Five candidates vie for 4th seat

Five candidates would like to replace retiring state Rep. Lynn Schindler in the legislative district that straddles Spokane Valley.

The best known is Spokane Valley City Councilwoman and former mayor Diana Wilhite. The most financially well-heeled is Matt Shea, a novice attorney and recently divorced family-values advocate.

Both are Republicans, as is attorney Ray Deonier.

Democrats in the race are Spokane County Library District trustee Tim Hattenburg and the virtually invisible Anthony P. Honorof.

Honorof offers only an e-mail address for contact, and repeated efforts to reach him for comment were unsuccessful. He had reported no campaign contributions or expenditures by Monday.

Otherwise, the 4th Legislative District, composed largely of Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake, has only a pair of beauty contests.

Republican state Sen. Bob McCaslin and his Democratic challenger, Liberty Lake City Councilwoman Judi Owens, will advance automatically to the general election.

So will Republican state Rep. Larry Crouse and his Democratic challenger, Linda J. Thompson, who is executive director of the Greater Spokane Substance Abuse Council.

The race to replace Schindler will provide a better test of Washington’s new top-two primary. Voters could give themselves a one-party choice in the general election.

Wilhite has the most political experience and name recognition of any candidate, but Shea leads the field in campaign contributions and spending.

Filings with the state Public Disclosure Commission indicate that, by Monday, Shea had collected $36,432 and spent $15,975.

With spending of just $4,618, Wilhite appeared to be conserving her treasury for the general election. But she had collected only $27,687.

Hattenburg trailed with income of $15,975 and expenditures of $3,266. Deonier was a distant fourth with $850 in contributions and $705 in expenditures.

Here’s a closer look at the active candidates for Schindler’s position:

•Republican Ray Deonier, 37, has been an attorney since June 2003 and currently works for Connie L. Powell and Associates. He ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Malden, Wash., in 1997.

A graduate of Eastern Washington University and Gonzaga Law School, Deonier has lived in Spokane Valley since 2002. He is an Army veteran.

When he announced his candidacy, Deonier said he has always been interested in government and wanted to do more than “sit back and complain.”

He wants to make sure Spokane and other Eastern Washington communities get as much state money for road projects as they pay the state in transportation-related taxes.

“We really don’t get our fair share over here,” Deonier said.

Another of his priorities is to revise the Washington Assessment of Student Learning so school districts and parents, instead of the state, set test standards.

•Democrat Tim Hattenburg, 55, is a retired teacher who now works for Tornado Creek Publications. A Spokane County Library District trustee for two years, he ran unsuccessfully for McCaslin’s state Senate seat in 2004.

Hattenburg grew up in Spokane Valley and graduated from Central Valley High School in 1971. He earned a bachelor’s degree in education from Washington State University in 1975 and taught at North Pines Middle School for 20 years.

He describes himself as “very fiscally conservative,” and said his top priorities include the economy, education and growth.

Hattenburg – who grew up in Greenacres and campaigned against incorporation of Spokane Valley – said he understands that denser development is necessary. “But you also have to keep in mind to grandfather in neighborhoods,” he said.

•Republican Matt Shea, 34, earned his law degree from Gonzaga University in late 2006 and has practiced personal injury law for Keith S. Douglass and Associates almost a year.

Shea attended elementary schools in Spokane Valley, graduated from high school in Bellingham and earned a bachelor’s degree in history and political science from Gonzaga in 1996.

He has served in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iraq as a captain in the Army and Army National Guard.

In the Legislature, Shea wants to cut taxes, spending and regulations, while focusing resources on public safety, transportation and education – “in that order.”

Shea said he supports Republican gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi’s idea of earmarking 1 to 2 percent of the state general fund to completing projects such as the North Spokane Freeway.

Also, he would consider eliminating the sales tax on state construction projects and earmarking vehicle sales tax receipts for road construction.

•Republican Diana Wilhite, 60, is a Spokane Valley city councilwoman and former mayor who has operated Safeguard Business Printing and Promotional Products with her husband for 20 years.

She grew up in Cambridge, Idaho, and earned a bachelor’s degree in English and American history from the University of Maryland. Her first job was as a U.S. congressional staff assistant.

Wilhite was a full-time teacher in Illinois, Wisconsin and Arizona and a substitute in Washington. She volunteered in numerous Republican campaigns, including Bob McCaslin’s first state Senate race.

Wilhite was elected from a crowded field for the new Spokane Valley City Council in 2002 and was re-elected in 2005. She served as mayor for three years.

In the Legislature, Wilhite says, she would seek a hiring freeze while she studies ways to tighten the state budget.

She said she wants to spend education dollars more effectively, and would like to shift money to transportation projects – perhaps by earmarking vehicle sales tax receipts.