Two members of the Thurston County Commission — Sandra Romero and Cathy Wolfe — are not seeking re-election this fall. The candidates vying for Wolfe’s District 1 seat will participate in a candidates forum on Thursday.
The five candidates vying for Thurston County Commissioner District No. 1 during the primary election will gather for a public forum at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Tenino Middle School gym, 301 Old Highway 99.
“There really haven’t been any opportunities for citizens to see them in all one place and meet them — I’m pretty stoked that Tenino is going to make that happen,” said Tenino Mayor Wayne Fournier, who is co-organizing the event with Kevin Huffer of The Salish Sound.
Fournier noted that he is organizing the event on his own time, and not as a city official.
“I’ve done one of these every year for the past five years, except in the year when I’m on the ballot because then it gets weird,” he said. “I want the community to meet the candidates so they can pick who they think best represents south county. But at the same time I really want all the candidates to come down and have a south county platform. … I want them to make promises to the Tenino area.”
Candidates Jim Cooper, Jon Pettit, Allen Miller, Diane Dondero and John “Hutch” Hutchings are seeking the seat that’s being vacated by Commissioner Cathy Wolfe, who was elected to the Board of County Commissioners in 2000, after serving eight years as a state legislator.
Fournier said all of the candidates have confirmed that they plan to attend.
