The Herald

Two-term Snohomish County Councilman Democrat Brian Sullivan will face a well-funded Greg Tisdel of his own party as filing for office gets under way May 11.

Despite never being elected, Tisdel had raised more cash than any other candidate heading into filing week – $62,000, compared with Sullivan’s $30,500.

Tisdel said he’s running to stop political infighting and to apply his business know-how to county government. Sullivan said he’s eager to continue his long history of public service, which has spanned most of his adult life.

The candidates hold opposing views on commercial air service at Paine Field, which Sullivan is against and Tisdel supports. Tisdel criticizes the testy atmosphere among the county’s elected leaders that at times has overshadowed the budget and other substantive issues.

The official candidate filing period runs Monday through Friday. The primary election is Aug. 4.

Sullivan, 57, and Tisdel, 60, are competing for a four-year term in the council’s District 2. The job pays $111,000 per year and includes Tulalip, Everett and Mukilteo. If Sullivan wins, term limits would bar him from seeking the seat again in four years.

He has served on the Mukilteo City Council, as Mukilteo’s mayor and in the state House of Representatives. He has worked for three county executives and for former U.S. Rep. Al Swift, D-Wash.

Tisdel lacks Sullivan’s elected experience but he’s hardly a newcomer to local government. Candidates from both parties long have sought his financial support and advice. He’s served on unglamorous commissions and advisory boards to guide government decisions on health care, higher education and transportation.

The bulk of Tisdel’s work life has revolved around Tiz’s Doors, a family business that his father started and that he took over in 1993. It closed in 2011.

Sullivan’s re-election campaign reported raising $30,500 by late last week, much of it from home builders, unions and lobbyists. That’s not quite half of Tisdel’s $62,000. Prominent Snohomish County business families, including the Lanes and the Skotdals, have been big backers of Tisdel.

Sullivan has the official endorsement from the Snohomish County Democrats and questions Tisdel’s party credentials.

A campaign-finance database shows that $8,200 of the $11,350 Tisdel has donated to federal campaigns has gone toward Republican committees and candidates. The rest went to Democratic U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen.

“I’ve got a history of working with all parties to get things done,” Tisdel said.

The top two vote-getters in the primary will advance to the Nov. 3 general election.