(The Center Square) – Pierce County has a new executive and some returning faces to the county council following a few closes races in last week’s general election.
Pierce County Council Chair Ryan Mello, a Democrat, has won the race for the Pierce County executive position. He bested Rep. Kelly Chambers, R-Puyallup, by only 10,012 votes as of Tuesday morning
Chambers congratulated her opponent in a social media post on Monday. Mello, thanked his supporters and campaign workers in his own post.
“I cannot wait to get to work on behalf of folks all across Pierce County,” Mello said. “More than ever, I am ready to fight for everyone to ensure our values are upheld and our freedoms are protected during these challenging times.”
Mello replaces current Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier, who has reached his current term limit and is unable to run again.
The executive position will now switch from a Republican to a Democrat for the first time since 2016, before Dammeier took office.
The three incumbent county councilmembers who ran for reelection have successfully received the majority of votes.
Incumbent District 2 Councilmember Paul Herrera topped Democratic challenger Davida Haygood with 57% of collected votes. The district includes the cities and towns of Puyallup, Summit View, Edgewood, and Pacific.
Fellow Republican Incumbent District 3 Councilmember Amy Cruver won her seat over Democratic challenger John M. Linboe with 63.3% of votes. The district represents southern parts of Pierce County and includes the cities and towns of Spanaway, Ashford, Eatonville, and Graham.
The two Republican councilmembers will consider pursuing legislation that revolves around strengthening public safety in the region.
Pierce County District 6 Representative Jani Hitchen is the other incumbent councilmember to win her seat, besting Republican challenger Loujanna “LJ” Rohrer by only 1,910 votes.
District 6 represents residents of Steilacoom, Lakewood, DuPont, and Anderson and McNeil islands.
The District 4 race was the first to be called last week with Democrat Rosie Ayala collecting nearly 70% of votes. Ayala, a member of the American Leadership Forum board, replaces Mello for the District 4 position.
Ayala will represent the district that covers downtown Tacoma, Hilltop, and University Place.
