2 former political candidates among 10 who want to be on Richland City Council
Two familiar faces are among the 10 candidates hoping to get the seat that the Richland mayor is leaving.
Ben Griggs and Justin Raffa are among the candidates who applied to replace Michael Alvarez on the city council.
Alvarez is leaving the council after being elected to the Benton County Commission.
He defeated former state Rep. Bill Jenkin to join the three-person board, replacing Commissioner Shon Small.
Richland invited people to submit applications and resumes starting in late November through Dec. 14.
The 10 candidates are:
- Ben Griggs
- Justin Raffa
- Andrew Rice
- Carl Sarrazolla
- Clancy Waldron
- Courtland Frauenkron
- Eileen Griffin
- Roni Gunnoe
- Ryan Whitten
- Todd Shepard
Griggs was part of a wave of school board candidates, including Semi Bird and Audra Byrd, who challenged board members in response to COVID-19 regulations.
Though the school positions are nonpartisan, he was endorsed by the Benton County Republican Party.
He ended up failing to unseat longtime school board member Rick Jansons.
And Raffa ran an unsuccessful bid to unseat Benton County Commissioner Jerome Delvin in 2020. This is the second time he’s applied for an empty seat on the council.
He is an active member of the Benton County Democrats. The city council positions, however, are also nonpartisan seats.
He is currently facing legal trouble in Benton County District Court after a crash on Highway 240 in September. He is facing charges of DUI and negligent driving.
Current council members will review the applications and narrow the list to as many as six finalists. Then they will hold a public interview on Jan. 6 and then pick a new council member on Jan. 17.
The position comes with a $1,253 monthly salary, as well as medical benefits.
The new council member will serve until November when they will need to run for election to serve the remaining year of Alvarez’s term.
The next mayor will be chosen by a vote of the full council.
The city council holds regular meetings on the first and third Tuesday of each month. Workshops are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month.
This story was originally published December 15, 2022 at 5:06 PM.