There has been plenty of activity in the world of 31st Legislative District politics lately.
While one candidate prepared to announce her first run for a seat in the House of Representatives, a former House candidate announced his bid for a position in the Senate and the district’s incumbent senator landed in hot water with fellow members of the Republican Party (see separate story on this page).
Preparing to launch her candidacy for the Position 1 seat in the House of Representatives was Cathy Dahlquist.
Currently a member of the Enumclaw School Board, where she’s beginning a second, four-year term, Dahlquist will kick things off Friday night with an event at the Enumclaw Expo Center fieldhouse.
She said her experience with the school board was a key factor in deciding to chase a seat in the state Legislature.
“Decision are made in Olympia that impact school districts,” she said, noting a direct correlation between state lawmakers and issues like transportation and the providing of social services.
Also contributing to her decision to run was the architectural business she owns with her husband Jeff.
Regulations passed in Olympia “trickle down to mom-and-pop businesses like ours,” she said.
An avowed fiscal conservative, Dahlquist said jumping into legislative politics “was an easy decision for me.”
Formally announcing his candidacy Friday for the 31st District seat in the state Senate was Ron Weigelt.
A former resident of Buckley who now lives in Bonney Lake, Weigelt is no stranger to running for elective office. He was a member of the Buckley City Council from 2004 to 2009 and made an unsuccessful bid for the House of Representatives two years ago.
A Seattle native, he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public administration while also spending a dozen years in the U.S. Army.
After working for the Seattle Housing Authority and serving as a labor negotiator for King County, he joined Public Health-Seattle and King County where he and his staff are responsible for the human resources program.
“Working together we can work through our budget crisis and improve our schools, our communities, and our government itself,” he said. “I have always placed community priorities over political partisanship and I will do the same working for us in Olympia.”
