Few eye-openers on first day of filing

By PAT MUIR
Yakima Herald-Republic
Few eye-openers on first day of filing
TJ MULLINAX/Yakima Herald-Republic
Chad Crossley files for an open Zillah City Council seat in the 2009 election Monday afternoon, June 1, 2009 at the Yakima County Courthouse.
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There were few surprises on the first day of this year's election filing period Monday.

Three Yakima City Council candidates filed their official candidacy forms with the Yakima County Auditor's Office, but each had already announced their candidacy.

Aside from that, it was mostly incumbents who filed. Perhaps the most notable unexpected filing came from Sunnyside, where high school auto shop teacher Nick Paulakis threw in his hat for City Council.

Sunnyside, the county's second largest city, will have district-by-district City Council elections for the first time this year instead of at-large elections. That means incumbent Bill Gant's former at-large seat now represents District 4, where Paulakis lives but Gant does not.

Paulakis, 52, has taught auto shop at Sunnyside High School since 1983 and said he wants to bring an educator's perspective to the council.

"Part of what I want to do is provide more things for kids," he said.

In hard budget times municipalities are quick to cut things like parks and recreation programs, which Paulakis believes keep children away from gangs.

"I just can't figure that," he said.

The filing period continues through Friday. In Yakima County some 112 positions ranging from school board to city council to fire districts headed for the ballot. Candidates to file for office in Yakima County on Monday were:

 

15th District state House: Position 2, David Taylor, R-Moxee (i*)

Yakima City Council: Position 1, Maureen Adkison (i); Position 6, Mary Place; Position 7, T.J. Davis

Yakima School Board: Position 1, Jim Scoggins; Position 2, Walt Ranta (i)

Grandview City Council: Position 1, Joan Souders (i); Position 6, Diana Jennings (i)

Harrah Town Council: Position 1, Peter Touhey (i)

Moxee City Council: Position 1, Maravell Gonsioroski (i)

Selah City Council: Position 2, Paul Overby (i); Position 7, Kevin Jorgensen (i)

Sunnyside City Council: Position 4, Nick Paulakis

Toppenish City Council: Position 2, Blaine Thorington (i)

Union Gap City Council: Position 1, Glenn Bateman (i); Position 3, Dan Olson (i)

Zillah City Council: Mayor, Gary Clark (i); Position 3, Chad Crossley

Yakima Municipal Court judge: Position 1, Kelley Olwell (i); Position 2, Susan Woodard (i)

Union Gap School Board: Position 3, Ron Jennings (i)

Grandview School Board: Position 5, Paul Jepson (i)

Selah School Board: Position 2, Kelliann Ergeson

Mabton School Board: Position 3, Elsa Sanchez (i)

Wapato School Board: Position 3, Richard Lommers (i)

Granger School Board: Position 1, Ray Hull (i)

Zillah School Board: Position 2, Chris Van Antwerp; Position 5, Dennis Jones (i)

Fire District 1: Position 3, John Kobli

Fire District 4: Position 4, Joseph Gendron (i)

Fire District 12: Position 1, Vaughn "Jim" Merritt (i)

Port of Grandview board: Position 2, Jim Sewell (i)

Port of Sunnyside: Position 3, Jim Grubenhoff, St. Clair Woodworth (i)

 

* (i) indicates the candidate is an incumbent.

 

* Pat Muir can be reached at 509-577-7693 or pmuir@yakimaherald.com.

 



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