Election 2022: Candidates for 35th District House, Position 2
The two candidates facing off for the 35th District House, Position 2, seat made it through a crowded primary of four candidates.
Republican Travis Couture will face Democrat Sandy Kaiser for the seat being vacated by state Rep. Drew MacEwen, who is running for the 35th District Senate seat long held by the retiring Sen. Tim Sheldon.
The 35th District encompasses all of Mason County, western Kitsap County and western Thurston County.
The Kitsap Sun asked the legislative candidates to answer seven questions. Their answers follow:
Travis Couture
Age: 34
Current occupation: Lockheed Martin Program Manager
Previous elected experience: Chairman – Mason County Republican Party
Party: Republican
Campaign contributions: $63,107.77 (as of Sept. 26)
Q: Inflation is a challenge for many. What should the Legislature do to help those struggling with the rising cost of gas and food?
A: Inflation is rising, and we are entering in to another recession. It is imperative that State government first stop making the situation worse with short-sighted legislation. We have some of the highest gas taxes and energy prices, which raise the cost of goods on the shelf. We need to refocus our priorities and provide significant relief, as well as practice fiscal responsibility. The legislature had a record surplus of funds during the pandemic, and there was no tax relief, yet they spent that money with nothing to show for it. The state doesn’t have enough reserves in the rainy-day account to last us a single day. Let’s start with giving back some of these record revenues in the form of tax relief. Cutting the state sales tax, imposing a gas tax holiday, and providing property tax relief would be a great start, and I’ll work hard to make them happen.
Q: Police reform legislation raised the barrier for law enforcement to engage in vehicle chases of those suspected of a crime. Do you support the legislation as is, or do you think it should be changed?
A: We have all seen the devastating effects of the anti-police reform from the legislature, including the anti-pursuit legislation. I stand opposed to this legislation, and will seek to take the handcuffs off our police so that they can chase suspects once again. In Washington State, we have the lowest per-capita police in the entire nation, and in the 35th district, we have some of the lowest per-capita police in Washington State. This lack of police, and the recent laws that prevent them from protecting us, leaves our community vulnerable to rising crime, and a soft target for property crime from criminals in more populous areas. I will seek to give cops all the resources, tools, and training they need to do their job safely. I am a veteran and supporter of first responders, and I am proudly endorsed by law enforcement, specifically the Fraternal Order of Police – Olympic Mountain Lodge.
Q: Should the Legislature make drug possession a felony, as it was before the state Supreme Court found Washington’s law on simple possession unconstitutional?
A: We need to get tough on hard drugs once again. Across our region it would not take anyone long to find a spent heroin needle on the ground, and we hear about the heartbreaking overdose deaths as drugs like fentanyl burn through our streets, killing people at a rapid rate. I’m tired of it, and I know you are too. The state should do a lot more than look the other way, this level of drug abuse is not a victimless crime. It overloads our health facilities, harms our small businesses and our economy, taxes our limited police resources, and causes more crime. Putting someone with possession of drugs like heroin in jail may just save their life, and compassion for our fellow man is not giving them a free needle to kill themselves with. We must to do better, those deaths represent someone’s son or daughter, mother or father.
Q: Should access to abortion be included in the Washington State Constitution?
A: I am pro-life, however access to abortion is already the law in Washington State. The threshold to amend our State’s Constitution should be very high, and much forethought and time should be placed into it. Any time we rush to respond to current events, we should do so with clear eyes. The rush to change our Constitution by Governor Inslee is political grandstanding, coming from a man who still bitter clings to unprecedented emergency powers for over 850 days, and violated people’s choices with vaccine mandates that left many jobless. I will not vote to add abortion to the State’s Constitution, as I believe that it would nullify the right to life of the unborn. I would like to see an amendment that creates a 2/3rd’s majority to raise your taxes, and I think other issues are important as well, such as education, where I want to promote school choice.
Q: Washington state has struggled to provide beds for psychiatric patients, especially youth, and Western State has a waiting list of patients from the criminal court system. What can be done to ensure access to mental health care?
A: Due to safety concerns and lack of improvements and bad management from the highest levels in State government, Western State Hospital lost its certification and federal funding along with it. For too long the legislature has kicked this can down the road, and people suffer as a result. Just as it is expensive to operate a business or build a home in Washington, it is incredibly expensive to get new beds for troubled patients in need, along with additional staff and training for them. What is beginning in Kitsap and other places in Washington, is a push to provide mental health half-way houses directly placed in our residential neighborhoods. I do not think that is the right direction to go, and it poses a safety risk to our communities. We need more beds and facilities in areas that are near the services these mentally ill people will need to recover.
Q:: What can the Legislature do to address rising homelessness in Washington’s cities?
A: The level of homelessness here in Washington is unacceptable. One of the big reasons for our critically high homeless population is that we are viewed as a State that is very open to homeless living. People from other States and cities migrate here to be homeless, refuse assistance, and coupled with a near legalization of hard drugs and lack of enforcement of property crimes, we are a ripe target for homeless living. In short, we have become far too soft. We need to enforce our laws, and make things like tent cities, where rampant drug abuse, human trafficking, and sometimes violent crimes like rape and murder happen, totally unacceptable. Billions of dollars are thrown at this problem in Washington, and it only gets worse. An industry is being created that profits from this human suffering and fails to move the needle toward progress. To me, that’s unacceptable and must end.
Q: What can the Legislature do to help ferry service to ferry-dependent communities become reliable again?
A: Washington State has millions of boardings each year to our ferries, and they are a critical transportation option for many commuters, and many absolutely rely upon their timely service. However, our ferry system is riddled with issues, and these issues revolve around staffing. During the pandemic, many seasoned ferry workers were lost to Inslee’s vaccine mandates, and it is very difficult to get new mariners under the current framework. Most entry level ferry workers have to spend their first two years on-call for any ferry in the state with little training and seasonal adjustments, and only as much as 15% of those new hires are retained as a result. To fix this, the legislature will need to commit more transportation dollars to our ferry system. We should question how the legislature just spent record transportation dollars without fixing our ferry problems, or fixing things like traffic congestion and freight mobility.
Sandy Kaiser
Age: 62
Current occupation: Candidate
Previous elected experience: I have never run for or held elected office. I worked for the U.S. executive branch as a Foreign Service Officer, and for a statewide elected official when I was communications director at the Department of Natural Resources. When I served as vice president for college relations at The Evergreen State College, my supervisor (the president of the college) was overseen by a board of trustees appointed by the governor.
Party: Democratic
Campaign contributions: $107,250.79 (as of Sept. 26)
Q: Inflation is a challenge for many. What should the Legislature do to help those struggling with the rising cost of gas and food?
A: Our state tax system puts an unfair and heavy burden on working people and seniors who are living on Social Security. Both pay a large part of their income in consumption taxes, which are hardly noticed by those in the highest income brackets. At a time of high gas prices and inflation, it’s important to quit relying on our most vulnerable populations to pay for our schools, hospitals and roads. In the short term, we should consider a sales and gas tax holiday. In the longer term, we need to restructure our state tax system so that it distributes burdens more fairly.
Q: Police reform legislation raised the barrier for law enforcement to engage in vehicle chases of those suspected of a crime. Do you support the legislation as is, or do you think it should be changed?
A: We need to support our law enforcement with the resources, training and legislation they need to protect all citizens. I support common-sense legislation that enables law enforcement to fulfill their mission.
Q: Should the Legislature make drug possession a felony, as it was before the state Supreme Court found Washington’s law on simple possession unconstitutional?
A: The court was right to strike down a law that allowed people to be charged with a felony even if they didn’t know they had drugs in their possession. I believe the law as it exists now is correct in re-establishing criminal misdemeanor penalties for possession and referring individuals for health evaluation and possible treatment.
Q: Should access to abortion be included in the Washington State Constitution?
A: Access to reproductive healthcare is a fundamental American right. Period. The Supreme Court’s decision to deny that right will mean millions of American women will lose access to it. The issue of reproductive rights belongs to a woman, in consultation with her family and her physician, not to the government and not to one particular faith or another. Our state currently protects reproductive rights through enacted legislation. However, we can’t take anything for granted. That’s one reason this election is so important. As state representative, you can count on me to fight relentlessly to defend these rights.
Q: Washington state has struggled to provide beds for psychiatric patients, especially youth, and Western State has a waiting list of patients from the criminal court system. What can be done to ensure access to mental health care?
A: Having the appropriate resources available to address mental health in youth is the first step, such as prioritizing the need for counselors and nurses within our public schools. Expanding mental health coverage is also important to ensure all families have equal access to critical resources in their time of need.
Q: What can the Legislature do to address rising homelessness in Washington’s cities?
A: The state should invest further in more affordable housing, mental health support and worker training. Addressing homelessness also means investing further in our public schools and ensuring equal opportunity for success no matter where in the state you live. More housing is essential to accommodate our growing population and to address the severe housing crisis. The state legislature should take the lead in paring back excessive regulation and creating market-based incentives for sustainable, well-thought housing options, which should include multi-family units. Village-style density would allow for this, while maintaining vital green spaces.
Q: What can the Legislature do to help ferry service to ferry-dependent communities become reliable again?
A: Ferry service is an essential part of our state’s transportation infrastructure and merits substantial investment. I would support the Washington State Ferries Long Range Plan, which calls for new electric boats, more staffing and modernized terminals. I would also support expanding the system throughout Puget Sound, which would give residents in the 35th Legislative District a strong alternative to battling Interstate 5, and save on carbon emissions.
This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Election 2022: Candidates for 35th District House, Position 2
