After five other candidates were weeded out through the primary election, the race for the Second Congressional District seat has come to a 12-term incumbent and a small business owner with very different ideas about the role of the federal government.
Rep. Rick Larsen, a Democrat, and Cody Hart, a MAGA Republican, are both confident they have the experience Whidbey voters are looking for and that they will prevail in the final round of voting. Larsen won 48.1% of the votes in August, while Hart won 19.8%.
The candidates have different views on a number of hot button topics.
Larsen supports women’s right to choose to terminate a pregnancy, has supported efforts to make the COVID-19 vaccines available to constituents, is an LGBTQIA+ ally and has supported efforts to ban military-style assault weapons and to send aid to Ukraine and Israel.
Hart is opposed to abortion, plans to support legislation to hold vaccine producers and pharmaceutical companies accountable for alleged injuries caused by vaccines, opposes the idea of addressing LGBTQIA+ topics in schools, is an advocate for gun rights and is against getting involved in foreign conflicts. He has also petitioned for the impeachment of state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, who’s also a candidate for governor.
When it comes to Whidbey Island, the topics that come to mind are housing, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, fentanyl, child care and small businesses.
Larsen, who has been representing the district for 24 years, said housing is more of a local-level issue. However, the federal government can create tools to help nonprofits that provide affordable housing, like the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit. In 2022, Larsen helped secure $2 million in the 2023 omnibus spending package for Habitat of Humanity of Island County to purchase a building housing the store, warehouse and administrative offices in Oak Harbor.
Hart, who is a professional civil engineer, believes in less regulations and decentralizing building and energy code regulations, allowing local governments more freedom to apply their own rules. To help workers who commute from the mainland due to the lack of affordable housing on Whidbey, Hart plans to support efforts to open up the country’s energy sector and lowering the cost of fuel.
Both candidates are supportive of the Navy and its veterans.
Larsen has served on the House Armed Services Committee for 22 years and worked to pass the extension of a transportation program to help veterans commute to their medical appointments. He has also supported bills to provide access to job skills training to veterans, give businesses a tax credit to hire Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans, and help homeless veterans get into permanent housing.
At NAS Whidbey, he supported the addition of an indoor wash track for planes, the construction of a new fire station and other capital investment projects.
Hart served on Electronic Attack Squadron 133 at NAS Whidbey and helped Vietnam-era veterans as a volunteer for Veterans Affairs. If elected, he would support housing and mental health resources for this demographic, as well as training opportunities for veteran-owned businesses through the Small Business Administration.
With the fentanyl epidemic becoming more dire on Whidbey and in the country, Larsen introduced three bills this summer — Workforce Opportunities for Communities in Recovery Act, the PROTECT Act, and the End Fentanyl Trafficking with Local Task Forces Act.
Hart, who has friends in law enforcement, said the issue is exacerbated by the southern border, which he said he will work to close while also advocating to strengthen immigration laws.
Larsen and Hart acknowledged families’ struggles to secure child care on the island and beyond, though they pointed out the solution mainly lies in the hands of the state.
Larsen has supported the Child Tax Credit, which helps working families pay for child care services. The tax credit, he said, has dropped child poverty in the country by nearly 40%.
Hart, who has personally struggled with this issue as the father of two young children, doesn’t believe the federal government should financially compensate for a problem the state created; but if there is a solution that doesn’t involve sending money to fix the state’s mistakes, he would support that.
During a candidate forum hosted by the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce last week, Larsen said the federal government plays a limited role in supporting small businesses; tax codes are the main area where Congress can make a difference.
Hart, who owns an engineering firm in Skagit County, said business owners are burdened by too many regulations that make them unable to afford a full staff. By lowering the cost of fuel, businesses may attract employees from distant locations.
According to the Citizens to Elect Rick Larsen, Larsen has over 100 endorsements from local officials, including Island County Commissioners Janet St. Clair and Melanie Bacon, the Island County Democrats, Oak Harbor Mayor Pro Tem Tara Hizon and Rep. Dave Paul and Rep. Clyde Shavers. As of last Saturday, his campaign has raised $2.3 million.
Hart visits Whidbey multiple times a week, often to work on federally-funded infrastructure projects or to visit friends. While he has many endorsements, he said, he believes that listing them would make it seem like he is endorsing people, businesses and organizations he doesn’t know, when he just wants to represent all constituents.
He has also been refusing campaign donations and has only collected $2,500 because he opposes the idea of a few voters paying him to serve their interests.
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