EVERETT — The race for House of Representatives Position 2 in the 38th Legislative District is notable for its lack of a Republican challenger to incumbent Democrat Mike Sells.
Sells’ challenger is Elijah Olson, a former Republican running as a Libertarian.
Sells is running for a sixth term in the House, and the state Supreme Court’s McCleary decision and contempt ruling means that the former schoolteacher will be in his element to tackle a $2 billion problem.
The court ruled that Washington’s funding of public schools is unconstitutionally deficient. Whatever the solution, Sells is sure it will have to combine budget trimming with new taxes.
“I think it’s going to have to be a combination of some cuts in some places and raising revenue in other places,” Sells said.
“I’m keeping an open mind as far as revenue,” he said. “Most of the work we’re going to do is ending up on a ballot anyway.”
Another state Supreme Court ruling this year, mandating more money for housing and services for people with mental illness, only adds to the need for more revenue, he said.
Republican efforts to balance the budget solely with tax cuts won’t work, Sells said.
“They haven’t been able to tell us what they would cut,” he said.
Olson’s position is in stark contrast to Sells’. Olson believes the state has plenty of money to fully fund K-12 education and mental health services.
“I think the money’s already there — I think it’s being not used properly,” he said, adding that he would “go through the budget and weed out the black parts of it where they don’t know where the money went.”
“If you look at Boeing — Boeing got an $800 million tax break. Multiples of that, it just adds up,” Olson said.
Olson suggested that the state’s budget problem could be helped by “taking 10 percent of taxpayer revenue and putting it into something like a mutual fund. Start using that as a yearly source of tax revenue without taxing more.”
Other major issues facing the Legislature, such as a transportation package or Gov. Jay Inslee’s water-quality proposal, will require deft negotiation, Sells said.
“You’d better be able to go in there with an open mind and be prepared to negotiate those issues,” Sells said. “You’ve gotta have some flexibility.”
Sells identified education as the key issue for the next legislative session, which begins in January, but Olson raises more philosophical issues.
“What I really want to do is bring back the whole personal-liberty stance on things,” he said. “For one, our own government is spying on us, treating us like a nanny state.”
Olson’s campaign website is similarly focused more on broad-based policy reform from a Libertarian perspective, several of which are outside the purview of the Legislature.
Olson faces an uphill battle against an incumbent with deep roots and connections.
Sells is secretary-treasurer of the Snohomish County Labor Council and used to lead the Everett Education Association. He has raised $53,050.59 in campaign contributions from a mix of unions, business PACs and Native American tribes and spent $5,769.68 of it as of Oct. 3.
Olson ran unsuccessfully for Congress against U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen in 2012 and for a seat on the Marysville City Council in 2013. He has raised $50 from one donor.
Chris Winters: 425-374-4165 or cwinters@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @Chris_At_Herald.
The candidates:
Mike Sells
Age: 69
Party: Democratic
Vocation: Secretary-Treasurer of Snohomish County Labor Council
Website: mikesells.net
Elijah Olson
Age: 31
Party: Libertarian
Vocation: Manager for Platt Electric Supply
Website: eliolson2014.com
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