Open at-large seat could tip balance of County Council
In a race that could tip the balance of power on the Whatcom County Council, four people are challenging for the council’s at-large position B seat in the Aug. 1 primary, from which the two candidates with the most votes will advance to the Nov. 7 general election.
Councilwoman Carol Frazey, the current at-large B representative, isn’t seeking re-election.
In Whatcom County, the at-large seat holds a four-year term, and the job pays $77,915 annually.
This year’s city and county races are nonpartisan, but Atul Deshmane and Jon Scanlon are listed as certified Democrats by the Whatcom Democrats and Hannah Ordos is endorsed by the Whatcom Republicans.
Despite the council’s nonpartisan status, four members of the seven-member panel are Democrats or have been endorsed by the Democratic Party, including both current at-large council members. Three members are Republicans or have been endorsed by the Republican Party.
All Whatcom County residents can vote for the at-large candidate, and voting is by mail only in Washington state.
Ballots must be postmarked — not simply placed in the mail — by 8 p.m. Aug. 1 to be counted. Ballots can also be placed in official ballot drop boxes that will be locked when polling closes.
Here’s how the candidates responded to a Bellingham Herald questionnaire that asked them to list their qualifications, the top three issues facing the county, and how they would solve one of those priorities. Candidates are listed in the order that they appear on the ballot:
Atul Deshmane
Atul Deshmane is an engineer with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Missouri and a renewable energy consultant who serves on the Whatcom County Planning Commission and is an elected commissioner for Whatcom County Public Utility District 1.
Deshmane, who lives in the Laurel area of Whatcom County, also has been a member of the Jail Stakeholder Advisory Committee and the Bellingham Broadband Advisory Group.
“We have to increase the resilience of many of our buildings, roads, infrastructure and natural resources because of changing climate, natural disasters like floods or earthquakes, and our growing population,” Deshmane told The Bellingham Herald.
Resilience, livability and safety are his priorities, he said in an email.
“I think most of us are aware that we have a housing crisis. But at least locally, specific ideas of how to address the crisis are missing.”
That’s why he is supporting the “Big Lift” to create immediate shelter for homeless residents by adding 100 tiny home units.
“We can take reasonable steps to encourage more local food, housing affordability and living wages,” he said.
Deshmane is listed as a certified Democrat and endorsed by the Bellingham Tenants Union, the Sierra Club and Whatcom Environmental voters, as well as by community leaders such as Darrell Hillaire of Lummi Nation and Bellingham City Council members Lisa Anderson and Kristina Michele Martens.
He has raised $25,128 for his campaign, according to the state Public Disclosure Commission.
Jon Scanlon
Jon Scanlon is a consultant working with Indigenous communities and conservation organizations regarding climate change and human rights, a board member at RE Sources and an appointed member of the Bellingham Community Development Advisory Board.
Scanlon lives in the Columbia neighborhood of Bellingham and has a master’s degree in international affairs from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
He has worked for Oxfam America, CARE USA and several U.S. government agencies, including the State Department, the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the Bureau of African Affairs and U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri).
Scanlon’s priorities are affordable housing, health care and child care, he told The Herald.
“Whatcom County has an affordable housing crisis. We need a variety of policy, budget, and legislative changes to address affordable housing, including new funding and additional county government staff to support affordable housing, more tiny home villages and ADUs, support for renters, eviction prevention programs, permitting reform and zoning changes and planning policies that promote dense, bike/pedestrian and transit-oriented neighborhoods in cities and Urban Growth Areas outside of floodplains and the Lake Whatcom watershed,” he said.
“There’s no silver bullet that will fix things, and it won’t happen overnight. I will work with others to develop a comprehensive approach and a big coalition that includes Whatcom County, the seven cities in the county, allies in state and federal government, workers, businesses, nonprofits, renters and advocates. I’ve spent my whole career building large coalitions to advocate for policy change, and I’ll bring that experience to Whatcom County Council,” Scanlon said.
He’s listed as a certified Democrat and endorsed by the Riveters Collective and several local elected officials, including County Council members Carol Frazey, Barry Buchanan and Todd Donovan, 42nd District state Sen. Sharon Shewmake, D-Bellingham, and 42nd District Rep. Joe Timmons, D-Bellingham.
Scanlon has raised $39,1431 and spent $41,322 for his campaign, according to the state Public Disclosure Commission — the only candidate running a deficit.
Hannah Ordos
Hannah Ordos of Sumas graduated from Nooksack Valley High School and has a bachelor’s degree in human resource management from Western Washington University.
A customer support manager for Vitamin Portfolio LLC, Ordos has additional certifications in nutrition/health, fitness, lean leadership and professional mediation training from the Whatcom Dispute Resolution Center.
She’s held leadership positions at T-Mobile, Sterling Life Insurance, Charter College and Amazon.
In addition, Ordos serves on the North Sound Behavioral Health Advisory Board, is a Be the One mentor to high school girls and a parent volunteer at Nooksack Valley School District. She’s a former president of the Happy Valley PTA and an executive board member of the Mother Baby Center.
“The issues we face are complex, and each part of Whatcom County experiences them differently,” Ordos told The Herald.
“Public safety is a multifaceted issue that relates to many of the concerns community members have. Key areas include our fentanyl crisis and the impact that it has on our youth and homeless population, the need for an appropriate jail facility, along with staffing and sufficient resources to expand our current diversion programs, and the inability to meet the infrastructure needs of our increased demand for behavioral and substance abuse services,” she said in an email.
Affordable housing and economic development are Ordos’ other priorities.
“There are no easy simple answers to our public safety challenges; however, we need to stay focused on getting our arms around the fentanyl crisis, an appropriate jail facility and much-needed mental health and substance abuse services. We can start by getting beyond partisan politics and recognizing that our cities experience these challenges differently when working toward solutions,” she said.
Ordos is endorsed by the Whatcom Republicans and several elected leaders, including Sheriff Bill Elfo, port commissioners Ken Bell and Bobby Briscoe and County Council member Tyler Byrd.
She has raised $14,673 for her campaign, according to the state Public Disclosure Commission.
Jerry Burns
Jerry Burns of Maple Falls is running for his first elected position.
He has spent 14 years as a licensed counselor, assessment officer, interventionist, instructor and outpatient counseling office administrator, according to his online voter statement.
Burns was an emergency medical technician and duty engineer at Little Creek U.S. Coast Guard Station in Norfolk, Va., and worked as a psychiatric technician at a lockdown facility in Skagit County.
In addition to his EMT certification, he studied human services at Skagit Valley College and business administration at Everett Community College.
“My primary goal is to make Whatcom County government more fiscally responsible with 100% transparency of all county funds, especially those granted to community organizations,” he said in his statement.
In addition, Burns said he would “streamline” and reduce costs of the permitting process for sand and gravel mining in the Nooksack River, “to reduce flood risk to our affected communities.”
He’d ban the use of herbicides by all county government departments and work “towards functional zero homelessness in a fiscally sound way,” according to his voter statement.
Finally, he’d make sure that the Sheriff’s Office is fully staffed and funded and “prioritize mental health training and -techniques in order to enhance safety for our deputies and all our residents,” he said.
Burns has not filed any financial reports for his campaign, according to the state Public Disclosure Commission.
