‘They just want good government’: Pierce County Council candidate says voters are tired of us-versus-them politics

Brenda Lykins holds a big lead in the race for the Pierce County Council’s District 7 seat. She said voters sent a clear message: They’re tired of hyperpartisan politics.

“They just want good government, good people doing good things, showing basic decency and kindness,” Lykins said on “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio.

Lykins, a Democrat and former Gig Harbor City Council member, had 63.49% of the vote in updated results posted Wednesday. Her opponent, Republican Mike Solan, had 36.45%.
Solan is a Seattle police officer and former president of the Seattle Police Officers Guild. The race had not been officially called.

The District 7 seat covers Gig Harbor and parts of North and West Tacoma. The winner will replace Councilmember Robyn Denson, who didn’t run for re-election, Gig Harbor Now reported.

‘Most people are not part of that us versus them world’

KIRO host Gee Scott asked what the results say about Pierce County voters.

Lykins said she heard the same thing while knocking on thousands of doors during the campaign.

“They’re tired of the hyperpartisan, hyperbolic us versus them,” she explained. “Most people are not part of that us versus them world. They just want good things to happen in their communities.”

She added that voters want their tax dollars spent responsibly, roads they can rely on to get to work, and communities where they feel safe.

Affordability tops her list

KIRO fill-in host Mike Lewis asked about her top three priorities.

Lykins said her first priority is affordability, including housing and child care. Her second is housing supply, built in a way that doesn’t drive up costs or traffic. Her third is public safety.

She noted that Solan ran mostly on public safety. She agreed the county has a low number of officers per resident, but she said the answer isn’t simple.

“What is the best way to improve public safety? Is it lifting people out of poverty? Is it providing more things?” Lykins said. “The older I get, you know, life is not so black and white, and there aren’t just simple answers to things.”

Lewis pressed her on what a county council can actually do about affordability.

Lykins pointed to coordinating services with community organizations so they don’t overlap, along with tax incentives or vouchers for employers that offer on-site or subsidized child care. She said the county also expanded its property tax exemption to cover low-income residents of all ages, not just older and disabled residents.

“There are things that county governments can do,” she said. “There are things that county government has to partner with the state. They have to partner with their federal government, and building those partnerships is a big part of the role.”

A nurse’s approach to homelessness and addiction

Lykins has spent decades as a neonatal nurse practitioner caring for critically ill babies and young children. Gee asked how that work shapes her view of homelessness and mental health in Pierce County.

She said medicine taught her to listen and find solutions without judging people.

“I don’t choose my patients. I see people when their babies, their young children, are critically ill on their worst days of their lives,” Lykins said.

Her graduate work focused on mothers whose newborns were withdrawing from opioids, and she called it a personal passion.

“These people deserve treatment and our support, and we want to make both them and their child better and part of this community,” she said. “I think compassion for people who are going through life’s crises is one of the most important things we can bring to the role.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio.