Two Republican challengers are taking on incumbent Brian Blake (D-Aberdeen) in the 19th District Position 2 State House of Representatives race in the Aug. 7 primary.
The Daily World spoke with all three candidates. The statements below are in the order that each candidate spoke to The Daily World.
Brian Blake
Since his election in 2002, Blake has continued to voice his support for enhancing jobs in the region, “and to do that, I’m supporting common sense natural resource policy.”
Blake recently secured more than $800,000 through a proviso secured through Gov. Jay Inslee to increase Chinook and other salmon species’ production in state hatcheries, in part to protect the state’s declining number of southern resident killer whales. Killer whales in this state rely heavily on salmon as the staple of their diet.
“We need to increase salmon production to ensure our orcas can survive and breed, and in doing so, we will also help boost the economy in fishing communities,” he said May 1 after being named to the Southern Resident Killer Whale Task Force.
He points to the “Hirst-fix” legislation of last session as a major accomplishment in supporting rural citizens. The Hirst case was a State Supreme Court ruling in 2016 that stated any new development wanting to build a new home on rural property had to prove a well would not take any water out of area streams and rivers. The decision slowed development and rural investment in some places and placed economic burdens on anyone building and hoping to use a well as their primary source of water.
“We restored the landowners’ ability to build on their land,” said Blake. He added that the legislation, signed by Gov. Jay Inslee Jan. 18, also provides for state resources to help restore stream flows in those that have been identified as having impacted flows.
“I’m going to keep doing what I’m doing for the district, bringing in resources to solve problems, whether dredging at Westport, Ilwaco and Chinook marinas, solving transportation issues,” said Blake.
Blake supported efforts to secure state money that will be used next year to repair the south approach to the 58-year-old State Route 107 Chehalis River Bridge just south of Montesano. The project will replace the timber on the south approach, install modern safety rails and paint the steel bridge structure. He is also a staunch supporter of the efforts of the cities of Hoquiam and Aberdeen to build the North Shore Levee.
“When we can get that built I think it’s going to restore investment in the communities of both Aberdeen and Hoquiam,” said Blake.
David Parsons
A teacher who resides in Kelso, Parsons has no previous elected experience but said his tenacity will pay off in tangible results for the district.
“I think, like the other candidates, I just want to see more results,” he said. “I’ve worked in the timber industry and have 20 years in education and I haven’t seen the types of changes I thought should have taken place by now. You can only gripe so much before you try to do something about this, and I thought running would be the best way.”
School safety is high on his list of priorities.
“That’s something we can’t wait for,” said Parsons. “I would not want to be someone who put that on the side and something happened in our district.”
He says the way to improve school safety and other priorities in the region is to work together across the aisle in the Legislature.
“We need to get common sense solutions,” he said.
Attracting industry to areas like Aberdeen and Kelso, which already have the waterways, rail access and roads in place, is another priority, as is addressing the growing opioid epidemic throughout the district. The key for the latter is getting people in place with the expertise to address it, he said.
“You can’t just throw money at problems, you throw people at problems,” he said. “People fix things. The same holds true for issues relating to education and the environment,” he said.
“When it comes to Fish and Wildlife, common sense has gone out of the regulations, and the standards and restrictions are just over the top,” said Parsons.
He said he would doggedly pursue common sense solutions to these and other issues in the area if elected.
“Again, I get results and if I didn’t think I was the best person out there with the best qualifications I wouldn’t be doing it,” said Parsons. “It’s not for me, it’s for us. I represent us, and I’m a fresh guy with lots of energy.”
Joel McEntire
McEntire resides in Cathlamet but spent the weeks leading up to the primary election overseas, stationed in Kuwait as a member of the Marine Corps Reserves, fulfilling an active duty billet. A Republican, and also an educator like Parsons, McEntire approached his party leadership asking if anyone was going to challenge Blake. At the time, the answer was no. Politically active for most of his life, McEntire agreed to run.
“Generally, I’m a person who believes in the autonomy of our state and community so I want the 19th to be able to have a strong and loud voice in Olympia,” he said. “What I’m seeing happening is Seattle politics are getting involved in our local politics and issues, and I want to keep Seattle politics in Seattle.”
Fiscal responsibility from the Legislature is one of the issues he’s targeting, saying the state in general needs to be smarter with how it spends taxpayer money.
“And as a middle school science teacher I see education is extremely inefficient,” said McEntire. “What we have now is not too far from when I was in school. I think we need to change the whole system around, and I’m trying to work with others on how to reform education.”
He believes environmental regulations need to be reined in so areas like the 19th that rely heavily on natural resources to support its economy can reap the benefits of resources such as trees and fish while still supporting a healthy environment.
“I do think environmental regulations are extremely out of balance,” said McEntire. Part of the problem, he said, is Seattle politics again, where he feels a lot of legislators from more urban areas don’t understand how important natural resource jobs are to rural areas of the state.
“When it comes to this a lot of these people (with natural resource dependent jobs) feel they have no recourse,” he said. “We can manage judiciously our wildlife, it’s about having a balance in the system and I’d like to put that balance back into place. I think that saving an owl is a noble effort, but if it costs us revenues for our schools we need to think what we are prioritizing. Are we putting owls before kids?”
McEntire said he will tirelessly pursue what is best for the district and doesn’t mind taking heat for his efforts if he is fighting for what his constituents want.
“I have this obsessive personality; when I get hooked on something and make it my goal and mission I can’t let it go. I stay on it, work on it hour after hour until it’s complete,” he said. “I m going to make your voice and welfare my number one priority, and I will wear out body and soul to follow through on that promise.”
