Tri-City Herald recommends Boehnke to succeed Rep. Larry Haler
When Republican Rep. Larry Haler announced last February that he would not seek another term, it opened the door for new talent from the 8th Legislative District.
Haler has been in office for 14 years, and the person who takes over for him will have a tremendous opportunity – and responsibility – to ensure Tri-City voices are heard at the state level.
Between the two candidates who made it out of the August primary election, we believe Kennewick City Councilman Matt Boehnke is the one who should succeed him.
Boehnke is running as a Republican, and is a known public servant in the community.
His opponent is Christopher Tracy, a Richland Democrat and a Tri-City newcomer with an impressive background in public education and employee negotiations.
Tracy’s knowledge on school funding issues is extensive, and his expertise in that area certainly would have come in handy when the Legislature was grappling with how to amply fund K-12 education in recent years.
But we think Boehnke’s Tri-City roots give him an advantage when it comes to local issues. His experience in city government also is a plus.
We were impressed with Boehnke when he ran for the Kennewick City Council in 2015. Although a political rookie at the time, Boehnke defeated Bob Olson, who had been on the council for 28 years.
Boehnke is a go-getter without being overly forceful, and that should serve him well in Olympia.
He was born and raised in the Tri-Cities and graduated from Kamiakin High School. He turned to the ROTC to help fund his education, and that led to a 21-plus year career as a helicopter pilot for the Army.
After retiring as a lieutenant colonel in 2011, he returned to Kennewick with his family and eventually began work as a cybersecurity project manager at Energy Northwest.
He now is the director and assistant professor for cybersecurity at Columbia Basin College, and leads the school’s four-year degree program through a partnership with the University of Washington.
As a member of the Kennewick council, he has managed to get along well with other city officials and has worked on many economic development opportunities for the city, including developments at Columbia Gardens and the Southridge area.
At the state level, he is keen to help better fund higher education and direct more clean energy sources to our area – like Energy Northwest’s small modular nuclear reactor program.
His demonstrated leadership – and his people skills – will help him as he fights for local concerns and rural interests.
Tracy is a quality candidate who represents the Democratic Party well. He is a retired teacher and school librarian who spent 10 years teaching in Guam, and 30 years in the Northshore School District, which includes parts of King and Snohomish counties.
He was a negotiator for the Northshore Education Association and said he has 20 years of experience negotiating complicated union contracts. He also was a member of the Northshore School District’s Health Benefits Committee, and helped manage the school district’s insurance programs.
We agree with Tracy that his skill set is unique, and that he represents the “new” Tri-Cities.
But in this race we prefer the known to the unknown. Tracy should continue his involvement in the community at the local level because he has a lot to offer.
Boehnke’s already served at the city level, and we think he’s ready to move on.
The Tri-City Herald recommends Matt Boehnke for state representative in the 8th Legislative District.
This story was originally published September 26, 2018 at 5:32 PM.