likeness -- the kind of legislation that’s forcing the NCAA to wake up.
Stokesbary’s opponents in the Aug. 4 primary are Katie Young, a Bonney Lake Democrat, and Zach Stover, a Buckley Independent in the Bernie Sanders mold. Both are enthusiastic and raise valid concerns about Washington’s regressive tax structure. But both are too raw to join the Legislature during a simultaneous state budget trainwreck and public health emergency; this is their first run for office and they could use training at the local level.
No such training is needed for Robertson, our pick for House Position 2. A lifelong resident of the 31st and fourth-generation Buckley native, Robertson served as caucus chairman in the late ‘90s, the third-ranking Republican in the House.
He voted to cut taxes on small businesses, sponsored drunk-driving legislation that got tougher on repeat offenders and fought turning State Route 18 into a toll road. His moderate reputation was borne out by broad support from business, labor and civic groups -- support that continues in his current campaign.
Robertson is no shrinking violet when confronting Democratic policy; he says Inslee was too restrictive with some coronavirus shutdown orders, and he wants more emergency power-sharing with the Legislature. But we’re encouraged that Robertson, unlike some Republicans, hasn’t ruled out tax increases heading into a projected $9 billion shortfall.
His insights as a career public safety officer — including five years as a U.S. marshal — should also be heard during this potentially transformative moment on racial justice and police conduct. (There’s a risk of losing that perspective with the departure of Irwin, a Seattle cop.)
In the primary election, Robertson faces Democrat Thomas Clark of Lake Tapps and Republican Jerimy Kirschner of Bonney Lake. Clark, a retired Boeing engineer, lacks depth on issues and falls back on systems-theory talk. Kirschner, who runs a small legal practice, shows promise but is short on elected experience and time living in the district (four years).
In our view, Drew Stokesbary and Eric Robertson would be an effective new tandem in District 31.
ABOUT OUR ENDORSEMENTS
The News Tribune Editorial Board interviewed candidates and did other research before making our picks in the Aug. 4 primary election. For races with only two candidates, we will wait until general election season. Endorsements are intended to promote civic discourse and encourage voters to dig deeper. Board members include: Matt Misterek, editorial page editor; Karen Irwin, editorial writer; Matt Driscoll, local news columnist; and Pamela Transue, community representative and former president of Tacoma Community College.