Let's fire up the oleCandidate Compare-o-Tron™

State Legislators

LD 8 Rep 1

Klippert

Regev

Klippert vs. Regev

LD 8 Rep 2

Boehnke

Stanley

Boehnke vs. Stanley

LD 9 Rep 1

Borden

Dye

Borden vs. Dye

LD 16 Rep 1

Chvatal

Klicker

Borden vs. Dye

LD 16 Rep 2

Rude

Coburn

Rude vs. Coburn

LD 16 Senator

Reser

Dozier

Reser vs. Dozier

Opponents have matching colors. Click their faces—they might have more to say.

Perry Dozier, Skyler Rude, Mary Dye, and Matt Boehnke did not complete our Q&A despite numerous attempts on our part. These candidates’ positions were speculated to the best of our ability based on comments, traditional party positions, publicly available information, and consultations with engaged citizens.

A	Strongly lean A	Slightly lean A	Slightly lean B	Strongly lean B	B
In the face of dramatically decreased revenue from COVID-19’s impact on the economy, we should empower local businesses with tax breaks and deregulation to reinvigorate the economy.	Klippert Klicker Boehnke Dozier	Borden My concern with stimulus packages for businesses is the tendency for them to favor big businesses that don't need it while leaving independents in the rain and the people holding the check. Dye Rude	Reser Businesses and our local economies need stimulus support to recover from an economic catastrophe of this scale. Chvatal State and local governments should work together to assess needs and decisions must be considered in light of current revenue reports and the impact of a CARES 2 package	Coburn Stanley Regev The surplus was created for these difficult times. Using these funds to cover needed improvements to our infrastructure creates jobs and paves the way to resume more robust business as we recover.	In the face of dramatically decreased revenue from COVID-19’s impact on the economy, we should encourage state-wide economic growth with stimulus packages and infrastructure spending.
COVID-19 is a once-in-a-generation sea change. We should shore up the damage using the state’s Rainy Day Fund, and prepare our budget for a ‘new normal.’	Dye Regev Please see the above answer. I will add that by helping keep Washington families afloat now, it will save the state more money in the long term by preventing a run on assistance programs.	Borden Given the large increase in the State budget over the past decade I don't trust Olympia to ever balance the budget. They keep spending more and asking for more even with massive cannabis revenues. Coburn Reser COVID-19 has resulted in significant budgetary changes. We may need to rely partially on our reserves, but that will not be enough alone to adapt to the challenges we face in the future. Stanley Klicker Boehnke Rude	Chvatal Decisions must be considered in light of current revenue reports and the impact of a CARES 2 package	Klippert Dozier	The economic hit from COVID-19 is just a bump in the long road towards a balanced budget. We’ve prepared for this, and should not be making drastic changes to the Washington budget.
Governor Inslee should call a special legislative session to address foreseen state budget deficits as soon as possible.	Klippert Reser I agree with Republicans that we should have a special session to start this work as soon as possible. Klicker Dye Boehnke Rude Dozier	Chvatal Decisions must be considered in light of current revenue reports and the impact of a CARES 2 package. Stanley	Coburn Regev Governor Inslee took steps to ensure the state budget would last until the next session. This also allows us to see how bad the deficit will be. It makes sense to only meet once instead of twice right now.	Borden	The legislative branch works best when we have big, inclusive stakeholder processes followed by public hearings, talking to constituents in groups big and small; this is unwise in the context of the current public health crisis.
By incentivizing manufacturing, health care, and agricultural industries in our state, we create a competitive job market, and a vibrant creative economy will occur naturally.	Klippert Coburn Klicker Boehnke Rude Dozier	Borden Reser We need all of these sectors to be strong for our communities to be thriving, vibrant places to live and work. Stanley	Chvatal Regev If you want to attract and retain the best minds, there needs to be something to do outside of work. A thriving arts scene does this and also helps draw tourists to our region to spend their money here.		Direct funding for the Arts, Cultural Activities, and STEM yield immediate economic benefit to our state, and help our communities retain high-quality professionals.
Police should be fully funded.	Klippert Klicker Dye Boehnke Dozier	Reser Our communities value security. Everyone deserves fair and equitable treatment by law enforcement. We need to prioritize community engagement and hold our police to high but fair standards. Rude	Chvatal	Borden Coburn Stanley Regev We are seeing this play out in real time where departments are asking for more money to deal with mental health calls. Doesn't it make sense then to get more social workers?	Too much is asked of our police; some responsibilities and resources should be shifted to health and social workers and new programs.
Police officers’ skill set and training are often out of sync with the social interactions that they have with their local communities.	Borden Coburn	Chvatal Stanley Regev	Reser We can always improve training building off the standards for accredited police programs. Rude	Klippert Klicker Dozier Dye Boehnke	Police officer training programs develop a culture of learning, critical thinking, open-mindedness, tolerance, and healthy curiosity.
The Washington State COVID policy should be based on the recommendations of public health officials.	Coburn Reser We need to lead with the data, science, and experts, who tell us to mask up so we can open up. Chvatal Regev	Stanley Rude	Borden Public entities should consult health officials, but private entities should be able to do what is necessary for their livelihoods unencumbered by the State. Klicker We can both open ours businesses while utilizing guidelines from our health officials	Klippert Dye Boehnke Dozier	The economic stakes are too high for health officials’ input to dominate the decision making process. It’s time to end restrictions and fully open up our schools and businesses.
Decisions about public safety are best made by local communities, private businesses, and municipalities, who are most aware of their own local needs.	Klippert Borden Klicker Boehnke Regev Surprise! I do feel local communities have the largest stake in making things succeed. The state should be able to step in though where there is a noticeable downward trend. Rude Dozier	Reser The state should set standards and local communities should have flexibility to respond to local needs. Stanley Dye	Coburn Chvatal I believe that decisions about public safety should be made by the Health authorities at the state and county level. Both should strive to work together for the common good.		Decisions about public safety are best made at the state level, where resources of the entire state can be used to benefit everyone and coordinate intra-community needs with a bird’s eye view, taking the heat off of local politicians, who have other challenges to deal with in leading communities through these challenges.
Washington State’s current ‘Top 2 in the Primary’ voting system satisfies the needs of the community. Unnecessarily changing or complicating the existing voting system would only cause confusion and voter exhaustion.	Dye Boehnke	Klippert Dozier		Borden I support reforms like RCV in order to better represent the will of voters, and am the only candidate running in the 9th district to be recognized by FairVote Washington for this advocacy. Coburn Reser The Governor’s primary race was an example of the disenfranchisement that happens to voters whose candidate is not picked. I support exploring other options like ranked choice voting. Stanley Regev Top 2 Primaries are the most damaging thing to have happened to our elections in recent years. On the premise of saving a drop in the state budget bucket we have been robbed of real choices during the election cycle.	Washington State’s ‘Top 2 in the Primary’ voting system was a step in the right direction in 2004, but we need to take the next leap forward on election reform, where candidates win by majority, not by mere plurality (e.g. with Ranked Choice, or Instant Runoff voting systems).
More state funding for education is needed to cope with COVID-19.	Coburn Regev Re-directing school levy funds significantly impacts those who have the most to lose. Rainy day funds exist for a reason. Supplementing schools to protect our children and their teachers is a worthy use of those dollars.	Klippert Reser Many of our districts have increased costs from providing online learning that need to be addressed now. I want our districts to have more flexibility with their levies in the future. Chvatal I do not believe this is a either/or depending on the community and their needs Klicker	Borden Stanley	Boehnke Dozier	School districts should be allowed to supplement more of their funding with levies.
Cutting educational service provider (ESP) jobs is shortsighted and harmful to students.	Coburn Reser We need to maintain supports in our schools, particularly for students with special education needs. Chvatal I would defer to precedent and the constitution to determine any decrease in educational spending. I also, very much support emergency and public health services. Regev Using COVID-19 as an excuse to curtail union agreements with support staff is cynical. These employees provide invaluable services to our schools. Their union wages are what is keeping their own families afloat.	Stanley	Klippert Borden Klicker Rude Boehnke Dozier		While COVID-19 is impacting communities now, it is important to remain prepared for future crises and maintain funding for emergency reserves.
It is the responsibility of local school districts and the voters therein to decide its annual budget.	Dye	Klippert Borden I am generally supportive of more local control over education and school choice, though recognize that funding this way can open the door to disparate results based on geography and wealth. Reser Post the McCleary decision we are at better parity. Our focus going forward needs to be on the flexibility our communities want to pass the levies that make sense for each district. Klicker Rude Boehnke Dozier	Coburn Chvatal Stanley	Regev As evidenced by McCleary, the Legislature has neglected funding schools at a level that provides our students with the level of education they need to be the next generation of Washington success stories.	The state has perpetually underfunded schools. State-level tax revenue should be used to provide equity among its districts.
Climate change is not an issue that states can or should address.	Klippert Klicker Dye Dozier	Rude Boehnke	Borden	Coburn Reser Washington State has always been a leader. We should lead in creating and attracting the clean energy jobs and businesses of the future, like Moses Lake is doing with its new solar business. Chvatal Stanley Regev We need to accept climate change is real. Instead of pretending it's not happening let's take the opportunity to become leaders in the manufacture of clean solutions.	I support climate policies that incentivize Washington to do its part to prevent climate change.
We have an abundance of open, natural spaces and we need to focus on economic development over conservation or sustainability.	Dye	Klippert Klicker Rude Boehnke Dozier	Borden I support opening up public lands to an even greater extent and devolving control to the people for common usage. After all, it is our public land. Reser Our region can’t grow without maintaining sustainable, clean water sources for agricultural, manufacturing, residential, and recreational use. Stanley	Coburn Chvatal Regev	The natural environment is crucial to quality of life and economic prosperity. We should prioritize protecting it.
I will make the best decision I can based on my experience, judgment, and beliefs.	Dye	Klippert Borden While I am running on a platform dedicated to individual liberties and will not stray from this commitment, it is important to be able to listen and discuss issues with anybody and be open to what they are saying. Klicker It's important to seek opinions and perspectives from others and I will do just that. However my decisions will be made based upon the needs and concerns of the people in the district. Dozier	Coburn Reser I will bring my experience as an Eastern Washingtonian to the legislature and will keep an open mind to listen to all sides and use data, science, and experts to finalize my views. Chvatal Boehnke Rude	Stanley Regev You can't say you have made an informed decision if you haven't sought out multiple perspectives. Part of the crisis of democracy we find ourselves in is the result of myopic leadership.	I will seek opinions and perspectives different from my own when formulating a decision.
State legislature dedicates a large amount of resources to ensure healthy communication, and works hard at educating the public on how to use what exists.		Klippert Borden Chvatal Boehnke	Reser Communication must improve. Even with funding limitations in this budget cycle, we can use free methods to connect with more residents. Klicker Rude Dozier	Coburn Stanley Regev	Communication methods used by state legislators are out-dated and underfunded. Funding for upgrades to, and person-power to support, the existing systems is critical.
The state transportation budget should focus on road maintenance, repairs, and expansion to reduce congestion.	Klippert Klicker Boehnke Dozier	Borden Transportation is one of these areas where we throw increasing gobs of money at the problem with little to show for it. While (A) is important, we have not been getting our money's worth and that must be examined. Reser In the 16th LD, we have major repair and infrastructure needs that need to take priority in a tough budget environment. Coburn Rude	Chvatal Stanley There should be a some of each. All infrastructure should be updated for safety and efficiency. Regev It’s hard not to drive when a 10 minute drive takes over an hour by bus. I'll work to find which revenue streams are available to help increase the frequency of buses so folks are more willing to leave the car at home.		The state transportation budget should focus on supporting carbon-free charging/fueling, and on increasing the use of carpooling, mass transit, and bicycles.
I stand with 70% of those surveyed in support of the proposed passenger rail system that increases inter-connectivity between Southeastern WA and the rest of the State, while reducing carbon emissions.	Coburn	Reser I am really interested in learning more about high speed rail options that include Eastern Washington. Chvatal This is a proposal that I would need to thoroughly review and study. We must invest and create systems for many years into the future and view through the prism health, both humanity and the earth Stanley Regev	Klippert Borden Klicker Boehnke Rude Dozier		The proposed passenger rail system comes at too high an upfront cost. The state has higher priorities for its transportation budget, and I support focused funding on the interstate road system.
The state has a role to play in cost of living and affordable housing.	Coburn Chvatal Stanley Regev A key factor in gaining stability is being able to maintain housing. In our community the ability to find an affordable place to live is out of reach for too many residents and it has not been addressed.	Reser We need the state to partner in rural areas to make construction more affordable and accessible. The state can also help support job programs in the trades that will make labor more available for construction.	Klippert Rude Boehnke Dozier	Borden The key being that the market needs to actually be open. Heavy regulations like zoning block the construction of new housing and enables NIMBY elitism that leaves us with artificially restricted, expensive housing. Klicker	Cost of living and housing affordability should be left solely to the market.
We should control and guide suburban sprawl in our state even if doing so affects short-term economic growth.	Stanley	Coburn Chvatal Regev What we need to do is make it attractive to developers to pursue high density, residential projects to revitalize our CBDs. Having a vibrant, walk-able city center attracts young professionals and tourists.	Reser The state can provide guidance, but our local areas need to be the driving force behind what works for each county in partnership with our market players. Rude Boehnke	Klippert Borden Klicker Dozier	We shouldn’t restrain free market development; it's critical to our local economies.
We need to be cautious when it comes to going too far shaping our society in response to LGBTQ+ ‘identity politics.’	Klippert Klicker I believe we are all equal and and no person of color, race or sexual identification should be discriminated against or given special privileges. Dye	Boehnke Dozier	Rude	Reser Borden Coburn Chvatal Stanley Regev This district elects a man who makes it his life's work to legislate my community away. How do you think it makes any other member of the LGBTQ community feel when he advocates for discrimination from the House floor?	We have taken positive steps forward in making our state more inclusive for LGBTQ+ and gender-nonconforming people, but there is still more progress that can be made at the state level to create a more equitable, just, and compassionate society for everyone.
Racism is a real and unfortunate thing, but it is a personal matter. We have made good progress as a society in overcoming racism and we should not try to create legislation which may overreach in order to appease minority groups.	Dye	Klippert Klicker Boehnke Dozier	Rude	Borden Meaningful justice reform measures are my #1 priority. Coburn Reser Chvatal Stanley Regev We saw it nationally with a President who told a known white supremacist hate group to 'Stand by.' and locally when all but two elected officials refused to denounce Defend the Tri.	Systemic racism is real and there are many things we must do at the state level to respond to the urgent challenge of creating a more just society.