Primary election results are in for the Pierce County Council. Some upsets, new faces
Early results are in for the 2024 Pierce County Council primary election. There are some close races and possibly some new faces who could join the council.
Currently Democrats hold a slim political majority on the Pierce County Council, but if incumbent Jani Hitchen is unseated by Republican challenger Loujanna “LJ” Rohrer in November, that could change.
A reminder: the general election is Nov. 5. Learn more about how to register to vote, who your candidates will be and where your nearest ballot box is online at the Pierce County Elections website.
With 700 of 732 precincts reporting as of 8:02 p.m., here’s who is in the lead:
District 2
Republican Paul Herrera is the current Pierce County Council member representing District 2 since he was appointed in 2022. Herrera is expected to advance to the general election, earning 53.12% of the vote tally Tuesday.
Democrat Davida Haygood is expected to advance as well, with 38.13% of the vote.
Independent Nate Lowry trailed with 8.67% of the vote.
Herrera previously served as a police sergeant for the Puyallup Tribe for over 20 years and worked as director of Fish & Wildlife Enforcement in addition to assignments as a school resource officer, Pierce County Gang Task Force, swift water rescue technician, and training in group crisis Intervention. Herrera serves on the Governors Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee, Veterans Legislative Coalition and previously served on the Pierce County Equity Review Board, Pierce County Veterans Advisory Board and the Pierce County Law & Justice Review Board.
Haygood is an educator, community organizer and activist with a master’s degree in Early Education and Special Education and a BA in Business Management. She ran on a platform of commitment to social justice and the desire to create policies that meet the needs of diverse children and families in Pierce County. Haygood founded the Two-Way Racial Healing Project nonprofit that holds space to discuss social justice and systemic racism, among other topics and is an associate professor at Pierce College.
Lowry is a small business owner and landscape architect. He has served on the Edgewood City Council for two terms and was a past Planning Commission member. He also served on the Pierce County Regional Council until 2023 and volunteers in the community.
District 2 includes the communities of Edgewood, Milton, Pacific, Puyallup, South Hill, Summit View and Sumner.
District 3
Republican Amy Cruver has served as the District 3 member since 2020. Cruver is also expected to advance to the general election, earning 59.06% of the vote Tuesday.
Democrat John M. Linboe also looks to advance, with 30.15% of the vote.
Marcus Young, who listed no party affiliation, trailed behind with 10.72% of the vote.
Cruver served as then-state Rep. Jim McCune’s assistant in 2005 and later served as his assistant on the Pierce County Council. She’s a member of the Farm Bureau, Washington State Grange (Roy), Back Country Horsemen, Support Services for South Pierce Fire & Rescue District 17 (CERT), Eatonville Business Association (EBA), Graham Business Association (GBA), Citizen’s Alliance for Property Rights (CAPR), Citizens United for Responsible Education (CURE), Upper Nisqually Sportsman’s Club (UNSC), lifetime NRA and the Constitutional Sheriffs & Peace Officers Association (CSPOA).
Linboe serves as a fire commissioner for South Pierce Fire & Rescue and as a director for Washington State Fire Commissioners Association, Position 7, which covers both Pierce and Thurston counties. He manages a show-quality sheep and pig farm and volunteers as the market sale manager for both the Pierce County Fair and Pierce County Fair Foundation.
Young is currently the board president of the Bethel School Board and has served on the school board since 2018. He is a pastor at the New Life Church in Spanaway and campaigned as a proud dad to eight kids, including three adopted nephews. Young ran a campaign without a party label, “Because I believe putting people first is more important than political parties,” he said on his website.
District 3 includes Ashford, Eatonville, Elbe, Elk Plain, Frederickson, Graham, Harts Lake, Lacamas, McKenna, Roy and Spanaway.
District 4
Rosie Ayala and Rodney Robinson, both Democrats, moved on to the general election. Ayala garnered 67.46% of the vote Tuesday, and Robinson received 29.27% of the vote.
In addition to her elected role within the Metro Parks Tacoma Board of Commissioners, Ayala serves as the director of Operations for Foundation for Tacoma Students and serves on the American Leadership Forum board. Ayala is the vice-chair of the Tacoma/Pierce County Joint Municipal Action Committee, was previously the associate director of Collective Action, served on the Nature and Environment Advisory Board for Metro Parks and served as the chair of the Tacoma Arts Commission.
Robinson serves as the director of the Campaign to End and Prevent Youth and Young Adult Homelessness in Pierce County and has other experience in nonprofit management and human services. According to his LinkedIn, he is the owner of small business consultant organization Outside Perspective LLC.
Democrat and council Chair Ryan Mello currently holds the Pierce County Council District 4 position, but he is running for the County Executive seat against GOP candidate Kelly Chambers. Mello and Chambers were the only two candidates for Executive in the primary, so they both will proceed to the general election. Mello received 52.41% of the vote Tuesday, and Chambers received 47.35% of the vote.
District 4 includes Fircrest, parts of Tacoma (like Central Tacoma, Downtown, Hilltop and South Tacoma), as well as University Place.
District 6
In an upset, Republican candidate Loujanna “LJ” Rohrer received more votes than incumbent Democrat Jani Hitchen on Tuesday. Both are expected to advance to the general election.
Rohrer received 47.68% of the vote and Hitchen, who has served as the District 6 council members since 2020, received 40.29% of the vote. Democrat Danny Hankins trailed behind with 11.79% of the vote.
Rohrer is a twice elected School Board director in the Steilacoom Historical School District and works as a senior legislative assistant for the Washington State House of Representatives. She was council assistant for the Pierce County Council chairman representing the 6th District, initiated the WyldLife (Young Life) program at Pioneer Middle School and currently serves in leadership roles in Steilacoom Kiwanis and the Steilacoom Historical Museum Association.
Prior to becoming a Council member Hitchen was a professional educator working with teenagers in several Pierce County school districts as a substitute teacher and later as a middle school teacher for 10 years at Lochburn Middle School, followed by 14 years teaching in the Bethel School District. She serves as chair of the Health and Human Services Committee and is involved with other Pierce County committees including Public Safety and Economic and Infrastructure Development. She was also appointed to the WA State Public Health Advisory Board and the Missing & Murdered Indigenous Women and People Task Force in 2022.
Hankins started his own video production company and is an active executive board member of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber of Commerce.
District 6 includes the communities of DuPont, Joint Base Lewis McChord, Lakewood, Parkland, Steilacoom, Anderson Island and Ketron Island.
