WA 4th District candidate Sessler is pro-Trump. But what else do we really know about him?
Jerrod Sessler is a good talker.
And he seems to be making statements many conservatives want to hear, so he’s got a devoted following without much evidence of what he can accomplish.
The pro-Trump candidate dove into a congressional race without any elected legislative experience. Sessler’s signs have sprung up all over the Tri-Cities, he has numerous online videos and drives a semi-truck with his name on it around Central Washington. He’s campaigning hard — primarily with his own money.
But the Republican candidate vying to represent Washington state’s 4th Congressional District is also generating concern because so little is known about him. It appears he hasn’t immersed himself in the local community as much as he has focused on national controversies.
While other candidates in this race have deep roots in Eastern Washington, Sessler has emerged on the public scene just as he started his run for office. And the political rookie has made some alarming missteps.
Of particular concern is that $3,463 in back taxes is owed for property at 84009 W. Old Inland Empire Highway in Prosser — Sessler’s address. The unpaid balance began in 2020, and Benton County records show it has been accumulating since.
The Herald reached out to Sessler to ask about the lapse in tax payments, and he said he didn’t realize the taxes had not been paid and that he would be looking into it.
Editor’s Note: According to the Benton County Treasurer’s Office, Sessler paid his taxes after being contacted by the Tri-City Herald.
The land was bought in 2018 under a limited liability company called RQ Bradley LLC that Sessler is listed as the governing agent for. Sessler said he started buying congruous pieces of property several years ago in Benton County and the 2018 purchase was the latest.
Federal election disclosure documents show Sessler has loaned his campaign about $354,000 since April 2021.
Self-funding a run for office when you’ve got taxes to pay doesn’t look good for a congressional candidate. After all, if taxpayers are going to end up paying your salary, they don’t appreciate it if you haven’t paid your own debt.
In addition to the unpaid property taxes, other concerns have come up that we asked Sessler to address.
On his campaign website, Sessler posted on Jan. 17 that former Yakima-area State Trooper Robert LaMay has joined his team. LaMay made national news in October when he recorded some choice words for Gov. Jay Inslee over the state vaccine mandate.
What Sessler’s website doesn’t include is the fact that LaMay tragically died of COVID days later on Jan. 28. This is a significant omission.
Sessler told the Herald that he was well aware of his friend’s passing. His campaign then emailed the Herald links to various tributes that Sessler made for LaMay on social media.
It’s just a shame that Sessler’s primary website — the one that citizens are most likely to check out first — left out that LaMay died of COVID after opposing the Washington state vaccine mandate.
In another questionable move, his initial campaign shows Sessler complaining about many issues, including that kindergartners are being taught gender is a choice. As he says this, an image of children painting male and female symbols appears on screen. We wonder where that shot came from. Did he really see that happening in a classroom or was it set up?
Sessler said it wouldn’t have been set up, but he left it to the production team to put the video together and the clip may have been found on another platform and then added in.
We think someone who wants to help run this country and draft national laws should have a better grasp of what’s in his own campaign materials.
We also have concerns about his apparent lack of concern for following WA state election laws.
On his website is a response to what he called a Tri-City Herald “hit piece” targeting his wife, Nikki Sessler, who attended a Kennewick School Board meeting last December and stumped for her husband during the public comment period.
We pointed out in an editorial that Washington state law prohibits the use of a public agency’s facilities to directly, or indirectly, assist the election campaign of any person running for office.
But Sessler glossed over our main point about following state law, and said the media was choosing to pick “on a mom standing in defense of kids” and that “Nikki Sessler will not be silenced.”
His spin on the issue doesn’t tell the whole story, which makes it difficult to believe other statements he makes.
And let’s not forget the stir Sessler caused last year when he ran a controversial “Help Wanted” ad from Craigslist.
“Sadly, due to our current woke-sheep culture, female candidates, although welcome, will need to demonstrate their commitment to the mission in writing and with references to protect the candidate from future false claims that could damage his reputation,” according to the ad.
Sessler took the ad down quickly and apologized after people complained.
While federal law says you don’t have to live in this congressional district to be elected, 4th District voters should know more about who they’re voting for.
Most of the other candidates running in the congressional race are either familiar names to Tri-Citians, or they are people who have strong ties to the region.
Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, is a lifelong resident of Central Washington and a third-generation farmer. He’s going for his fifth term in Congress.
The other GOP congressional candidates include state Rep. Brad Klippert of Kennewick, Benancio Garcia of Sunnyside, Corey Gibson of Selah and Jacek Kobiesa of Pasco. Democrat Doug White, a farmer from Yakima, is also running.
And Loren Culp was from Republic when he ran against Gov. Jay Inslee in 2020, though he now lists his mailing address in Moses Lake. Sessler suggested to the Herald that Culp’s residence needs checking out.
Even so, a lot already has been written about Culp. State election results show that Culp was the top vote-getter in every Eastern Washington county in the governor’s race except in Whitman County. So he, at least, is a familiar candidate to 4th District residents.
With Sessler, there’s just a lot we don’t know, and a lot of what he says makes us wonder what he’s leaving out.
But here is some of what we do know.
Sessler told the Herald that he when he was growing up he had relatives in the Tri-City area and that he lived for a while as a boy in Pasco. Eventually his family moved to the west side of the state, but he always enjoyed visiting extended family in Eastern Washington.
He lived in Burien before moving to the Prosser area. He said he and his wife “love it here” and this is where they want to live. They’ve been building a new home on their Old Inland Empire Highway property.
Sessler’s voting record shows he registered to vote in Benton County in 2019 and he has voted in local elections since then.
And Washington Secretary of State records report he is CEO of a handyman franchising service, HomeTask Inc., at 600 8TH Street, Prosser. That’s also the same address listed as his campaign headquarters.
But until this election, no one had heard much about him in the Tri-Cities.
Sessler hasn’t been heavily involved in local politics or community service projects. His endorsements are primarily from the national level. In an email, his campaign staff said that, “As far as our website is concerned, in the interests of space, we only put a few of Jerrod’s national endorsements on it. None of his local endorsements were ever on his website.”
That’s an unusual stance. Typically, it’s the local endorsements people care about the most.
Klippert already has the endorsement of the Benton County Republican Party. Culp has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
But Sessler appears to be outspending both of them. Judging by his social media posts, he has time to drive all over the district, which runs from Canada in the north to the Oregon border in the south. He seems to be on a mission.
This congressional race deserves special attention, and the candidates running for office should be considered for more than their rhetoric and number of campaign signs.
Ballots are supposed to go out July 13, and it is imperative voters do their research.
