Confident Ross eager to retain House seat

With two legislative sessions already under his belt, Rep. Charles Ross, R-Naches, is looking forward to his third go-around in Olympia this January.

But first he has some business to take care of.

Ross, a funeral director who cut his teeth on politics as a council member and mayor of Naches, is making his first bid at re-election in the state House. His opponent is Chris Ramirez, a 22-year-old Democrat from Yakima who graduated this year from Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma.

Ross, 36, says his showing in the August primary -- 75 percent -- indicates strong support. He took over Jim Clements' 14th District state House seat in 2006, continuing a growing history of Republican dominance in Yakima.

The primary wasn't much of a contest since he and Ramirez were the only ones on the ballot. But Ross says he takes nothing for granted and enjoys campaigning. He's appeared at a number of community functions, most recently the Sunfair parade.

"This is the time you need to be very accessible to people," he said. "It's just part of the job, and that's what I like to do is get out and talk to people."

Ramirez says he, too, has enjoyed campaigning, and while he hasn't raised much money -- just over $7,300 compared with Ross's war chest of nearly $58,000 -- he has put his experience as a former varsity letterman in track at PLU to good use.

"I put some mileage on my shoes this summer, let me tell you," he laughed.

On issues, Ross and Ramirez are separated by the typical philosophical differences that distinguish Republicans and Democrats. Ross is interested in crime legislation and talks about the need for small government and low taxes, while Ramirez is interested in access to health care and education.

Ross points to accomplishments in the 2007 legislative session, especially his stewardship of the gang bill -- for which he was a leading Republican co-sponsor -- and the eluding bill, both of which were of keen interest to folks in Yakima County.

Both bills required help from Democrats, who control the Legislature and will continue to have the upper-hand for the foreseeable future.

Ross says being in the minority has taught him the importance of building relationships, a skill that was the hallmark of his political mentor, former Yakima legislator Alex Deccio.

Still, he says he has more work to do to get the gang bill -- particularly prevention and intervention programs -- fully funded. He may not succeed, given the current economic climate and the state's projected $3.2 billion deficit.

Also high on Ross' list is support for legislation that would require local cities and counties to tape closed-door executive sessions and reviving his own bill to allow mandatory random drug testing of police officers and sheriff's deputies.

Random drug testing is being pushed by Yakima city officials but didn't draw enough support -- or the lobbying juice -- of law enforcement groups to get passed. It died in the 2008 session.

Ross's bill would allow communities to impose random drug testing on law enforcement officers by getting it approved on a ballot measure with a simple majority vote. Though random drug testing has met fierce resistance from police unions, Ross thinks the idea would be popular with Yakima voters.

"The citizens in this state expect that law enforcement officers respond to calls clean and sober," he said. "I don't think that's too much to ask for."

Ramirez has some ideas too, and though his prospects for defeating Ross may seem bleak given his showing in the primary, he's hoping voter dissatisfaction with Republicans at the national level will trickle down.

He wants to introduce a bill that would mandate insurance coverage of colonoscopies for anyone over the age of 50. It's something, he says, that could save the lives of 1,000 Washingtonians a year.

"Preventative measures such as that one save lives," he said. "If the numbers indicate you can save lives in our community, why not vote for it?"

Ramirez says he'd like to see Yakima take a lead role in instituting environmentally friendly building standards at the Boise Cascade mill site, which is being eyed for redevelopment. He also wants to increase state support for the Washington College Bound Scholarship program for low-income students.

Ramirez also likes the idea of having state employees work a four-day work week, not just to save state dollars, but to help save energy. And, he'd like to see more implementation of performance audit recommendations made by the state Auditor's Office.

Acknowledging that Democrats have not fared well in Yakima for years, he says now is the time for upset victories by him and fellow 14th District legislative candidate Vickie Ybarra.

"It's been a while," he said of Democratic victories in this part of the state, "and we're definitely ready for change."

Charles Ross
Age: 36
Residence: Naches
Occupation: Funeral director, legislator.
Political experience/community service: State House of Representatives, 14th District, 2006-present; Naches City Council, 1997-2006; mayor of Naches, 1999-2003 and 2003-06;  Yakima County Health District Board of Directors.
Education: A.A. in mortuary science, Mount Hood Community College, Gresham, Ore.; A.A., Yakima Valley Community College.
Family: Married, two children
Little known fact: Served in the Navy, 1991-95, including duty on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk during the Persian Gulf War.

Chris Ramirez
Age: 22
Residence: Yakima
Occupation: College graduate, preparing for law school.
Political experience/community service: None
Education: B.A.s in religion and political science, Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma.
Family: Single
Little known fact: Starred in track at Davis High School and PLU. He’s certain he could outrun anyone in the Legislature.

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