EDMONDS — There are plenty of differences between the 21st Legislative District incumbents and their challengers in Tuesday’s general election.
At stake are two-year terms in the state House of Representatives in a district that includes Mukilteo and parts of Lynnwood, Edmonds and Everett. The annual salary is $46,839.
Position 1
Rep. Strom Peterson, an Edmonds Democrat, is seeking a second term. His opponent is Alex Hels, a Libertarian.
They disagree on an initiative to raise the minimum wage and a proposition to pour billions of dollars into rapid transit.
Peterson favors Initiative 1433 that incrementally would raise the minimum wage from $9.47 to $13.50 by 2020.
“As a small business owner I believe increasing the minimum wage will put more money into our local economy benefiting both workers and businesses,” he said. “I am also a strong proponent of paid family sick leave and know how important it is for someone who is sick to be able to stay home and get better and not get their fellow employees sick. 1433 makes sense for workers, for business and our communities.”
Hels opposes the measure, fearing it will hurt people who are trying to get their lives turned around. He believes employers will be less willing to take a chance on hiring them if they have to pay too much. Hels also said he trusts the free market and the less government intervention, the better.
Peterson said he will vote for Sound Transit Proposition 3, a tax package that would raise $54 billion to expand light-rail and bus service in Snohomish, King and Pierce counties. “We need to invest in a world class transportation system in order to keep our quality of life and to keep growing our economy,” Peterson said.
Hels questions whether taxpayers would get their return on investment.
“At the end of the day, I don’t think it is as economical as people make it out to be,” he said.
Hels also favors term limits and cutting the salaries of state lawmakers. He said he has had full-time jobs that don’t pay as much as being a part-time lawmaker.
“I think it should be like jury duty,” he said. “You serve your time, you give input about how your government should be run and then you go back to your job.”
Peterson said he wants to help the city of Edmonds improve access to the west side of the tracks when trains block emergency vehicles. He’s also concerned about stormwater runoff reaching Puget Sound.
Peterson said curbing the widespread use of heroin and other opioids across the state is a priority. He wants to increase drug take-back boxes in pharmacies and hospitals and to get the nasal spray Naloxone into the hands of more people who can use it to help others reverse overdoses.
He’d support a small fee on opiates coming into the state, with that money earmarked for the purchase of Naloxone that could be distributed by the state Department of Health.
Position 2
The race between incumbent Lillian Ortiz-Self, a Mukilteo Democrat, and Jeff Scherrer, an Edmonds Republican, is a rematch from two years ago when Ortiz-Self captured 58 percent of the vote.
Scherrer opposes the minimum wage measure, saying it increases “the already heavy burden of regulations, makes government bigger and distracts us from our constitutional responsibility to fund education.”
He worries about the mandates it would place on employers and the impact it could have on the job market.
“Real economic growth, and the benefits from it, happens when regulations and burdens to small- and medium-sized businesses where private sector jobs are created are minimized, not increased,” he said.
Ortiz-Self said she supports the minimum wage measure because the state already is subsidizing many workers who don’t make enough to makes ends meet. “I think this is a nice compromise between our businesses and our state to make sure that people can meet their basic needs,” she said.
Scherrer opposes the Sound Transit proposition, saying it “provides too little, takes too long and will cost too much.”
The improvements could take 25 years. By that time, technological advances will make the system seem antiquated , he said.
Ortiz-Self supports the ballot measure to relieve congestion.
“If we had done it 25 years ago, we wouldn’t be in this mess,” she said. “If we make this investment for our children, then they’re not going to be left facing the same situation that we are facing right now.”
The incumbent, an Everett School District counselor, considers education and mental health among her top priorities.
“I’m in the trenches every day,” she said. “I see what is happening to our families. The stories of our children and families need to be heard in Olympia.”
She said she is trying to bring changes to education policies at the state level.
She pointed to a bill passed last session that, among other things, requires school districts to find alternative education programs for students who have been suspended or expelled. In a second term, she said she would try again to get a bill passed that would connect school counselors with mental health counselors on a monthly basis to share information. Those conversations could be done by conference calls.
Scherrer opposes toll lanes on I-405 and wants to make the state more business friendly by reducing regulations. He also supports charter schools and said he would work to move money from school administration into classrooms.
Meet the candidates
Position 1
Name: Alex Hels
Residence: Everett
Age: 26
Party: Libertarian
Experience: No prior political experience; has worked in security, at a coffee shop and a factory and in electrical installation. Also, a volunteer youth football coach
Website: www.helsforstaterep.com
Name: Strom Peterson
Residence: Edmonds
Age: 48
Party: Democrat
Experience: Owner, the Cheesemonger’s Table in Edmonds. Edmonds City Council member for 5 years. State representative two years.
Website: votestrom.com
Name: Jeff Scherrer
Residence: Edmonds
Age: 63
Party: Republican
Experience: Worked in information technology, created jobs, started and grew a company that reached $5 million in sales. Community activities include volunteer work in Rotary and Kiwanis.
Website: Jeff4State.com
Name: Lillian Ortiz-Self
Residence: Mukilteo
Age: 55
Party: Democrat
Experience: Three years serving as state representative; school counselor for Everett Public Schools; licensed mental health counselor.
Website: electlillian.com
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