Contested races slated for Whitman County

Candidate filings for the Aug. 7 primary election in Washington state closed Friday, and many races are contested in Whitman County.

State Representatives in the Ninth Legislative District – Mary Dye, R-Pomeroy, and Joe Schmick, R-Colfax – have filed to retake their seats, but they both face opposition.

Just like two years ago, Dye will run against Pasco Democrat Jennifer Goulet.

The last time Dye was up for re-election – the 2016 general election – she defeated Goulet by 1,871 votes, bringing in 9,293 votes (55.6 percent) compared to Goulet’s 7,412 votes (44.4 percent).

Schmick will be challenged by Matthew Sutherland, a Pullman Democrat who initially planned to run for McMorris Rodgers’ seat in Congress but later dropped out to endorse Brown. It is Schmick’s first election in at least four years, and he ran unopposed in 2016.

At the county level, Whitman County Commissioner Michael Largent has filed to run for another four-year term and will be challenged by Pullman Democrat John-Mark Mahnkey, a fifth-generation Whitman County resident and member of the Whitman County Humane Society Board of Directors.

Garfield resident Sandy Jamison has filed to take the open county auditor position – vacated by longtime Republican auditor Eunice Coker. Jamison will run against 28-year-old chair of the Whitman County Democrats Eric Fejeran, who failed to beat Al Sorensen for a spot on the Pullman City Council last fall. Incumbent Treasurer Mark Clinton will face Chris Nelson, the county IT director, to retake his seat.

There’s a three-way race for district court judge in the county.

County Deputy Prosecutor Dan LeBeau, Pullman attorney Rob Rembert and John Hart, an attorney and municipal judge for the City of Colfax, are competing for the open seat, which will be vacated by District Court Judge Doug Robinson, who is retiring in the fall.

Assessor Robin Jones, Coroner Annie Pillers, Whitman County Prosecutor Denis Tracy, County Clerk Jill Whelchel and Sheriff Brett Myers have all filed for re-election but remain unopposed. Washington candidate filing closed Friday.