Candidate for Olympia mayor withdraws from race

Philip Cornell, a candidate for mayor of Olympia, has pulled out of the race, citing family reasons.

Cornell, 71, previously ran for U.S. Senate in 2016. His platform in the mayoral race focused on homelessness in Olympia and climate change.

“This is our home and it’s on fire!” Cornell wrote in response to The Olympian’s candidate questionnaire.

Cornell cited his time as past president of the Southwest Olympia Neighborhood Association and current vice president of the Thurston County Amateur Radio Emergency Service as relevant experience.

Cornell said he made the decision to pull out of the race Thursday.

Four candidates are still running: incumbent Mayor Cheryl Selby, City Council member Nathaniel Jones, Brenden Clerget and David Ross.

The primary is Aug. 6, and two candidates will advance to November’s general election.

Candidate forum for Olympia Mayor

The Thurston County League of Women Voters and The Olympian are sponsoring a forum so residents can meet the candidates before the Aug. 6 primary. The forum will run from 7-9 p.m. Friday, July 12, at The Olympia Center, 222 Columbia St. NW.

The League also conducted additional candidate forums that were videotaped by Thurston Community Media and can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6kKZRfmGAdXlaoQ2qsxO1r1GHQoTUbYB or on Comcast Channel 77. Those videos include council candidates from Lacey, Olympia and Yelm as well as the Olympia mayoral candidates discussing additional topics.

This story was originally published July 5, 2019 at 11:51 AM.