Mayor hopefuls in overdrive

PALMER — As the special election to choose the next borough mayor comes down to the wire, front-runners are touting their records and lists of supporters.

“I feel really good about it. I feel like we’re picking up steam,” said candidate, military veteran and former Washington State legislator Brian Sullivan of his campaign’s final weekend.

“I think since the last election feelings don’t count anymore,” candidate and local farmer and veteran of the borough assembly and school board Larry DeVilbiss said when asked how he felt about the election. He was referencing polls in last year’s U.S. Senate race that proved incapable of predicting the outcome. But, seriously, he said, it’s going well.

“I’ve run into nothing but positive results out on the street. And that’s unusual in my elections.”

Sullivan and DeVilbiss are part of a field of seven candidates seeking the office. Also running are retired telecommunications worker Ken Clark, former firefighter Kurt Jarmer, college student Jeff Ward, farmer John Leiner, and health care administrator David Wilson.

But judging by advertisements online and on the radio you’d think it was just Sullivan and DeVilbiss. They are widely considered the front-runners and have lately been trading jabs. One bone of contention has been on the topic of support from local luminaries. Sullivan’s ads say he has a majority of the borough assembly behind him.

An e-mail message sent from the Frontiersman to the entire assembly to confirm that drew five responses.

Mark Ewing called to say he is not a Sullivan supporter and would prefer DeVilbiss.

Jim Colver wrote back that he supports Sullivan and thinks he is smart, sensible and has necessary leadership skills.

“I think all the smoke over who is endorsing who is an effort by DeVilbiss supporters to shift the focus away from qualifications of the candidates,” Colver wrote.

Warren Keogh said that he hopes voters will make up their own minds instead of looking at endorsements, but he appreciates Sullivan’s military service, energy, forthrightness and “non-partisan demeanor,” among other things.

“Since you ask me (and very few have asked me by the way), the short answer to your question is, yes, I have decided to endorse Mr. Sullivan,” Keogh wrote.

Reached by phone, Noel Woods said he was staying out of it.

“May the best man win,” Woods said.

Likewise, Ron Arvin said he didn’t want to choose sides

Which leaves Vern Halter and Cindy Bettine neither of whom responded to e-mail or phone calls. For his part, Sullivan said Bettine and Halter have quietly supported him but preferred to keep out of it as much as possible. If either had revoked their support, he said, he would have immediately changed his advertisements. But he feels assembly support is a big deal.

“This issue is critical because some very thoughtful, intelligent people are not comfortable with his leadership,” Sulivan said of DeVilbiss.

DeVilbiss said he hasn’t even asked for assembly support.

“I will not go to people that I have to have a working relationship with once I’m elected,” he said. “I have not even asked one single assembly person for an endorsement because I think that would be inappropriate.”

But he has received support from state Republicans, including every member of the Valley’s delegation to the state Legislature, except Sen. Linda Menard. He describes himself as an unabashed, longtime Republican.

“I started out as the precinct chair and I built Lazy Mountain into the voting-est district in the whole state,” DeVilbiss said. “I met everybody that moved onto Lazy Mountain with a bag of carrots, an invitation to church and a voting registration.”

For his part Sullivan didn’t want to go too deep into discussions of DeVilbiss’ roster of supporters, but did say he felt slighted by the party.

“The Republican Party has informally endorsed him and has not supported me as a fellow Republican,” Sullivan said. “It is something I will discuss with the party leadership later.”

To that, DeVilbiss said that the party members who have signed on to support him did so not as a party, but as individuals.

“These were friends,” DeVilbiss said.

Sullivan said he thinks his youth, energy and time in the military have resonated with voters. He said that, in contrast, DeVilbiss has a record that turns many people off.

“Mr. DeVilbiss has a 20-year record that has been very controversial,” Sullivan said.

DeVilbiss said he thinks voters like his stance on development.

“I think what people are resonating most with is the prospect of jobs and the prospect of being able to cut firewood in the borough again,” he said, tossing out an example of where he thinks borough regulations have gone too far. “I have no idea what’s going to come forward, but I’m going to have an open spot on the borough web page inviting input, what businesses find burdensome.”

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.