Kimsey, who has served as Clark County’s auditor since 1999, said he has been considering this decision for a number of years

Ken Vance, editor
Clark County Today

Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey announced Monday (Jan. 5) that he will not seek re-election to the position he has held for more than 25 years.

“I have some news to share,’’ Kimsey wrote on Facebook Monday. “I will not be a candidate for re-election to the office of Clark County Auditor.

“Being of service to Clark County residents has been the great honor of my life,’’ Kimsey wrote. “I am humbled by the confidence voters have shown when they put their faith in me.’’

Kimsey, who has served as Clark County’s auditor since 1999, said he has been considering this decision for a number of years.

“I thought about retiring four years ago, but the Trump election denial craziness was going strong and I thought it best if I stuck around for the Presidential election,’’ he said. “Since Trump’s election in ‘24 election denial beliefs have significantly subsided.

“The Auditor’s Office is in really good shape – I have the highest level of confidence in the Directors and staff in each of our departments,’’ he wrote. “The recent expansion of the Elections Office work area should serve the county for at least the next twenty years. This is a good time for me to step away.’’

Kimsey said it is not his intention to step away from public service.

“Public service takes many forms,’’ he wrote. “I’m not retiring, I will be looking for opportunities to continue to serve our community.

“I am confident voters will choose a qualified and serious person to serve as the next county auditor,’’ he concluded.

Kimsey was born and raised in Vancouver and attended Columbia River High School. He graduated from the University of Washington with a BA Degree in Business Administration and from Portland State University with a Masters Degree in Business Administration. He holds a Chartered Financial Analyst designation.

Kimsey is an active member of the community: he serves as a commissioner for the Vancouver Housing Authority, is a founding board member of Columbia Land Trust and is a member of the Vancouver Rotary Club. Greg and his wife, Gayle, have two daughters and live in the Hazel Dell area.

In June 2025, Washington State Secretary of State Steve Hobbs presented Greg Kimsey with the state’s Auditor of the Year Award during the Washington State Association of County Auditors 2025 Elections Conference.

Kimsey has his critics

Despite the fact that he has held his office for more than two decades and rarely received much of a challenge in his attempts to be re-elected during that tenure, Kimsey did have his detractors.

“Greg Kimsey, who has occupied the position of Clark County Auditor since 1999 and who once claimed to be a Republican, left the party two years ago to become an ‘independent,’’’ said Clark County Republican Party Chairman Matt Bumala. “In his published article with The Columbian he claimed it was because of January 6th. What he was not telling the general public was the growing concern and pressure he was getting from his own party regarding election transparency and integrity that was severely lacking.

“This is a great opportunity for a new person to take over this very important position who is going to have more transparency and honesty about our elections,’’ Bumala added.

Reform Clark County Founder Rob Anderson has been one of Kimsey’s staunchest critics. Anderson blamed Kimsey for the absence of security cameras on Clark County ballot boxes prior to an attack just days prior to the November 2024 general election that destroyed about 500 ballots.

“Kimsey has masterfully worked the levers of power for several decades, yet he is leaving office amid a spiraling voter participation rate and declining confidence in elections,’’ Anderson said. “He departs with the continued stain of the worst attack on our elections: the ballot box arson incidents of 2024, during which he resisted the installation of ballot box cameras, failed to deploy fire suppression systems actually designed for ballot boxes, and delayed fire extinguishing efforts — resulting in hundreds of ballots being destroyed.

“Not to mention that he architected the charter, which many on all sides of the political aisle feel needs to address its inadequacies,’’ Anderson added. “The charter stripped away power from the ‘people’s branch’ and transferred it to the executive branch.“Kimsey is leaving his office far worse than when he arrived,’’ Anderson said.