By Colton Rasanen Four Whatcom County candidates are running for election to fill the open seat left on the Whatcom County Council. The position is a non-partisan office with a one-year unexpired term. The vacancy is left by Timothy Ballew II who is running for State Senator in the 42nd Legislative district. This primary election will close on August 7. The two candidates with the most votes will move forward to the general election taking place in late October. Candidates: Aaron Thomas is a Native American student support staff at Horizon Middle School in Ferndale. He has a master’s in business administration from Washington State University. As a member of Lummi Nation, Thomas wants to be a voice for the citizens of his homeland and find common ground with non-natives, according to his candidacy statement. Currently, Thomas is helping with homelessness and has so far helped 24 people find homes. One of the issues he is interested in is keeping the water clean so there is enough to go around to everywhere it is needed, he said in his statement. According to the PDC, Thomas filed under the mini-reporting option which makes him exempt from filing campaign finance logs unless he goes over the maximum contributions allowed. Carol Frazey is a community education instructor at Whatcom Community College. Her current campaign is her only listed elected experience, according to her candidacy statement. Professionally, Frazey is dedicated to preserving opportunities for all citizens in our county, she supports Whatcom County businesses and innovative industries that will provide living-wage jobs needed for continued growth in our economy, according to her statement. So far she has raised $14,014 in contributions with a majority from individual donations, according to the PDC. Learn more at her website. Mike Peetoom has elected experience as the director of Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce and professionally he runs two companies in Whatcom County. Peetoom did not see anyone like himself on the council, so he is running for election to bring balanced solutions to the challenges faced by ordinary citizens, according to his candidacy statement. According to the PDC, he has made $9,043.98 in contributions. Learn more from his website. Eric Bostrom has elected experience as a committee officer in the 225th precinct. He previously attended Western to obtain his B.A. in psychology and sociology. In his candidacy statement, Bostrom said homes and homelessness are some of the biggest issues in Whatcom County right now. He also said in his statement that the community needs to stop enabling homeless people and help them become productive citizens. According to the PDC, he has made $1,619.30 in contributions.
