Thurston County will undergo tremendous leadership changes this coming year, as the longtime elected heads of four county departments decided to open the door to newcomers rather than run for reelection.
And with two first-term incumbents — Thurston County District 5 Commissioner Emily Clouse and Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders — facing challengers on the ballot, voters have the option to elect even further change within county leadership.
The potential for change comes as Thurston County grapples with a $23.3 million budget deficit that is expected to impact every county department over the next three years as the county works to reduce spending by $15 million.
Some of the newcomers vying for office are doing so unopposed, and their election is almost certain.
However, in two of the offices guaranteed to undergo a leadership change — the Thurston County Clerk’s Office and the Thurston County Assessor’s office — voters have a choice between two candidates.
Thurston Chronicle invited the candidates in those two races, as well as those in the other two contested county races, to a candidate forum on Monday, Sept. 21.
Candidates answered questions from Thurston Chronicle Editor Emily Fitzgerald and members of the audience.
Two invited candidates, Thurston County District 5 Commissioner challenger Nic Dunning and Thurston County Sheriff challenger Kevin Burton-Crow, were unable to attend the forum due to prior commitments.
Representatives from their respective campaigns were invited to read prepared statements from their candidates during the opening statement portion of the Q&A.
Thurston County Clerk
The Thurston County Clerk’s Office was hit hard by the county’s last round of budget cuts, suffering a $777,478 budget reduction in Thurston County’s 2026-27 budget.
That, combined with budget cuts from previous years, made it impossible for the clerk’s office to maintain in-person services, according to current Thurston County Clerk Linda Myhre Enlow.
When the public counters shut down, all formerly in-person services, including protection order applications, document filing, court document copy requests, public record access and appointment scheduling, shifted to online-only.
The end of in-person services at the clerk’s office drew widespread criticism from the public, particularly from advocates for domestic violence survivors who relied heavily on in-person support from clerk staff to navigate complex paperwork and court processes.
Both candidates seeking to replace Enlow come January, Nicole Miller and Garrett Cady, lamented the closure of in-person services at the clerk’s office.
However, only Cady, a current clerk’s office employee and the candidate Enlow has endorsed as her replacement, said he believed that closure was necessary.
“We wouldn’t have been in this pickle if there was an easy response to the impacts of what the budget ends up being,” Cady said. “We are mandated to do certain things set out by statute. One of the critical ones is to be present at all court proceedings. Court can’t happen without us. So when we’re faced with a $777,000 reduction and lost seven full-time positions, we didn’t have much of a choice.”
Miller, whose experience is in social work and child welfare, disagreed, arguing that in-person services for the community is a critical function of the clerk’s office and vowing to prioritize a return to full-time in-person services if she’s elected.
“There will be other ways that we balance the budget, but it’s not going to be by closing the doors to people that need essential services,” Miller said.
In response to public outcry, the Thurston County Board of Commissioners adjusted the budget in May to fund frontline public counter services at the clerk’s office on a part-time basis.
That return to part-time service began on Sept. 21, though the clerk’s office continues to encourage patrons to utilize the online option whenever possible.
The online option is not a replacement for in-person service, Cady said.
“It does remove some barriers, but it is a barrier to others in the same way. And so, this hybrid approach to dealing with this is what we’ve all figured out for now,” Cady said, adding that he is committed to troubleshooting that approach as needed.
“We’re going to adjust. We’ll figure out plenty of things to change here next week, this month, the rest of the year, and that will lay the framework of what our priorities are going forward,” Cady said.
While Miller is grateful that the clerk’s office has resumed part-time in-person service, she does not believe the online option is an adequate substitute for a return to full-time in-person service.
“We’ve established that the need was for there to be a full-time counter … we’ve already established that in history. We know that that’s the need for our community, and we’re not serving that need right now,” Miller said.
People in the community are struggling with the online system, Miller said, and are receiving “less than professional” responses from clerk’s office staff when they try to reach out for help.
“The system isn’t as efficient and helpful as it needs to be for people,” Miller said.
Thurston County Commissioner District 5
Nic Dunning, a recently resigned Lacey City Council member and self-proclaimed “moderate Democrat,” prepared a statement ahead of the Sept. 21 forum with points he wanted audience members to keep in mind while listening to incumbent Commissioner Emily Clouse’s answers to questions.
“No matter what is said here today, you already know what three years look like under the incumbent Emily Clouse. In just three short years, she has organized protests against the police officers in her own district, been formally censured by all of her seatmates for sexual misconduct, video recorded her very own Thurston County sheriffs during an active investigation, and caused a taxpayer-funded lawsuit payout to the tune of $300,000,” read a representative from Dunning’s campaign. “So you’ve seen the past three years. Imagine what four more could look like, especially if another one of her GSA socialist friends get in office. Please vote accordingly.”
Dunning has previously stated that his sole motivation to run for county office was dissatisfaction with Clouse’s record.
One member of the forum audience asked Clouse to address part of that record directly: the lawsuit filed by Clouse’s former aide in 2024 alleging sexual harassment by Clouse, which the county settled for $300,000. The county paid $250,000 of that amount, with a risk pool covering the remaining $50,000.
The lawsuit sparked a recall petition, which was ultimately dismissed, and was the reason cited by Clouse’s seatmates for censuring her in late 2024.
Addressing the forum audience on Sept. 21, Clouse took full accountability for her actions that led to that lawsuit.
“I accepted responsibility for what happened. I own my mistake, and I’ve taken accountability for that mistake. And it’s an ongoing process, so I don’t shy away from questions like yours,” Clouse said to the forum attendee.
She encouraged anyone who wants to talk more with her about what happened to reach out, or to view the three-hour interview she did with Leaders Lead podcast host Tony Taylor about the incident.
“I’m 31 years old. I make mistakes. Everybody makes mistakes, and when you’re in the public eye, it really matters how you react to that and how you respond. Do you shy away, or do you take accountability and move forward? And that’s what I’ve done,” Clouse said.
On the issues facing the county over the next four years, Clouse spoke in depth about the county’s budget difficulties.
The county needs to change its budgeting approach in the coming years in order to weather the coming budget cuts without sacrificing key community services, Clouse said.
“If there are programs that are not bringing as high value to the taxpayers, we need to cut those programs because we have to cut somewhere,” she said. “I would rather fully fund the programs that we’re doing well. That way, the constituents have access to services, and those services aren’t being diminished by those cuts.”
Clouse also addressed housing and affordability, proposing a social housing model that combines all income levels into developments as a way to increase the supply of affordable housing and move away from transitional housing.
“Solving homelessness is not just about getting people off the street. It’s about preventing them from getting there in the first place,” Clouse said.
Thurston County Assessor
The work of the Thurston County Assessor’s Office is technically complex, and directly impacts all property owners within Thurston County.
That combination led to the two assessor candidates receiving the most audience questions of the night.
Those questions ranged from the candidates’ experience managing a unionized workforce, to how they can expedite the assessment appeals process, to whether or not it’s appropriate to canvas current assessors office employees.
One audience question came from former Thurston County Assessor Kevin O’Sullivan, who asked if either of the candidates would consider running an efficiency audit of the office once elected.
That efficiency audit was the first thing O’Sullivan did when he was elected assessor, he said.
“I’m talking about everything, so I had a benchmark to build off of that, and also admit the mistakes that my former assessor made,” O’Sullivan said.
Both candidates, Lynda Nashed Zeman and JJ Olson, expressed willingness to conduct that audit when they took office.
There was much that Zeman and Olson, both Democrats, agreed on: the importance of fair and accurate assessments, the challenges the office will face in the coming years due to budget cuts and staff turnover, the need to update technology within the office, and the need to educate taxpayers on exemption programs they may qualify for.
Where they differ is their experience up to this point, and how that informs their leadership styles.
Olson is a current employee at the Thurston County Assessor’s Office, starting as an appraiser and working his way up to the management team.
“I have this experience in the office. I have earned the trust of my fellow employees,” Olson said, pointing to the endorsement he received from the union that represents Thurston County Assessor’s Office employees.
“I have the education and the finance background and the management background of managing people, and I’d be honored for your vote,” Olson said.
Olson was asked by an audience member about the campaigning he has done with current Assessor’s Office employees, and whether or not he personally asked his coworkers to endorse him.
Olson replied that he has good relationships with his coworkers and, outside of working hours, he would talk to them about his assessor candidacy.
“The leader in the office matters most to them, and I want to know what they think,” Olson said.
That said, Olson added that he has never pressured anyone to support him.
“I feel that I would be a good leader, and so I ask them if they think I would be a good leader, as well,” Olson said.
Zeman took issue with Olson “blurring the lines” with his coworkers in the Assessor’s Office.
“It blurs the lines between being a peer to becoming an authority,” Zeman said. “It is very difficult to transition from being the person who has grown up in the office to being in charge all on their own.”
Zeman currently serves in an executive administration role with the Chair of the Thurston County Board of Commissioners, but she worked for three years providing executive administration services in the Thurston County Assessor’s Office.
She is currently seeking national accreditation through the National Association of Assessing Officers, and has additional experience in managing operations, fiscal management and human resources.
“I come to you as your well-rounded candidate,” Zeman said. “I feel really prepared through my experience, my education and the learned abilities that I have to serve you well, to ensure that your team at the assessor’s office is providing consistent, accurate, and uniform assessments, and that you receive timely service in a way that’s not burdensome to you.”
Thurston County Sheriff
Thurston County Sheriff’s Office Special Victims Detective Kevin-Burton Crow, who is challenging first-term incumbent Sheriff Derek Sanders, prepared a statement ahead of the Sept. 21 forum, as he was out of town attending a training focused on investigating internet crimes against children.
“The people who exploit children don’t stop learning new ways to do it, so we have to keep learning new ways to stop them. That work connects directly to why I’m running for sheriff,” Burton-Crow said in a statement read by a representative from his campaign. “Throughout my career as a special victims detective, I’ve sat with victims and families on some of the hardest days of their lives. I’ve learned that public safety isn’t just about making an arrest; it’s about what happens to the victims and families after we leave. Do they feel hurt? Do they know what happens next? Does their case keep moving? Can we actually help? That’s the kind of accountability I want to bring to the sheriff’s office: victims first, employees supported, strong partnerships, and a mission we don’t lose sight of when work gets harder.”
Burton-Crow posted his own answers to the forum’s questions to his campaign’s social media the next day, Sept. 22, and invited voters to meet him in person along the campaign trail.
When asked by an audience member to name his opponent’s strengths, Sanders complimented Burton-Crow’s attention to detail and process, but said he felt his position as union president constituted a conflict of interest with his sheriff’s candidacy.
“It is impossible to be the union president, advocate for your people correctly … and also go out and tell voters why things need to change,” Sanders said.
Answering questions in person on Sept. 21, Sanders highlighted the successes the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office has seen in the three years since he was first elected sheriff, including a sharp decrease in auto theft, robbery and kidnappings; increased deputy recruiting and retention rates; and a dramatic growth in community enthusiasm for the patrol tactics and de-escalation work the sheriff’s office is doing.
“When I took office at 29 years old, I didn’t just rewrite the job description for sheriff. I then turned around and exceeded it,” Sanders said. “I plan to keep doing that moving forward, and I’m going to be honored to do this for another four years for you.”
If elected to a second term, Sanders said he would build on the experience he gained during his first to address the issues within the Thurston County Jail, proposing building a mental health wing within the jail to better serve that demographic of inmates and create space in the rest of the jail.
The jail and looming budget cuts are among the biggest challenges the sheriff’s office will face in the next few years, Sanders said.
When asked how he would handle budget cuts to his office, Sanders said he would cut from the top first — continuing to freeze his own salary and leaving office positions open rather than sacrificing deputies in the field.
Sanders also intends to petition the Washington State Legislature next session to fully fund public defense, which he said would free up $11 million in Thurston County’s general fund.
