The Republican precinct committee officers from the 26th Legislative District are scheduled to meet Wednesday, Dec. 4, at the Givens Community Center’s Kitsap Room in Port Orchard.
State Republican Party Chairwoman Susan Hutchison called the meeting for PCOs to select three qualified candidates to fill the vacancy left by State Rep. Jan Angel (R-Port Orchard) in the state House of Representatives. Angel defeated Sen. Nathan Schlicher for the 26th District state Senate seat earlier this month.
According to Chris Tibbs, chairman of the Kitsap County Republican Party, there are 65 PCOs in the 26th District.
The three candidates will be forwarded to the Washington State Republican Party executive board for review and ratification, then submitted to Kitsap County commissioners and Pierce County council for a candidate to be selected.
During the Dec. 4 meeting, all nominations for the position will come from a list approved by the vetting committee.
The vetting committee is established to review candidates’ eligibility and background. The committee is made up of two people appointed by the county chair of the Kitsap and Pierce County Republican Party. All candidates had to apply to the vetting committee by Nov. 27.
The State Republican Party chairman will designate a temporary chairperson for the meeting.
The PCO making the nominations will be permitted one minute to speak. After closing the nominations, each candidate will be given five minutes to speak.
Each PCO can only vote for one choice on each ballot. The candidate receiving the majority of the votes on the first ballot is the first choice. If no candidate received a majority of the votes, the candidate with the lowest number of votes will be removed from the ballot.
On the second and third ballot, PCOs will vote for one choice and the candidate with the majority of the votes is the second and third choice candidate.
Last week, Port Orchard councilwoman Cindy Lucarelli said she has filed an application with a vetting committee to be a candidate.
Tibbs said he received emails from former congressional candidate Jesse Young and real estate broker Spencer Hutchins declaring interest in the position.
Former Pierce County Council member Terry Lea, Young and Adam Berman have been mentioned as possible successors.
