PORT TOWNSEND — Voters who missed the July 1 Port Townsend City Council candidates forum — or who want to watch it again — will find a video recording on the Jefferson County League of Women Voters website and YouTube channel.
The links are found at www.lwvwa.org/Jefferson and tinyurl.com/PDN-PTCouncilVideo.
This race, for City Council Position 5, is the only council contest on Jefferson County’s Aug. 3 primary election ballot since it’s the only one with more than two candidates. Vying for the seat to be vacated by Pamela Adams, who announced this spring she wouldn’t run for a third term, are:
• Sky Hardesty-Thompson, 39, a nine-year Port Townsend resident and small business owner running for office for the first time.
• Tyler Myles Vega, 44, a computer technician at Dailey Computer Consulting and a six-year resident who has previously run for Congress and for City Council.
• Libby Urner Wennstrom, 58, a self-employed technical writer and vice chair of the Jefferson County Democrats who has lived in Port Townsend for 23 years.
In the forum, the hopefuls discussed the issues of homeless people living in Port Townsend; reportedly aggressive deer behavior, discrimination against LGBTQ residents, the Port Townsend Paper Mill’s water use contract with the city and what the city should do to address the affordable housing shortage.
The civil debate ran for nearly 90 minutes, with Janette Force moderating and posing questions submitted by the public beforehand.
Ballots are being mailed out to Jefferson County residents Wednesday for the Aug. 3 primary election, which also includes races for fire district commissioners and school board seats.
Residents yet to register to vote can do it online or by mail by July 26, or in person all the way through Aug. 3 at the Jefferson County Courthouse, open 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays at 1820 Jefferson St.
For information, see co.jefferson.wa.us and use the “Elections” link under Quick Links or contact voter registration coordinator Sandi Eldridge at 360-385-9119 or seldridge@co.jefferson.wa.us.
The League of Women Voters expressed thanks to the forum’s cosponsor, the American Association of University Women-Port Townsend, its media partner KPTZ, to Force for moderating and local filmmaker Dennis Daneau, who produced the video.
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Jefferson County senior reporter Diane Urbani de la Paz can be reached at 360-417-3509 or durbanidelapaz@peninsuladaily news.com.