Longtime Thurston County Elections Manager Tillie Naputi-Pullar is looking forward to applying her extensive experience in elections administration to the entire auditor’s office.
“Working in the office for 28 years, I feel that I am ready on day one to lead the office,” Naputi-Pullar said.
She is running unopposed to replace Mary Hall as Thurston County’s elected auditor, as Hall is retiring at the end of this year after three decades in election administration.
Thirteen of those years were as Thurston County’s elected auditor.
Hall recently received the Election Center’s Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognized a career dedicated not just to serving Thurston County, but to elevating the standards, security and integrity of elections nationwide.
“I've got some big shoes to fill,” Naputi-Pullar said. “I am ready, and I am excited for the next step in my career.”
Hall has endorsed Naputi-Pullar to be the new elected leader of the Thurston County Auditor’s Office, as have former Thurston County Auditor and Secretary of State Kim Weiman, and the elected auditors of Adams, Asotin, Pend Oreille and Grays Harbor counties.
Naputi-Pullar had a vision of someday leading the auditor’s office when she first started in the elections department 28 years ago.
“The work that we do in elections, it’s very difficult, but it's very rewarding,” she said, adding that her job is to essentially support voters and help them understand their responsibility for civic engagement.
“I just want to continue that,” she said.
That attitude towards community engagement was a large part of her upbringing in Guam, and is something she has embraced as a part of her identity.
“I want to continue that part of myself and share that with the rest of the community,” Naputi-Pullar said.
Elections management is one of the biggest responsibilities the auditor’s office has, and Naputi-Pullar says she’s well equipped to continue ensuring that Thurston County’s elections are accessible, secure, accurate and transparent for every voter.
The office is currently gearing up for the 2028 midterm election and dealing with national threats to the mail-in voting process.
With uncertainty still looming over the U.S. Post Office’s handling of mail-in ballots, the Thurston County Auditor’s Office is directing voters to the county’s secure ballot boxes.
With 31 ballot boxes, Thurston County has the most ballot boxes per-capita in Washington state, according to Naputi-Pullar.
“I am looking to see if I need to add more prior to the 2028 election, and right now that's our focus, or that will be my focus in the next couple years leading up to the 2028 elections,” Naputi-Pullar said.
Outside of elections, Naputi-Pullar said she intends to maintain the professionalism and proficiency that the Thurston County Auditor’s Office has become known for.
There's just more to the auditor's office than the elections,” she said. “The licensing, the recordings, the opportunity for an individual to record a document or to renew their their card tabs, and then to also get a marriage license — those basic things that an individual doesn't necessarily realize that that happens in the auditor's office, but it's there when a person needs that needs that service. I want to continue that service.”
For more information on Naputi-Pullar’s campaign, visit https://www.tillieforauditor.com/.
As Thurston County’s current elections manager, Naputi-Pullar encourages all voters to turn their ballots for the Nov. 3 election to one of Thurston County’s drop boxes well before election day.
For a list of ballot drop box locations, visit https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/departments/auditor/elections/voting-information/ballot-drop-box-locations.
