‘Own it so they can’t use it against you’: Jake, Spike debate whether DUI arrest will sink Tacoma House candidate’s campaign

A Democratic candidate for a state House seat in Tacoma was booked into Pierce County Corrections on Tuesday for a DUI charge, one week after winning her primary race.

Krista Rose Perez allegedly struck a parked car shortly after midnight, setting off a chain reaction that damaged five vehicles. No one was hurt.

Jake Skorheim and Spike O’Neill, co-hosts of “The Jake and Spike Show” on KIRO Newsradio, discussed whether the arrest could derail her campaign — and what she should do next.

Jake and Spike say she should lean into it, not run from it

Perez posted $1,000 bail and was released after roughly six and a half hours, according to jail records. The Tacoma City Attorney’s Office has since charged her with one count of DUI with an enhancement for refusing a breath test.

Jake said if he were advising Perez, he would tell her to make the arrest part of her story rather than let her opponent define it.

“Take it head-on. You make it part of your campaign so they can’t use it against you,” Jake said.

Spike agreed, arguing that voters respond to accountability and that Perez has an opportunity to turn a mistake into a message.

“People love accountability,” Spike said. “She has an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, I showed very poor judgment. Never done it before, and I promise I’ll never do it again. In fact, I will work tirelessly to make sure that our roads are safe.'”

Spike says it shouldn’t be disqualifying, but voters will decide

Spike said the arrest alone should not end a political career, but acknowledged it will likely cost her votes in what is already an extremely close race. Perez led Morgan by just 380 votes in the primary.

“I don’t think it should be disqualifying on its face. She made a mistake, a horrible mistake,” Spike said. “But the voters decide. There are a lot of flaws in all of our candidates, both sides. Nobody’s perfect.”

Jake noted the timing makes it particularly damaging, comparing it to how state Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon’s reputation has never fully recovered after he was allegedly intoxicated during a House committee hearing.

“It’s like anytime I hear Joe Fitzgibbon talk now, I go like, ‘He just got sober,'” Jake said. “Every debate she’s at in the future, the number one thing people are going to say — that’s going to follow her.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to “The Jake and Spike Show” weekdays from noon to 3 p.m. on KIRO Newsradio 97.3