Clough quits second bid to oust Doc

Jay Clough won't make his second consecutive bid for Congressman Doc Hastings' seat after all, the Democrat announced in Richland on Thursday.

Instead the 36-year-old says he's turning his efforts toward a November showdown with state Rep. Brad Klippert, R-Kennewick.

Klippert, a school resource officer for the Kiona-Benton City School District and adjunct faculty member at Columbia Basin College, is seeking his third term as a representative of the 8th Legislative District.

Clough said he would like to advocate for education and jobs at the state level. "What I've been hitting on is manufacturing jobs, open markets to agriculture, 21st century technology for our classrooms," Clough said in a telephone interview.

Clough, a radiological control technician at Hanford nuclear reservation, had been declared a Democratic candidate for the 4th Congressional District for nearly a year. He said in April 2011 he started planning for another run after losing to Hastings in November 2010 by more than 50,000 votes.

Clough said campaigning for Congress took away from time from his young family. Clough and his wife, Erika, have a 9-month-old daughter.

"The decision I made was a very personal one," Clough said.

Clough's decision creates a void that the 4th Congressional District Democratic Committee will discuss at its quarterly meeting Saturday. Committee chairman George Fearing said members won't rush to find a new candidate.

"I don't want to have a sense of urgency; I don't want to just throw anybody in there," Fearing said. "Whoever runs needs to be capable and willing to devote a lot of time to running."

Fearing, who lost handily to Hastings in 2008, added that any Democrat can run against Hastings with or without the committee's endorsement.

Hastings has held the seat since winning election in 1994, when he defeated Congressman Jay Inslee, D-Bainbridge Island, a former Selah resident and his party's leading candidate for governor this year. Hastings has won handily in recent elections despite Democrats fielding a range of candidates throughout his tenure.

Fearing thinks Hastings is vulnerable because of his support for oil and gas drilling, but Yakima County Republicans chairman Max Golladay said he feels confident Hastings will hold onto his seat.

"I don't know if they can find a high-profile person to run, or one available that would run," Golladay said.

* Mike Faulk can be reached at 509-577-7675 or mfaulk@yakimaherald.com. Follow him on Twitter at @Mike_Faulk.