Edmonds business owner to run for state Senate against incumbent Sen. Liias

An Edmonds business owner, Janelle Cass, will be taking on incumbent Democrat Marko Liias for the state Senate in the 21st Legislative District.

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When Cass joined the Jason Rantz Show, he jumped right into the issues, starting with one he says “Liias is responsible, in large part, for,” which is the ban on so-called high-capacity magazines.

Cass is opposed to that ban, and says she supports “all of our Constitutional rights.”

“Government is not supposed to be overstepping or impairing our Second Amendment rights in any way,” she said. “I also echo what Senator Fortunato had said, that this can definitely be a women’s right.”

“We’ve got raising crime because of all these other policies that Senator Liias has talked about, and supported, and voted for,” she added. “We’ve got crime creeping up and increasing in the 21st district and we need to be able to protect ourselves.”

Cass also agrees with Rantz’s perspective that Liias is out of touch with the district, particularly when it comes to his policies on housing.

“We had Mukilteo actually send in a referendum, they wanted to protect single-family zoning,” she said.

She also cited Edmonds, where a recent bill suggested duplexes and quadplexes would be added near mass transit hubs, including ferry terminals.

“In this particular community, those are very high-end properties that would be converted to duplexes, and that’s not affordable housing,” she said about Edmonds.

As for the single biggest issue she’d take on if elected, Cass said it’s hard to pick just one.

“All of these together are just tremendous burdens on the families and the individuals and the seniors in our district,” she said. “I think we’ve really got to pay attention to the zoning. I think the transportation bill is completely oppressive — it’s another place where he’s out of touch.”

Cass believes that being a small business owner in the community would help make sure she is in touch with the district since she, too, feels the pressure of any business-related legislation.

“There’s rising prices for goods and services, for having our own employees, keeping our employees safe,” she said. “I think that’s what is going to keep us super grounded. And I come from a background of service, as an Air Force veteran, that was always what motivated me.”

Listen to the Jason Rantz Show weekday afternoons from 3–6 pm on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here.