COUNTY COUNCIL DIST. 4 CANDIDATES (From left to right:) Jennifer McDaniel, Roman Battan and Eileen Quiring will vie for the seat which Councilor Tom Mielke will leave at the end of his term in December.
With County Councilor Tom Mielke's announcement that he plans to step aside and not run for reelection to the District 4 council seat at the end of his term in December, the race narrows to three fresh voices.
Mielke cited frustration with what he called a “dysfunctional” current County Council as his reason for leaving the office. The decision comes during a time of enhanced tensions as January brought a new council composition that has overturned several last-minute decisions rushed through by the previous council in the final months of 2015.
So far, two Republicans and one Democrat have announced their intent to run for the seat, with two already drawing stark distinctions between themselves and Mr. Mielke. The Reflector spoke with each candidate last week to gain insight into who the candidates will be and how they plan to approach the District 4 council seat if elected.
Republican Jennifer McDaniel considers herself a moderate, “common sense” conservative who plans to bring harmony to the legislative body which has endured an extended period of polarization and acrimony.
“I think people want to see a cohesive, more collaborative County Council,” McDaniel said during a phone interview last week. “Citizens expect us to work together to get things done, and I have a pretty good track record as a decision maker.”
In her campaign announcement, McDaniel touted her nearly decade-long record on the Washougal City Council as an example of her dedication and service to the communities she represents. First elected to the body in 2007, she was subsequently re-elected in 2011 and again in 2015. In her years on the council, she worked to cut spending through the recession while keeping taxes low; advocated for transparency and citizen communications; supported upgrades to Washougal's streets, sidewalks, parks and trails; and voted to fund the city's no-kill animal shelter.
In addition to the City Council seat, she currently represents Washougal on the C-TRAN board, has served on the Washougal Schools Foundation board and the Clark College Business Board, and volunteers for meals on Wheels, Girl Scouts of America and Washougal Arts and Cultural Alliance, among others.
“I have worked hard for Washougal over the past eight years and our city is flourishing,” she said. “I know and love East Clark County, and I look forward to this opportunity to represent my district and to serve the entire county."
More information about McDaniel can be found on her website at www.electjennifermcdaniel.com .
Roman Battan is the lone Democrat running for the County Council District 4 seat, but he wants to make sure labels don't blur the voters' vision when it comes to what he stands for and how he plans to approach a County Council seat.
“I'm not running as the Democratic candidate; I'm running as the candidate who looks to represent my district and it just so happens that I am a Democrat,” he said during a phone interview over the weekend. “I don't like the idea that somebody would exclude someone just based on a letter after their name.”
Battan grew up in the Camas-Washougal area and now owns a small media company. He wants to move past the congestion and belligerence which has plagued the current County Council and focus more on using common ground to develop opportunities where possible.
“My focus is going to be to try and get back to being an advocate for folks,” he said. “Instead of looking at where we differ and using that against each other on the board, I want to look at where we line up and where we're the same and what we can build from … The last thing I want to do is be adversarial with people.”
Battan plans to prioritize economic development within the county, specifically focusing on how to bring more jobs into the opportunity-starved area where thousands of people cross into Oregon every day to work. With experience dealing in a global economy and an eye for making deals, Battan hopes to streamline county operations and bring in resources to make the area more business-friendly.
“I believe in the idea of good governance,” he said. “I want to make sure that Clark County isn't only a great place to live, but it's a good place to work … I want to look at how we can bring jobs here to Clark County.”
This will be Battan's second run for a Clark County Council seat; he first ran in 2012 but lost by a margin of a few hundred votes. This time, he plans to run a more people-oriented campaign marked by face-to-face conversations and voter interaction.
More information on Battan can be found at www.electromanbattan.com .
When Tom Mielke announced that he would not seek reelection for the County Council District 4 seat, he simultaneously announced his support for Eileen Quiring as his successor.
The second of two Republicans to announce her candidacy, Quiring said she is running out of a deep concern for Clark County's economic situation, which she fears is too fragile.
“I will focus my energy on economic development opportunities to grow jobs in Southwest Washington,” she said in a campaign announcement. “Clark County has untapped economic potential to attract new, advanced manufacturing and we need a leader who will make that happen.”
Quiring is no stranger to Clark County politics – or to running a large, focused campaign. As a member of the Clark County Planning Commission, she was the lone person to vote in favor of the revised version of David Madore's controversial Alternative 4 proposals for the county's Comprehensive Growth Management Plan update. She also served on the Oregon State Senate, where she was the Oregon State Chair of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).
"Rural communities have been left behind due to restrictive land use policies which harm their families,” she said. “We need a strong leader who will protect our rural character, and respect the property rights of our farming and forestry families.”
About the council's tense dynamic, Quiring said she wanted to be a bridge toward progress, but warned against compromise for the sake of movement at the expense of direction.
“When you say productivity … yeah, some things need to get done, but the right things need to get done,” she said.
Despite whatever differences she may have with other councilors, Quiring said her experience in larger-context politics will help her forge the relationships and compromises needed to improve Clark County.
"People do business with people they know and trust," she said. "My time in the Oregon State Legislature gives me
the tools necessary to build strong relationships with our eight Clark County cities, local agencies and our partners at the State level.”
More information about Quiring can be found at www.electeileenq.org.
