Campaign materials show Scott Brummer grinning in a cowboy hat, but that’s just one of the many hats he wears in a day.
A pastor, father, grandfather, business owner, farmer, consultant and former employee with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), Brummer has spent the last decades balancing a busy life and is confident he can add a new role to the list come November: Lewis County District 3 Commissioner.
After the death of Commissioner Gary Stamper last September, the county Republican Precinct Committee Officers sent three nominees for the remaining commissioners to choose from.
Of those, Lee Grose — a Packwood resident who previously held the seat — was chosen to serve the final year of Stamper’s term.
In the November general election, voters across Lewis County will choose between Brummer and Harry Bhagwandin. Both candidates are filed as Republicans and neither has held public office before. The top vote-getter will take over for Grose immediately, rather than waiting to be sworn in the following January with most elected officials.
The district encompasses most of South and East Lewis County. Winlock proper is in Commission District 2 — represented by Commissioner Lindsey Pollock — while south of state Route 505 mostly falls in district 3. In acreage, the district makes up well over half of the county.
Brummer, 51, of Winlock’s Ferrier precinct, lived in district 2 before the county was redistricted late last year. While he said he originally intended to wait for Pollock’s seat to be up for the vote, his shift to district 3 seat jump-started his campaign.
He listed Stamper as a strong influence on his decision to enter politics.
Raised on a farm in Southern Oregon, Brummer finished high school in Auburn and stayed in Western Washington thereafter.
A fish biologist, he moved to Lewis County in 1994 to work for the Conservation District. At that time, he met his wife, Kristine. Now, beginning the final year of homeschooling the last of their three children, the couple has been together for 28 years. They’ve spent the bulk of their marriage involved in ministry in various ways. He has served as the pastor at the nondenominational church, “God’s Place” in Ethel for eight years.
After the Conservation District, Brummer moved on to WDFW, where he stayed for almost 21 years working with landowners of Lewis County on habitat solutions, preventing erosion and other projects related to the various fish- and flood-related issues of life on the Chehalis and Cowlitz rivers.
After refusal to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in the wake of Gov. Jay Inslee’s vaccine mandate for state workers in 2021, Brummer’s career with WDFW ended.
“It was a good job. I appreciate the time I spent at the department. As far as Fish and Wildlife goes, I love helping people and solving problems,” he said. “And obviously, with the amount of flooding that we have seen — I've been here in Lewis County, obviously, from the ‘96 floods on — it's been an opportunity to serve people and help find solutions to difficult problems and situations.”
Throughout his time in the department, Brummer also ran a developer consulting firm and tended to his Winlock-area farm and family-run business, Patriot Farm and Feed.
There, they have cut out a niche selling locally-grown, nutrient-rich livestock feed to small farms, specializing in non-GMO grains while keeping costs at the same rates as bigger chains. Previously, the family’s feed was in stores throughout Western Washington and Northern Oregon, but it’s now just based out of their home.
But, years ago, the business was named Patriot Farm and Bison.
Today, a large bull from their herd, an 8- or 9-year-old bison named Rio, is taxidermied and proudly displayed in the Bummers’ living room.
“It taught my kids that work ethic and the farming piece was really important. That’s the bigger reason why we did it,” he said. “We love the meat. It’s very lean, it’s super good stuff. And so we just decided, ‘Hey, we’ll raise them here.’ … There was always huge demand for it, but they were very difficult animals. They’re wild, you just can’t domesticate them. There were some close calls.”
While he “absolutely” fell in love with the bison, he said, part of Brummer’s motivation in taking care of them was his love of a challenge. Perhaps that same drive is what gave him the most votes in a five-candidate primary election in August.
“I’ve known Harry for a number of years, all the way back to coming into Fish and Wildlife. That would have been the first time I met him, he was working with the kids over in Onalaska doing the fish release stuff. The best thing I can say about him, he and his wife are very nice people. We get along very well and he definitely wants the best for Lewis County,” Brummer said. “As far as the biggest difference, I’m definitely, I believe a little more conservative than he is. I think my values and where I stand on things are going to be more conservative values. I’m a less government guy.”
Among the challenges facing Lewis County he’d prioritize as a commissioner, Brummer listed safety and security — such as putting more sheriff’s deputies on the road — and growth management, namely growing in a way that supports economic development and housing with the goal of keeping Lewis County livable for his grandchildren.
Brummer also believes the county needs a stricter budget with possible recession on the horizon, he said.
“I’ve heard people say a rumor that I just need a job. I definitely don’t need it as a job. I look at it as an opportunity to be involved in and serve the people of this county,” he said, adding later, “At this point in my life, I don’t have little kids at home. I don’t mind the night meetings. That’s being able to get out into the community. I’ve really enjoyed that since we’ve been campaigning.”
Lewis County commissioners make $90,886 per year, plus benefits.
For more on the candidates, visit the online voters’ guide at https://elections.lewiscountywa.gov/current-election/. To register to vote, head to https://elections.lewiscountywa.gov/voter-registration/ or call 360-740-1164 to find registration nearest you. The general election will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 8.
See more coverage on this race after a candidate forum planned for 5 p.m. at the Packwood Community Hall on Sept. 29 that is open to the public.
