Sen. Doug Ericksen’s legislative career was at a crossroads two years ago following the 2012 election cycle. Ericksen, a Republican from Ferndale, was midway through his first term in the Senate after serving since 1998 in the House.
Although he had risen within his House caucus to be the second-in-command under then-Minority Leader Richard DeBolt, Ericksen was more accustomed to marshaling votes and debates on the floor than being a heavy-hitter in the policy realm. Such was life as a member of a minority party that was out-numbered by an average margin of 17 votes while Ericksen was in the House.
Ericksen even tried leaving the Legislature entirely in 2011, when he made a failed attempt at running for County Executive in Whatcom County. His political fortunes shifted dramatically during the takeover of the Senate at the end of 2012, however, and he could be considered one of the biggest beneficiaries of the formation of the Majority Coalition Caucus.
Democratic Sens. Tim Sheldon of Potlatch and Rodney Tom of Medina joined 24 Republicans to form a majority in the Senate. After 14 years in the Legislature, Ericksen took over as chairman of the Senate Energy Committee, positioning him to become an outspoken critic of the newly elected Gov. Jay Inslee’s push to reduce the state’s carbon emissions.
It’s a role he’s relished, becoming one of the Republican Party’s chief statesmen on climate change in Washington state, but it’s also made him one of the Democrats’ biggest targets to knock out of the Legislature this mid-term election cycle. He’s locked in a re-election fight up in Whatcom County with Seth Fleetwood, a former Bellingham City Councilman and Whatcom County Councilman.
The political climate in the mostly rural county has become more polarized in recent years with the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal at Cherry Point northwest of the city of Bellingham, which is planned for coal exports to Pacific Rim countries.
It’s drawn considerable statewide, regional and national attention to issue of coal exporting, particularly last fall during some hotly contested races for the County Council. Democrats, buoyed by strong turnouts in the city of Bellingham, swept their four-candidate ticket of Carl Weimer, Barry Buchanan, Rud Browne and Ken Mann into office.
But sustaining that success into the 42nd District this year, which is entirely confined to Whatcom County but includes only the northern half of Bellingham and smaller cities such as Ferndale, Blaine, Lynden and Sumas, will be more of a challenge for Fleetwood.
None of the Democratic Council candidates pulled a majority vote in the 42nd District’s precincts last fall, according to analysis of the precinct results from the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office. The district has favored the Democratic ticket for president in 2012 and 2008, but only slightly, and voted 57 to 43 in favor of Ericksen in the August primary.
Ericksen said in an interview earlier this month that he’s enjoying the time in the spotlight in the weeks leading up to Nov. 4, and the scrutiny it’s afforded his positions.
“It’s awesome,” Ericksen said. “It means that we’re in play in the Senate.”
Fleetwood wrote in an email that his candidacy is aimed at helping Democrats retake the majority in the Senate, while focusing on equal-pay issues for women, safety of trains bearing crude oil shipments, and basic education funding. He said he believes the 42nd District could play in Democrats’ favor because it offers a smaller battleground than the countywide local government races of last fall.
“The 42nd, as I see it, is one of the most moderate districts in the state,” Fleetwood wrote. “It voted for President Obama and Senator Cantwell in 2012 as well as having historically moderate to conservative representation. Last year, the candidates did not have to win the 42nd district, so by refocusing our efforts, I believe we will be successful in November.”
Ericksen has raised $423,000 in support of his re-election efforts, compared to $321,000 from Fleetwood. Each candidate has spent equal amounts in $242,000, according to campaign finance records filed with the Public Disclosure Commission. Fleetwood has gotten a larger boost in supporting independent spending, with $248,000 going to boost his candidacy. Ericksen has had $80,000 in independent support. Fleetwood has also seen more negative dollars flow his way, with $162,000 in opposition spending compared to $19,000 for Ericksen.
To environmentalists, Ericksen has been one of their biggest foes in the Legislature. The national League of Conservation Voters named Ericksen to its “dirty dozen” list for state government, a roster of 12 politicians it aims to see defeated because of their opposition to environmental legislation the Conservation Voters favors, and positions they’ve taken on key issues such as climate change.
“The downtown liberals in Seattle don’t like that,” Ericksen said. “This is a huge race and I enjoy the platform it affords me to talk about solutions for Washington.”
Ericksen fits the profile of a lawmaker the Conservation Voters would love to defeat. In the 2013 session, he brought in a professor emeritus of Western Washington University’s geology department to testify on why he did not believe climate change was a man-made phenomenon.
But since 2013 he’s also sponsored legislation aimed at keeping chemical flame retardants out of children’s products and authored a bill spearheading cleanup of contaminated industrial and commercial sites.
Ericksen has opposed potential statewide carbon emissions reductions policies like a low-carbon fuels standard, a cap and trade program, and a carbon tax, each of which could be favored by Gov. Jay Inslee as a market-driven manner of decreasing Washington’s greenhouse gas footprint.
On the Gateway Pacific Terminal, Ericksen has supported the proposed coal export facility. While saying that he wishes the site and its deep-water port location could be used for something else, such as manufacturing, he believes the issue will be properly decided during the permitting process by Whatcom County.
Fleetwood also deferred to the local government’s permitting process, and wants to see an environmental impact report before opining on the proposed project.
“As it relates to the GPT facility, our local government will ultimately be the decision maker when it comes to the permitting process,” Fleetwood said. “We have to examine all our options and see what is best for Washington state. It is incumbent upon us to weigh the environmental and the economic aspects of every proposal.”
Ericksen has been more pointed in opposing the market-driven mechanisms for combating climate change, arguing they don’t produce the results necessary to justify what he contends will be far-reaching, negative implications for the state’s economy.
“I don’t think that’s in the best interest of carbon emissions reduction,” Ericksen said. “(Inslee) needs to make a better case on why it’s needed in Washington. To date, I don’t think he’s made it.”
Fleetwood acknowledged the prospect that he could win election and still be part of the minority party if the scales tip in Republicans’ favor in other key Senate races throughout the Puget Sound region. But he believes his time working on a politically divided Whatcom County Council would serve him well for working in a divided Legislature.
“In divided government, you have to compromise, and that means being willing to give on issues,” Fleetwood wrote. “I’d work across the aisle to reach real compromises.”
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