Interviewing the candidates

The local voters guide will be in your home mail shortly, and soon you will be deluged with campaign literature.  The campaign signs are up and you may even have had the opportunity to meet some of the candidates when they came to your house looking for your vote.

I have interviewed most of the candidates running for office in Lacey and Olympia.  Many of them are newbies with a head full of ideas and no understanding of how to get them through the process.

Others are by now, professional politicians, who engage in “political speak”  who understand the problems and fill the room with idea after idea of what they will do when re-elected.

But, I’m convinced, that everyone of them has their community at heart and wants to do a good job.  I’ve sensed almost no self-serving among those whom I have interviewed.

Having recently run for election myself, I understand how difficult it is to get your ideas out.  The platforms for doing so are few.  The Thurston County Chamber and the Lacey chamber have had some candidate forums.  A few local service clubs have done the same.  The League of Women Voters has interviewed most of the candidates.

I have tried to be non-partisan in my interviewing process.  Click on Coffee With Ken and you will be able to access all of the interviews to date.   I still have a few left to go before election day.

I did not do Tumwater races and most school board or special purpose district races because I did not have the time (air time) available.  I did have one candidate refuse to appear because she was told by her supporters, not to.

But most of the local candidates are listed below.  Take time and listen to those interviews.  It will tell you far more than caned speeches and two minute responses.