PORT ANGELES — A Port Angeles teenager plans to run for a position in the state House of Representatives.
Aiden Hamilton, 18, said he will run for the District 24, Position 2 seat currently held by state Rep. Steve Tharinger, D-Port Townsend.
“I have a firm belief that Washington is going in a direction that young people won’t be able to afford it,” Hamilton said. “I can see with my peers that the only way to live is to get out before you’re piled with debt. A lot of young people can’t afford Washington, and I’m not going to be much different unless something changes.”
Hamilton will run as a Republican and said he has been endorsed by the Clallam County Republican Party.
Although Hamilton has not yet graduated high school — he is set to graduate in June from Seaview Academy, an online school for Washington students — he said he wants to run for the state House position because he wants to fix big problems.
“A lot of the stuff I want to fix can’t be done here locally,” Hamilton said. “It’s not just the taxation coming from Olympia. All of our local junior taxing districts are being absolutely obliterated by unfunded mandates. I could run for a smaller office, but I wouldn’t be able to fix what I want to fix.”
Hamilton does not have any leadership experience but said he served on the board of Culture Crossroad USA, a state 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with the vision to “empower, educate and engage conservatives so we can affect change in American culture with proven values that are time tested and effective,” according to culturecrossroads.org.
“I don’t have anything particularly outstanding compared to other people, but I feel that’s not the No. 1 qualifier,” Hamilton said.
He said “holistic experience” is the top qualifier for a state House candidate.
“Our Legislature wants to fix the problems in learning loss from COVID-19 but not one member of the Legislature faced the same loss of learning,” Hamilton states on his website, hamiltonforwa.com. “My generation has. Believing in the next generation doesn’t mean talking about fighting for the future. It means electing the next generation of voices.”
Hamilton said, if elected, he would be the youngest elected member in the history of Washington and “I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”
“We have a wildly diverse Legislature, but we don’t have anyone who’s particularly looking out for young people,” he said. “We have a situation with people who have been in office a long time and we don’t see any changes. Every time we’re promised that they’ll only tax the rich, they come back and tell us they’re raising our taxes. We have a chronic spending problem.”
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Reporter Emily Hanson can be reached by email at emily.hanson@peninsuladailynews.com.
