Community Government

More candidates emerge for Pierce County Council seat

Editor’s note: This article has been corrected since it was first posted. Chuck West is running as an independent for Pierce County Council.

The first day of candidate filing week brought few surprises for Gig Harbor-area races.

Candidates for this fall’s elections must register their campaign with the Elections Division of the Pierce County Auditor’s Office this week. Filing concludes at 5 p.m. Friday, May 8.

The primary election is Aug. 4, with the general election following on Nov. 3. Gig Harbor voters will decide on candidates for a Pierce County Council seat, three 26th Legislative District posts and whether to retain U.S. Rep. Emily Randall, D-Bremerton.

Contested council race 

The District 7 Pierce County Council seat, which includes greater Gig Harbor and the Key Peninsula, is being vacated by first-term incumbent Democrat Robyn Denson. Denson announced this spring that she would not run for re-election.

Brenda Lykins, a former Gig Harbor City Council member who now serves on the Pierce County Charter Review Commission, announced at the time that she would seek the council seat. Lykins, a Democrat, filed her candidacy with Pierce County on Monday.

Chuck West, a Peninsula School Board member and retired Key Peninsula Fire Department battalion chief, filed to run as an independent. West also sought the office in 2022, placing fifth in five-candidate primary field with nearly 8% of the vote.

Newcomer to the field 

They may have competition in the primary from former Seattle Police Officer Guild President Mike Solan. Solan, a Republican, filed with the state Public Disclosure Commission, which tracks campaign donations and spending. He has not yet filed with Pierce County. 

Solan recently relocated to the Gig Harbor area from West Seattle, according to the nonprofit publication PubliCola.

He led the Seattle police union for six years before opting not to seek another term in February. Solan was involved in a series of controversies during his tenure as guild president.

• He came under fire for blaming the Jan. 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol on both the far right and the far left, including the Black Lives Matter movement. 
• The South Seattle Emerald reported that he may have attempted to register to vote using the address of his police precinct.
• And he was involved in a conversation in which his union vice president appeared to joke about the death of a 23-year-old student hit by a police car while in a crosswalk.

As of Monday, May 4, neither Solan nor West have reported any campaign donations to the PDC. Lykins reported raising a little over $7,000.

Legislature

All three legislative seats representing Gig Harbor will be on the 2026 ballot. Candidates who filed Monday include: 

Senator: Incumbent Deb Krishnadasan, D-Gig Harbor; and Gary Parker, owner of BBQ2U restaurant and a former tech executive. 

House Position 1: Freshman incumbent Adison Richards, D-Port Orchard; and Republican David Olson, a Peninsula School Board member who ran for Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2024. 

House Position 2: Republican Katy Cornell, a pastor and nonprofit leader; and Democrat Tedd Wetherbee, a cannabis entrepreneur. Position 2 incumbent Rep. Michelle Caldier, R-Gig Harbor, previously announced she would not seek another term and endorsed Cornell. 

Several other candidates took the preliminary step of registering with the PDC, but have not yet filed with the county. They include Democrats Natalie Bornfleth for Position 1 and Renee Hernandez Greenfield for Position 2. 

Hernandez Greenfield is a college instructor who works at the Holly Ridge Center in Bremerton. Bornfleth, who is challenging her fellow Democrat Richards, is a teacher and union leader in the South Kitsap School District.

Another candidate, Rafe Sher, filed with the PDC without specifying either a party or which state representative seat he is running for.

Other races

Brian P. O’Gorman filed as an independent to run for the Sixth Congressional District held by Randall.

As of 3:30 p.m. Monday, only a handful of candidates had filed for countywide posts.  

They include two candidates for Prosecuting Attorney. Coreen Schnepf, currently the office’s chief criminal deputy, is seeking a promotion to the top job. Also filing was Bryan Chushcoff, a retired Pierce County Superior Court judge. 

Incumbent Pierce County Auditor Linda Farmer filed to run for re-election.

Click here for information about filing for office.