Valderrama aims to capitalize on city government experience in race for House seat

Published 8:30 am Thursday, July 28, 2016

Ramiro Valderrama first became involved in local civic issues when he and other Sammamish residents were concerned about road construction happening in their city.

He founded Citizens for Sammamish, a grassroots group that works to give citizens a voice outside of city council meetings. As the group grew and increased the dialogue between residents and elected officials, someone encouraged Valderrama to run for city council.

He has been on the Sammamish City Council for four years and is now serving as deputy mayor.

“I’m where the rubber hits the road,” he said.

Valderrama is taking what he has learned at the local level to the state as he runs for the 45th District House of Representatives, Position 1. He prefers the Republican Party and is challenging incumbent Roger Goodman.

Valderrama said he decided to run for state office after learning that residents in Redmond and Kirkland faced similar issues to those of Sammamish residents, and they felt they were not being heard by lawmakers.

One of the biggest issues he wants to address is transit and traffic congestion.

“This is a real issue for us,” he said.

The amount of money being spent statewide versus what Eastside residents are receiving is not balanced. He said people are angry about the traffic on Interstate 405 and asking Eastside residents to help pay for Sound Transit services is “taxation without transportation.”

Another issue Valderrama is concerned about is growth. There should be a balanced approach that is sensitive to the environment and character of the city and also respects the property.

Valderrama said through his work, he has been able to prove his worth on the growth issue and he is able to achieve a dialogue among interested parties.

Valderrama, who has sent three children through the Lake Washington School District and has one still in the system, is also concerned about education.

People want to be empowered and parents want to have more choices, which is why he supports charter schools, he said.

Valderrama would also like to address mental health and homelessness.

Valderrama said his experience with the Sammamish City Council as well as his work with the Citizens for Sammamish has given him the opportunity to reach out to and work with different groups with opposing viewpoints, adding that he does not see the issues as partisan issues.

“They’re common sense issues,” he said. “I bring that ability to cross the (party) lines.”

Valderrama added that with his Latin background, he is uniquely able to bring a sensitivity to issues on diversity.