https://www.facebook.com/981836327283863/posts/1027936059340556
Jill Johnson (R-Oak Harbor), candidate for Island County Commissioner, District 2, posted this on her Facebook page on .
Being an elected official is what you make it. The job can be easy or hard…depending on how much you care. I care a lot.
Honestly, there are days I wish I could pretend it was easy and I could care a little less…but because the decisions I make impact our place…and they impact you…I can’t just dial-it-in!
Right now we are doing the County Budget. It’s hard. Not because of the math or the numbers but because the numbers represent services, jobs, and priorities.
Determining a salary impacts someone’s family. Safety improvements could mean someone’s life. Increasing translation services in our court system can ensure access to justice, the number of planners can determine the speed we can get a family into their new home.
All of these items present as simple numbers on a page and they are competing with other numbers on a page. Local government can only afford so much…and that’s when the budget stops being a math problem and becomes a community mission statement and you realize your choices matter in very real ways!
I’m not embarrassed to admit that decisions don’t always come easy for me. I’m not embarrassed to acknowledge that this job can be hard. In fact, just the opposite. I’m proud that I often visibly struggle making the right choice because it’s an indication that I still care. I want to get it right….because Island County matters! If you hear any candidate or elected official say their job is easy….it begs the question “how much do they really care about you, your family and this place we are lucky enough to call home?”
On The Ballot in August 2024
| Island County Commissioner, District 1 | Marie Shimada (D-Freeland) Melanie Bacon (D-Langley), the incumbent Steven Myres (R-Freeland) Wanda Grone (R-Langley) |
| Island County Commissioner, District 2 | Phil Collier (R-Oak Harbor) Christina Elliott (D-Oak Harbor) Jill Johnson (R-Oak Harbor), the incumbent |
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