Community Government
Crowded 2025 ballot awaits Gig Harbor-area voters
After a flurry of last-minute filings, Gig Harbor area voters will see plenty of options on their 2025 ballots.
Filing week for the fall 2025 elections ended Friday, May 9. And many candidates waited until Friday afternoon to declare their candidacies.
The 2025 primary election, for races with at least three candidates, will be Aug. 5. The general election will be Nov. 4.
Top races
Two races will draw the most attention locally: Contests for the 26th Legislative District’s Senate seat and for mayor of Gig Harbor.
As expected, Democratic incumbent Deb Krishnadasan and Republican state Rep. Michell Caldier, both of Gig Harbor, will face off for the Senate seat.
Pierce and Kitsap county council members appointed Krishnadasan to the post this year after Emily Randall resigned it upon being elected to Congress. Caldier is serving her sixth term in the state House of Representatives.
Meanwhile, voters in the city of Gig Harbor will see a contested mayoral race for the first time since 2017.
Incumbent Mayor Mary Barber is running for a full term after being appointed to the job in November 2024. Barber succeeded former mayor Tracie Markley, who resigned last fall citing a family medical issue. Chris Haywood also filed to run for mayor.
Woock runs after all
Gig Harbor City Councilmember Jeni Woock, who announced a year ago that she wouldn’t run for re-election in 2025, reversed course during filing week and will seek another term on the council.
Woock said in an email to Gig Harbor Now that voters have implored her to seek another term on the council ever since her announcement in May 2024. The council’s recent debate on a multifamily tax exemption, to encourage developers to build apartments, sealed Woock’s change of heart.
Woock opposes the exemption, which will she predicted in a recent letter to the editor that the council will eventually approve. In that same letter, she again told voters that she didn’t plan to seek another term.
Woock said she changed her mind around noon on Thursday, May 8.
“I am committed to finding a third way compromise to support affordable housing without putting all incentives on the back of our citizens or lack of city services,” Woock wrote in her email. “There has to be a more fair way and I couldn’t work on that sitting at home. ”
Other council seats
Technically, Woock is not running for her current council seat, which is designated Position 1. By the time she decided to file, two other candidates — former city administrator Mark Hoppen and city Planning Commissioner Loreto Tessicini — had filed for position 1. Jim Hagman also later filed for position 1.
Instead, Woock filed to run for Position 3, currently occupied by Emily Stone, who is seeking a full term. The council appointed Stone to fill the remainder of Barber’s council term in 2024.
Another recent appointee, Reid Ekberg (position 7) drew no opponents and will retain his seat. Other candidates include Stephen McDuffie, Patrick MacLeod Ammann and Dan Sutich for position 2; and Julie A. Martin and Dan Wright for position 4.
Gig Harbor City Council members are elected at-large, not by district, so any city resident can run for any of the seven positions.
Other races
Both positions on the Peninsula School Board drew multiple challengers. Incumbent David Olson faces Jonathan Appleton for the District 4 position, while Emily DuCharme, David Weinberg and Matt Bruhn seek the District 2 position. Jennifer Butler, who currently occupies the District 2 post, did not run for re-election.
Kurt Grimmer is running unopposed to retain his seat on the PenMet Parks board. Jesse Rawley of Fox Island challenged incumbent Laurel Kingsbury for another seat on the five-person board.
Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One Commissioner Joe Urvina is unopposed in his race for another term. Three candidates — Thomas Lemoine, Weston King and Phil Hayden — filed for another seat on the fire board.
Here’s a full list of local candidates who filed to run for office this fall:
26th Legislative District
State Senator: Deborah Krishnadasan, Michelle Caldier
City of Gig Harbor
Mayor: Mary Barber, Chris Haywood
Council position 1: Mark Hoppen, Loreto Tessicini, Jim Hagman
Position 2: Stephen McDuffie, Dan Sutich, Patrick MacLeod Ammann
Position 3: Emily Stone, Jeni Woock
Position 4: Julie A. Martin, Dan Wright
Position 7: Reid Ekberg
Peninsula School District
District 2: Emily DuCharme, Matt Bruhn, David Weinberg
District 4: David Olson, Jonathan Appleton
PenMet Parks
Position 1: Kurt Grimmer
Position 4: Laurel Kingsbury, Jesse Rawley
Gig Harbor Fire and Medic One
Position 3: Joe Urvina
Position 4: Thomas Lemoine, Weston King, Phil Hayden
Charter Review Commission, Council District 7
Position 1: Justin Leighton, Randy Boss, Jerry Thorpe, David Seago, Gary Wescott, Pat McMonigle, Stacie Snuffin
Position 2: Gary Parker, David Moylan, Brenda Lykins
Position 3: Damon Townsend, Joshua Stecker, Martha Lantz, Jesse L. Young, Julie A. Murray