Community Education Police & Fire

Police investigate scuffle at Let’s Go Washington rally

Posted on November 18th, 2025 By: Vince Dice

Two men told Gig Harbor Now that security at a Let’s Go Washington rally at Gig Harbor High School on Sunday, Nov. 16, stopped them from entering the event.

One of them, Zach Wurtz of Seattle, said he spent about 90 minutes in the back of a Gig Harbor Police Department car. Wurtz said officers determined he did nothing wrong and released him.

Meanwhile, Let’s Go Washington campaign manager Darren Littell accused Wurtz of assault, while Wurtz said another LGW representative assaulted him.

Gig Harbor Police declined to comment, citing an ongoing investigation. Chief Tray Federici added that police did not arrest anyone.

Another man, Bennett Haselton of Gig Harbor, said police stopped him from re-entering the event after he witnessed Wurtz being questioned.

Haselton and Wurtz allege that by preventing them from attending the event, Let’s Go Washington violated the agreement under which it rented the facility from the Peninsula School District.

On-again, off-again, on-again rally

Let’s Go Washington is a conservative political action committee that sponsored six initiatives on the November 2024 ballot, four of which voters approved. Those include one barring a state income tax; one rolling back restrictions on police pursuits; one regarding natural gas energy; and another guaranteeing parents access to students’ academic and health records.

The organization is promoting initiatives to the Legislature regarding transgender athletes in interscholastic sports and parents’ rights. The stated purpose of Sunday’s rally was to gather signatures for those initiatives.

The Peninsula School District first approved use of its facility for the rally, then denied it after receiving questions from community members who argued that it violated district policy. On Nov. 14, just a few days before the Super Signer rally, the district reversed course again and allowed it to proceed.

Ari Hoffman, a conservative talk show host for radio station KVI, and conservative voter registration activist Scott Presler headlined the event.

Involved parties

Wurtz is a “political tracker,” who attends campaign rallies and events to record them on video. He said he primarily works with progressive causes and candidates.

Haselton, who works in cybersecurity, describes himself as “active in progressive circles.” Each said they had never met the other before Sunday.

Littell, LGW’s campaign manager, said he recognized Wurz from previous events. He said Wurtz had been “disruptive” at other Let’s Go Washington rallies.

Unsurprisingly, they provided different accounts of what happened.

He said, he said

Wurtz said he attempted to enter the gymnasium, where Let’s Go Washington was gathering signatures. Littell told him: “No, not today,” Wurtz said.

“I said, ‘This is a public building and a public event,’” Wurtz said. “‘You signed a form (with the school district) that said you have to allow everybody in, so yes, I’m allowed in.’”

Wurtz tried to enter through a different door, at which point he said a second Let’s Go Washington staff member grabbed his shoulder and pushed him “really hard.” The second staff member “dragged me out of the building.”

Littell said he blocked Wurtz’s entry into the gym, but Wurtz tried to push his way past.

“I was standing in the doorway and he tried to run me over,” Littell said. “He was pulling at the door handles and I said no and he tried to bulldoze me over.”

Investigation in progress, police say

Gig Harbor police officers were on scene, as they often are for high-profile events. Wurtz said police detained him for what he estimated to be about 90 minutes while they conducted an investigation.

Littell said police told him that he was “clearly the victim here.”

Wurtz, on the other hand, said police told him that school surveillance video supported his account of the incident.

Gig Harbor Now filed a public records request with the Peninsula School District for the video on Nov. 18. We also requested body camera footage from the police department.

Federici provided only a brief statement about the incident:

“The Gig Harbor Police Department responded to initial and counter-allegations of simple assault on November 16 at an event hosted at Gig Harbor High School. The investigation is still in progress, so we’re not able to provide additional details at this time.”

Was the event public?

Haselton saw security removing Wurtz and stuck around to monitor the situation. He said that when he later attempted to enter the school, a police officer told him “the event organizers didn’t want me inside and that if I went back in I would be arrested.”

Whether Wurtz and Haselton had a right to be at the event is also a point of contention.

Peninsula School District guidelines say that facilities users “shall not practice discrimination of any kind.”

Wurtz believes Let’s Go Washington was out of line.

“They signed a facilities use agreement that says when you rent that facility, you can’t discriminate against anyone for any reason,” he said. “It wouldn’t have mattered if you were holding a wedding there, I’d be allowed to attend. They’re not allowed to exclude anybody and they signed a form that says they’re not going to do that.”

Littell said that since Let’s Go Washington rented the facility, it could decide who could attend.

“I think that it was an event that we were hosting,” he said. “If somebody’s going to be there and is an intentional, known disrupter, we have the ability to stop them from coming in and intentionally disrupting the event. He tried to do that just by bulling me over.”

Let’s Go Washington spokeswoman Hallie Herzberg said the rental agreement “does say that we’re allowed to say who’s into the space because we’re renting it and we’re paying for it.”

Opponents invited

Peninsula School District spokeswoman Danielle Chastaine said district officials “do not have sufficient information about the incident” to answer questions. She did not immediately have specifics about rental documents Let’s Go Washington signed.

Haselton pointed out that one of the headline speakers, the talk show host Ari Hoffman, actually invited people of opposing viewpoints to attend the rally on his Nov. 12 show.

“If you’re a Democrat, I’ll talk to you first! We can argue politics,” Hoffman said on the show. “You can tell me everything you disagree with on these issues. We can do that.”