Portland resident Jim Karlock contacted area candidates and reports their positions on the Interstate Bridge replacement project
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and do not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
Two important issues, tolls and light rail have received little attention during this election. So I have prepared a guide to which candidates oppose tolls and oppose light rail and which ones support tolls and support light rail.

Who would vote to oppose tolls on a replacement Interstate Bridge (also light rail)?
Here is a guide to candidates that oppose (or support) tolls and light rail. Candidates were emailed a request to pledge to oppose tolls and to oppose light rail before the primary. After the primary, attempts were made to contact the winners that had not returned the pledges, in person at public events. A few ratings were based on answers given on television appearances.
Candidates that have promised to oppose both tolls and light rail:
CD 3 U.S. Representative, Joe Kent, R
LD 18 Pos 2, Greg Cheney, R
LD 20 Pos 2, Ed Orcutt, R
LD 49 Pos 1, Park Llafet, R
LD 49 Pos 2, Jeremy Baker, R
County Councilor No. 2, Michelle Belkot
County Councilor No. 5, Don Benton
Candidates that have said they support tolls or light rail:
CD 3 U.S. Representative, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, D, Supports tolls & Light Rail
LD 17 Pos. 1, Terri Niles, D, Supports light rail
LD17 Pos 2, Joe Kear, D, Supports light rail & tolls if project killer
LD 18 Pos 1, John Zingale, D, Supports Tolls & Light Rail
LD 18 Pos 2, Duncan Camacho, D, Favors Tolls, Refused answer on light rail
Here are the candidates that ignored our email request or refused to take a stand on tolls and light rail:
LD17 Pos. 1, Kevin Waters, R
LD17 Pos 2, Paul Harris, R
LD 18 Pos 1, Stephanie McClintock, R
LD 20 Pos 1, Peter Abbarno, R
LD 49 Pos 1, Sharon Wylie, D
LD 49 Pos 2, Monica Jurado Stonier D
County Councilor No. 1, Hector Hinojosa & Glen Yung
County Councilor No. 2, Chartisha Roberts
County Councilor No. 5, Sue Marshall
More details are at http://www.no-tolls.com/pledge.html
Jim Karlock
Portland
Also read:
- Letter: A call for competent Interstate Bridge project managementRick Vermeers argues that unchecked scope, rising costs, and missed timelines threaten the survival of the Interstate Bridge Replacement project unless light rail is removed.
- Opinion: More taxes sadly the Washington wayElizabeth New (Hovde) argues that Washington lawmakers continue to turn to new taxes instead of addressing state spending priorities, particularly in health care policy.
- Opinion: IBR administrator receives generous Christmas gift on his way out the doorKen Vance argues that IBR leadership avoided accountability on rising project costs as Administrator Greg Johnson announced his departure without providing updated estimates.
- Opinion: ‘If you tolerate lies and dishonesty from the government, you’re guaranteed more’Lars Larson criticizes state officials for refusing to disclose updated cost estimates for the Interstate Bridge Replacement project, arguing that a lack of transparency guarantees further government dishonesty.
- Letter: ‘President Trump has stopped the flooding’Camas resident Anna Miller argues that the immigration system’s due process framework has failed under volume and backlog, and credits President Donald Trump with prioritizing enforcement to stop illegal border crossings.







