Dolores Gilmore will cross-train employees to improve efficiency in the county auditor’s office.

As county clerk, Dave Peterson will take Superior Court judges from paper files to electronic files, will start a courthouse facilitator program to assist people filing for guardianship, and will upgrade the court management system from a 38-year-old system.

As county coroner, Greg Sandstrom will continue to partner with other counties to share services and expenses on a larger scale, evaluate practices and policies to find efficiencies and cost savings, and continue his outreach work to prevent premature deaths.

That’s the first order of business for the winners in the Nov. 4 general election.

At 8:15 p.m., Gilmore led Kelly Emerson 27,598 to 24,562, according to results posted by the Kitsap County Auditor Elections Division. Gilmore will succeed Walt Washington, who is retiring after six years as auditor.

Peterson led Gerald (Gary) Chaney 30,134 to 21,932, to win a fourth term as clerk.

Sandstrom led Jeff Wallis 34,676 to 15,771 win a fifth term as coroner.

Phil Cook had a slight lead — 27,295 to 25,054 — over Paul Andrews in the race to succeed Paul Avery, who is retiring after 16 years as county assessor.

Gilmore, the county’s elections supervisor, said the results in the assessor’s race are “too close to call.” She said her department had another 20,000 ballots to count, and expected to collect another 10,000 deposited in drop boxes on Election Day. But historically, vote leads of at least 5 percent tend to trend and hold, she said.

ASSESSOR
Andrews, a Democrat from Port Orchard, is a data analyst for Kitsap County, working for the last 19 years in information services serving the assessor and two years before that as senior project manager for the Pierce County Assessor’s Office.

Cook, a Republican from Silverdale, is a mortgage consultant with New American Funding in Poulsbo and a property manager in Kitsap County. Previously he was an operations manager for a manufacturing firm, assistant to a city manager, and a high school teacher and coach.

Their campaign was distinguished by camaraderie; both became good friends, and they and their wives have gotten together socially.

“We hit it off,” Andrews said. “We have the same sense of humor and the same interests. We could be best friends. There is no animosity, but we still recognize we’re running against each other for the same office, that we are seeking the same goal.”

Their ideas were similar as well. Cook said he’d bring to the job the perspective of someone who has interacted with the assessor’s office as a mortgage consultant, property manager and property owner. Andrews said he had the technological knowledge to make those ideas happen.

During the campaign, Andrews said his priorities are for the assessor’s office to be open five days a week, with expanded phone services for after hours and weekends; and to improve Parcel Search and the assessor’s website to provide more information about how values were determined and what comparable properties were used.

“I will improve the appeal process with online filing, options for sharing information between the office and citizens, and add a tax calculator tool,” Andrews said. “I will continue my lobbying effort with the other assessors and our Legislature to improve the Senior Exemption Program.”

Andrews supports an idea of Cook’s: Creation of an advisory council whose purpose will be to help find solutions that will improve the accuracy of the assessment process as well as communicate and educate the public about how the assessment process works. Andrews wants Cook to serve on the committee. He said if Cook wins, he sees himself continuing on as a data analyst for the county and working with Cook.

AUDITOR
Gilmore, a Democrat from Port Orchard, is Kitsap County’s elections manager with 30 years’ experience working in all four divisions of the Auditor’s Office.

Emerson, a Republican from Bremerton, resigned in May from the Island County Board of Commissioners 3.5 years into her term, saying, “I will delightfully relinquish the title at the end of the week and head off to greener pastures.” She then moved full time to Illahee, where she has a home, and filed shortly after to run for Kitsap County auditor. She is also a master electrician with experience as an industrial electrical construction project manager.

Gilmore said her priorities are to protect the security and integrity of our elections, ensure accountability in financial services when performing county auditing and reporting functions, improve the handling of public records and streamline licensing transactions, and “continue to provide excellent service delivery to the public.”

During her tenure as elections supervisor, the auditor’s office has received awards for its efforts to make voting more accessible to military and overseas voters and voters with disabilities.

During the campaign, Emerson said her experience as a county commissioner made her best suited for the job.

“The top issue in this campaign is electing the best person to fill the vacant position which oversees finances in all county departments, including the special purpose districts,” she said. “The auditor must keep a keen eye on cash flow, be well aware of grant reporting and fund reconciliation timelines. As well as providing vitally important recording services for the public, licensing as required by law and managing an elections system.”

Emerson added, “I’m hearing from the people they would like to see some protocols in elections and better transparency with financials. Both political parties should feel equally involved in the complete voting process and the citizens have a right to know how their money is being spent. I will certainly make both of these matters high priority.”

CLERK
The Kitsap County clerk is the official record keeper for the Superior Court.

Peterson, a Democrat from Bremerton, is a former Central Kitsap School District administrator. He said he will continue the work he started to establish a paperless Superior Court where judges can access electronically all court files and additional resources needed while on the bench, in chambers, or over the Internet. “And I will work with the State Courts to provide e-filing of court documents once the new Superior Court Case Management System is implemented.”

He added, “Most people who come to my office are not represented by attorneys, are facing emotional challenges, and have little idea of how to proceed through the mysteries of the court system. While we cannot give legal advice, it is important we assist those in need with process and procedure. I serve as chair of a statewide committee seeking legislation to allow clerks to provide assistance to citizens needing help with guardianship issues like we do now for those needing family law assistance.”

Chaney, a Republican from Bremerton, is a real estate broker with John L. Scott Silverdale and a licensed building contractor. He ran a low-key campaign, posting signs but participating in one campaign forum. During the campaign, he said his priorities were customer service, both to the court and to the public; efficiency; and “cost cutting without sacrificing quality.”

Early election day, Peterson was optimistic he’d be reelected. “There’s always a chance [it could go the other way], but I’m reasonably optimistic,” he said. “I received 57 percent of the vote in the primary, and there was only two of us running.”

CORONER
Sandstrom, a Republican from Port Orchard, is a former Washington State Patrol trooper, chaplain for South Kitsap Fire & Rescue, and EMT.

Wallis, a Bremerton resident who states no party preference, is a deputy coroner and Central Kitsap firefighter/paramedic. He served seven years as a fire chief in a small town in Eastern Washington.

During the campaign, Sandstrom said he had the experience best suited for the job.

“We have done an excellent job performing professionally while managing a 24/7/365 operation with the smallest department budget in Kitsap County,” he said during the campaign. “My priority is to continue to partner with other counties to share services and expenses on a larger scale, saving Kitsap County money. Also, we will continue to evaluate practices and policies to find efficiencies and cost savings wherever possible.

“Staffing remains a pressing issue. Although the county’s population continues to rise, our staffing levels have not risen proportionately. My priority is to most effectively utilize our full-time staff, while building a talent pipeline to hire from when funding allows.”

As coroner, Sandstrom founded the Kitsap’s Cribs for Kids Program, funded entirely by donations, which provides safe sleeping conditions for babies from low-income families. He’s active in the countywide effort to prevent suicides and works with Mothers Against Drunk Driving and first responders to present mock crashes at high schools.

Wallis proposed reducing overtime expenditures by changing scheduling and staffing levels during historically peak periods; implementing paperless reporting to help the department interface more seamlessly with medical practitioners, law enforcement, and other agencies; and establishing a training budget. Sandstrom said many of those things are already being done.