Election Results: West Richland elects new mayor + 3 council seats
A majority of West Richland’s elected leaders were on the ballot Tuesday, with two city council incumbents battling it out to take over for longtime Mayor Brent Gerry.
Three city council seats also were up for grabs.
Gerry is the longest serving mayor in the city’s history, first taking office in 2014.
Incumbents Richard Bloom and John Smart were defending their council seats, while Mayor Pro Tem Fred Brink and Position 3 Councilwoman May Hays faced off for mayor.
And David Cole and Robert “Bob” Perkes were running to fill Hays’ seat.
Position 2 incumbent Ken Stoker did not have a challenger.
Benton County will certify election results on Nov. 25. Final tallies may shift some as ballots postmarked by election day are counted.
Mayor
In the race for mayor, Fred Brink pulled ahead with 2,510 votes, or 72%, to May Hays’ 943 votes, or 27%.
Once Brink is sworn in on Jan. 1, the council will need to appoint a replacement to fill his Position 6 seat for the rest of his term, which runs through the end of 2027.
Brink is a former FBI agent and program manager for the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. He has served on city council since 2018.
May Hays is a former community relations operations specialist for Benton REA utility and West Richland Chamber of Commerce executive director.
City Council Position 1
In the race for city council Position 1, incumbent John Smart held onto his seat with 1,879 votes, or 54%, to Nancy Aldrich’s 1,565 votes, or 45%.
Smart has served on city council since 2015. He is a senior research engineer.
Aldrich is a former city councilwoman, serving from 1994 to 2001 and 2004 to 2007. She is a retired civil engineer.
City Council Position 3
In the race for city council Position 3, David Cole secured a seat on the council with 2,076 votes, or 61%, to Robert “Bob” Perke’s 1,328 votes, or 39%.
Cole will take over for May Hays, whose term ends on Dec. 31.
David Cole is a Hanford worker and former law enforcement officer.
Bob Perkes is a chiropractor and former West Richland City Council member.
City Council Position 4
In the race for city council Position 4, incumbent Richard Bloom also held his seat with 1,818 votes, or 53%, to Braden Sloughter’s 1,608 votes, or 47%.
Bloom has served on West Richland City Council since 2010. He is an environmental professional and owner of BT Consulting.
Sloughter is an IT engineer at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
This story was originally published November 4, 2025 at 8:25 PM.
