In a staid political climate, underdogs have a disruptive appeal. You don’t wager on him or her — conventional wisdom is a headwind — but there’s a reservoir of if-only faith.
In the contest to replace state Rep. Mike Hope, the moderate Republican who resigned in July, voters will pick between two astute, civically engaged candidates. The favorite, Mill Creek City Councilman and Mayor Pro Tem Mark Harmsworth, received 52 percent of the vote in the August primary. Harmsworth is a whip-smart former Microsoftie, a British immigrant passionate about fixing education and transportation. There’s little doubt that he would provide a strong, conservative voice in Olympia and work hard to serve the families of the 44th District.
His opponent, Democrat Mike Wilson, has been a teacher in Snohomish County for 35 years and currently teaches government and history at Everett’s Cascade High School. He’s a history nerd (which we’re partial to), who has never run for elected office. He’s Mr. 48 percent — more of a contender than an underdog. Come November, we hope that he’s Mr. 50-plus-one.
Against the backdrop of the state Supreme Court’s McCleary decision, Wilson is the right candidate at the right time. He’s the first to concede that McCleary involves long-term adjustments and reforms. Teaching in a classroom with 33 students, he appreciates that student-teacher ratios aren’t an abstraction or random data set. Wilson mentioned an uptick of homeless students, a reality check that would benefit from a here’s-how-it-works advocate in Olympia. Whack human services to fund McCleary and brace for the consequences.
Harmsworth is an education-first proponent, but he’s opposed to new revenue. That’s a politically resonant message — everybody hates taxes — which may seal his election. “We need a healthier business environment to create quality jobs and for education to be funded first,” Harmsworth writes on his website. “We can do this and still spend within our means.”
Wilson isn’t doctrinaire, willing to negotiate and make the hard calls, including on revenue. Eliminate a handful of tax loopholes and scrub discretionary spending and it still won’t get you to $2 billion. Wilson acknowledges the math. He also moves beyond the “look at the Bertha-tunneling fiasco” to support a transportation-finance package, and is less skeptical of transit funding than Harmsworth.
Harmsworth opposes universal background checks to purchase a firearm and will vote against I-594. Wilson, a gun owner, doesn’t see it as a panacea to gun violence, but will support it.
Voters have a genuine choice. We recommend Mike Wilson.
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