ARLINGTON — Snohomish County council member Nate Nehring announced on Monday that he will be seeking a third term.
Nehring, a Republican, was first elected in 2017 and then won by a landslide in 2021. Nehring, 29, is a resident of Arlington. Earlier this month, Nehring was unanimously elected president of the county’s legislative body, a role he previously held in 2020. He was vice president of council last year.
“I’m hoping to build on some of the work that I’ve done over the past eight years in my first two terms,” Nehring said in an interview on Monday.
Nehring represents District 1, which includes Arlington, Stanwood, Marysville, Granite Falls and Darrington.
In an interview, Nehring pointed to taxes, public safety and workforce development as some of his major issues. Nehring has consistently voted against county tax increases, highlighted recently in a no vote against the 2025-26 biennial budget. It contained a property tax increase Nehring and his supporters fought hard against.
The budget passed along partisan lines, though County Executive Dave Somers, a Democrat, let the budget take effect without his signature, and signaled his displeasure with it.
“I feel that we do have areas of county government where where we’ve got unnecessary spending and so my priority would be advocating for looking at spending reductions first,” Nehring said. “And then if a tax increase is needed, after we’ve reduced spending and increased efficiency, then I’d be happy to take a look at that. Unfortunately, I don’t think we’ve gotten there yet.”
Nehring said the fentanyl drug crisis was not only the main public safety and health issue facing Snohomish County, calling it the largest issue the county faces. He’s strongly in support of social workers embedded with law enforcement, saying it’s been successful in Smokey Point, elsewhere in Arlington, and Marysville.
Within the larger problem of fentanyl, he said, is an issue in how to reach out to people who are not interested in becoming sober.
“What do you do with those people? Because if you just leave them on the street, they’re going to be dead,” Nehring said. “Fentanyl kills within a year or two, you don’t have long term fentanyl users, there’s just no way to live when you’re actively using that. And so I think we have to find a pathway for those kind of that treatment resistant population.”
He pointed toward withdrawal and stabilization facilities as a potential pathway. He’s worked with State Rep. Lauren Davis, D-Shoreline, on the issue.
Nehring highlighted his his work with council Democrats Jared Mead, Megan Dunn and Strom Peterson as examples of working outside party lines.
Nehring is also endorsed by over 200 individuals and groups, a mix that contains members from both major political parties.
“There’s way more areas of common ground than there are areas of disagreement,” Nehring said, referring to fellow council members. “We may disagree a handful of times throughout the year on more contentious votes, but there are so many areas where we can find ways to collaborate.”
Jordan Hansen: 425-339-3046; jordan.hansen@heraldnet.com; X: @jordyhansen.
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