Youthful candidates seek county, state and city positions
From our weekly issue dated February 10, 2010
Simon Hare
A trio of young men has filed for various offices throughout Josephine County during the past few weeks.
On Monday, Feb. 8, Simon Hare filed for Josephine County Commissioner Position 1.
Hare, 31, was born in Grants Pass and attended Evergreen Elementary School and Lorna Byrne Middle School in Cave Junction. He graduated from Illinois Valley High School in 1997.
After high school, Hare attended Oregon State University at Corvallis, and graduated in 2002 with a bachelor“s degree in agricultural business.
In 2002, Hare interned at the Washington, D.C. office of U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith. Hare spent six years working at the National Rural Electrical Cooperative Association as a senior adviser for outreach affairs.
As part of his duties, Hare coordinated legislation at the state and federal levels to benefit rural residents throughout the country. He also sat on the board of directors for the Washington Area State Relations Group, and worked with the Consumer Federation of America, the National Consumer“s League, and Organizations Concerned for Rural Education.
Hare returned to Josephine County last year, and has been working at his family“s ranch in rural Cave Junction since.
“There are a lot of people throughout the area who think that I can help lead Josephine County into the future,“ Hare said in a Friday, Feb. 5 press release. “These are the people who will help me win my campaign in the May 18 primary election.“
Hare said that his platform will include his experience in successfully lobbying state and federal governments; his expertise on matters of renewable energy; and his passion for the responsible use of natural resources.
“I plan to run a serious and vigorous campaign throughout the next several weeks, and hope to be part of a new generation of leadership that will ensure prosperity for Southern Oregonians for years to come,“ Hare said.
He is the fifth candidate to file for that position, and the fourth from Illinois Valley. Incumbent Dave Toler has filed, along with Selma resident Mark Seligman and former Cave Junction mayor Tony Paulson.
Jack Brown, Constitution Party of Oregon chairman and a Grants Pass resident, also has filed. Grants Pass resident Rycke Brown, no relation to Jack, is gathering signatures to support her candidacy.
On Wednesday, Feb. 3, Josephine County Deputy District Attorney Wally Hicks officially filed for Oregon House District 3.
That seat currently is held by Rep. Ron Maurer (R-Grants Pass), who announced recently that he will not seek a third term. Instead, he plans to run for superintendent of public instruction against incumbent Susan Castillo.
Hicks, 33, served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 1993 to 2005 and achieved the rank of captain. In 2000 he earned a bachelor“s degree in history from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and served one tour of duty in Iraq during 2004.
In 2005, Hicks worked as a volunteer law clerk with the U.S. Dept. of Justice Office of Immigration Litigation. He was an aide to Sen. David Nelson (R-Pendleton) at the state capitol in Salem in 2007 and graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law in 2008.
Also filing for local office was 33-year-old Grants Pass resident Derek Graden. He is seeking a seat on the Grants Pass City Council representing one of the city“s southwest wards. Graden“s opponents are Darin Fowler and Ronald Schwartz.
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