[Yakima Democrats] Proudly Saluting Our Yakima County Democratic Candidates

[Yakima County Democrats]

We were hoping it would happen and it did: Chris Ramirez, a 22-year-old 
aspiring lawyer from Yakima, filed late Friday to oppose Charles Ross in 
the race for 14th LD Representative, Position 2.
Chris, a native of Yakima went from Davis High School and just graduated 
from Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma. How great to have Chris in 
that swelling group of motivated young people who have energized the 
Democratic party all over the country.
He joins Yakima School Board Chair Vickie Ybarra who filed earlier in 
the week for 14th LD Representative, Position 1, a seat that came open 
when Rep. Mary Skinner resigned.
Yakima Democrats will work hard to send Chris and Vickie to Olympia thus 
giving the 14th LD a new legislative team – one with seats in the 
majority caucus that sets the political agenda and controls committee 
chairmanships.
Yakima’s current Republican delegation has no such status and only 
marginal political clout-a situation that leaves Yakima Valley with 
little influence on major legislative issues.
The 15th LD Democrats in the Lower Valley will also field a pair of 
strong candidates in John Gotts and Tao Berman, entrepreneurs from White 
Salmon who filed against Republican incumbents Bruce Chandler and Dan 
Newhouse.
Then there is Wapato Mayor Jesse Farias, who will face three Republicans 
for Yakima County Commissioner, Position 2. Jesse, a Vietnam War hero 
with deep Lower Valley roots, is expected to emerge from the Aug. 19 Top 
Two primary as the Democratic standard-bearer.
Heartening too is record 63 men and women who filed for election as 
Democratic precinct committee officers in Yakima County. That’s a jump 
of 50 percent over the 42 who filed in 2006.
With only 41 Republican filers last week, Yakima Democrats handily won 
the partisan PCO race, just as we out-scored the local GOP in precinct 
caucus attendance: 1,802 to 400; county convention attendance 600 to 
400; and in fund raiser banquet attendees: 275 at the Republicans’ 
Lincoln Day Dinner to 341 at our annual FDR Dinner.We are on the move.
Now for the big tests: winning the primary and general elections. To 
quote presidential nominee Barack Obama: “Now is our time.”
Paul George, Chair