Pair of newcomers seek state House seats

Two newcomers to politics, a Democrat and a Republican, announced their candidacies for separate Spokane-area state House seats on Monday.

John Driscoll, 50, the director of Project Access, which provides specialized health care to the uninsured, said he is challenging Republican state Rep. John Ahern this November in the 6th Legislative District.

“I see so much potential here in Spokane, and I want to be part of it,” said Driscoll, a Democrat.

As director of Project Access, he said, he has experience in community service advocacy and public policy development on the local, state and federal levels, particularly in the area of “helping people gain needed access to care.”

Driscoll has a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Washington State University and a master’s degree in health care administration from Whitworth University in Spokane.

He has three grown children.

In the nearby 4th District, personal injury attorney Matthew T. Shea, a Republican, is seeking the House seat that will be left vacant by the retirement of state Rep. Lynn Schindler, R-Otis Orchards.

Shea, a captain in the Washington state National Guard, has served two combat tours of duty, in Bosnia and Iraq. He said his experience as headquarters company commander for his guard unit in Iraq gives him the experience necessary to “provide strong leadership for the people of the district.”

The political issues of most concern to him are “lower taxes, less government and more freedom,” and he looks forward to door-belling to find out the specific concerns of constituents, he said.

Shea, who is unmarried, is a graduate of Gonzaga University, where he also obtained his law degree.