Latest news with #BremertonCityCouncil
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Lawmakers condemn protest at home of Democratic WA legislator
Rep. Tarra Simmons, D-Bremerton, is the first formerly incarcerated legislator in Washington state. (Photo courtesy of Legislative Support Services) Lawmakers have sprung to the defense of a Washington state lawmaker who faced a protest at her home over the weekend. Rep. Tarra Simmons estimated 20-25 protesters showed up at her Bremerton home on Saturday. The Democratic lawmaker held two town hall events that day in her district and was planning to stop at home after the first, but said she got calls from neighbors about the demonstration, so stayed away. 'I believe that people should have a right to free speech and assembly, I just wish they'd do it at my office or the Capitol,' Simmons said Tuesday. Matthew Adams, who ran for Bremerton City Council in 2021, took credit for the hourlong protest. He said the demonstrators stayed on public property. 'We were pretty respectful,' he added. He said they focused on Simmons because of her approach to public safety. Simmons, who was formerly incarcerated, has been a staunch advocate for strengthening rights and improving conditions for people in the criminal justice system, including those in prison. 'Criminals come to our homes, so why can't we go to theirs?' Adams said Tuesday. Some of the signs at the protest included a mugshot of Simmons. Another called her a 'Tarra-ist.' Elected in 2020, Simmons said her legislative career has been about eliminating the stigma people continue to face long after leaving prison. Her criminal record has been expunged. 'This harassment could lead people to relapse and recidivate,' she said. 'Lack of opportunity and constant harassment of people who have been incarcerated is what I'm trying to fight.' The tactics drew condemnation from both sides of the aisle. 'I think it is out of line for people to be targeted at their private homes for their political views,' said House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, D-West Seattle. House Minority Leader Drew Stokesbary, R-Auburn, agreed. 'I don't think it's morally right to be harassing folks in their own home and making them feel unsafe,' he said. But he also called Simmons 'soft on crime.' One of her proposals, House Bill 1125, would pave the way for felony offenders to petition for a new prison sentence. But the House didn't pass the measure before a deadline, so it is likely dead for the year. 'By protesting at her house, you lose the very good message, which is that Tarra Simmons wants to let criminals out of jail early, and, instead, how the protest was conducted was the story, and I don't think that's wise,' Stokesbary said. Stokesbary hopes Democratic leaders condemn protests at the homes of Republican lawmakers, citing Washington Education Association demonstrations over the past decade. After the protest at her home, demonstrators took to Simmons' town hall in Bremerton, which she attended with her seatmates. Adams said he called her a 'scumbag' there. He said he likes Democratic Rep. Greg Nance, who is also from Kitsap County, but not Simmons. Adams said he doesn't plan to hold another similar protest, saying he thought this one was effective. In recent years, Lt. Gov. Denny Heck has championed bringing greater civility to politics. He spearheaded the development of the Project for Civic Health with the University of Washington, Henry M. Jackson Foundation and William D. Ruckelshaus Center. A report from the group found governing has gotten harder at the local level, with more than one mayor reporting protesters outside their homes. One had that happen during a wedding. 'The incapacity for civil dialogue across differing opinions is a serious disease of our body politic,' the report reads.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Bremerton's mayoral election will be contested as mayor, councilman chart path forward
The race for mayor of Bremerton has begun, after Bremerton City Councilman Jeff Coughlin on Tuesday announced his candidacy and incumbent Mayor Greg Wheeler made his formal announcement Thursday. At the center – two visions on how to move the city forward. The executive office, a nonpartisan position, will be up for election in November, and potentially an August primary, at the end of a second term for Wheeler, who was elected in 2017 and again in 2021. Wheeler, a lifelong Bremertonian, former Puget Sound Naval Shipyard worker and Navy veteran, said serving as mayor of his hometown has been 'the greatest honor of my life' and it's 'the only job I wanted.' He entered public office by winning a seat on the Bremerton City Council. But his challenger said Wheeler hasn't done enough for another term. 'After eight years, things need to change,' Coughlin said. 'Another four years under Greg Wheeler and the city will not be moving forward, and so now is really the time.' Coughlin detailed a slew of plans to make that forward movement on his campaign webpage, addressing a number of hot-button Bremerton issues. Among his pledges, Coughlin wants to make Bremerton safer with more police officers and bolstered code compliance, tackle the city's housing crisis with more affordable units and a smoothed out permitting process, and address homelessness by collaborating with community partners and investing in supportive social services. For the last four years Coughlin has been a member of the Bremerton City Council, including a year as council president, and previously served on the city's planning commission. He is also an astrophysicist and certified project management professional, worked as a director for NASA and the SET Institute, and volunteers as the director of the Kitsap History Museum. He was also a candidate as a Democrat in the primary for the 2024 Kitsap County board of commissioners race, won by Republican Oran Root last November. 'I'm ready to actually listen to people, to work not only across the aisle, but across the board of anybody who wants to work on solutions,' Coughlin said. 'I have not seen the core issues that affect the city addressed and I've only seen them get worse over the past eight years under Mayor Wheeler's leadership.' Wheeler sees forward moment for Bremerton differently. 'We've made tremendous strides in seven years as a city and myself with my administration, we've done that,' Wheeler said. 'I want this campaign to focus on continuing this momentum, this forward progress.' Wheeler said his experience gives him an intimate understanding of neighborhood issues built through outreach on foot, and he's developed relationships in Kitsap County and around the region that are crucial for problem solving. He cited regional partnerships as an example that was instrumental in backfilling ferry service cuts from Washington State Ferries. Bremerton is in the midst of 'tough times' now, Wheeler said, adding he has seen the city through the COVID-19 pandemic and a flurry of challenging executive orders from President Donald Trump's administration. 'I will lead us towards prosperity.' Wheeler also detailed a long list of action items on his campaign webpage, among them the development and improvement of various city parks, improving public safety with police hiring and expanded community safety programming, job creation and economic development, and keeping Bremerton affordable with support for housing programming. There have been differences between Coughlin and Wheeler on city issues. Tension between the council and Wheeler has been on display during some meetings. Coughlin said that's because Wheeler hasn't communicated well with councilmembers, leaving them in the dark on some issues. Coughlin read about Wheeler's plans to pause the city's hiring of a DEI position in the Kitsap Sun before he heard it from the mayor, he offered as an example. Wheeler said his administration has spent more time and resources 'than I've ever seen' on communication with the council, to 'educate new council members on the roles of government, what government can and cannot do.' The council saw nearly half of its members replaced in 2018 after Wheeler was elected, he noted, saying there was very little senior leadership left on the City Council. Wheeler, who served for eight years as a councilmember, expects communication to improve as the current councilmembers gain seniority. Other candidates may join the race for Bremerton Mayor in the coming months. May 9 is the final day for candidates to file their campaigns for public office in the 2025 election. This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Election for Bremerton's mayor draws challenge to re-election bid
