Two Republicans want to be Benton County Prosecutor. They’ll debate at the Badger Club

The Columbia Basin Badger Club will present a virtual forum featuring the two candidates for Benton County Prosecuting Attorney on Thursday, Sept. 15.

After 36 years as Benton County’s top lawyer, Andy Miller announced his retirement earlier this year rather than seeking re-election for a 10th term. Miller is the most senior county prosecutor in Washington state. He also has been the only Democrat to hold elected office in Benton or Franklin County for many years, and has been unopposed for re-election for his past seven terms.

But for the first time in nearly three decades, Benton County voters won’t have a Democrat on their ballot for prosecuting attorney. Instead, two Republicans are vying for the position — Eric Eisinger, a senior partner with the Richland law firm Walker Heye, PLLC, and Ryan Lukson, who now serves as Benton County assistant chief deputy prosecutor and as mayor of Richland. Eisinger received the most votes in the recent primary election, defeating Lukson by nearly five percentage points.

With increased scrutiny on law enforcement in political discourse and the Benton County Public Safety Sales Tax due to sunset in 2024, the eventual leader of the prosecutor’s office will play a major role in navigating the course of our community’s future.

Eisinger is endorsed by the Benton County Republican Party and Benton County Commissioner Will McKay, while Lukson has the support of Benton County Commissioners Jerome Delvin and Shon Small as well as the sheriffs of Benton and Franklin counties and other elected officials. As of the end of August, state Public Disclosure Commission records reported that Eisinger had raised $27,475.16 and Lukson had raised $43,419.36 in total campaign contributions.

To some degree, the contest is a validation of Miller’s approach to managing the prosecutor’s office, with Lukson vowing to leverage his relationships built within the community as deputy prosecutor and Richland mayor. Eisinger says he is “devastated by the destruction and decline of other Pacific Northwest cities,” and vows to make sure it doesn’t happen here.

Eisinger is an experienced trial attorney with more than 18 years of experience in civil and criminal law and has served as a prosecutor for the City of Kennewick. He has handled more than 1,000 criminal cases as a prosecutor or defense attorney. He also was president of the Benton Franklin Counties Bar Association from 2016-2017.

Lukson was born and raised in Richland. After receiving a business-finance degree from the University of Washington, he earned a juris doctor degree from Florida State University. He worked as a civil litigator for several years in Orlando, Florida and Seattle, and moved back to the Tri-Cities in 2011. Since then, he has served as the chief litigator for the Benton County Prosecutor’s Office. His duties include advising and litigating cases on behalf of the county sheriff, jail, and coroner. He has served on the Richland City Council since 2017 and served as mayor from Jan. 2020 -Jan. 2022.

Registration for this Zoom webinar can be completed at www.columbiabasinbadgers.com. The program is free for club members and $5 for nonmembers.

The program will consist of 15-minute presentations by each candidate, followed by a half-hour moderated question and answer period. Following the webinar, we will adjourn for “Table Talk,” a half hour open-mic discussion with those who attended the forum. Our speakers are invited, but not obligated to join the conversation. I hope you will join us.