Also posted at Thurston Pundits

While most have their eyes on the Democrat primary of Sheldon v fruit loop tribal favor Lucas in the 35th district, the GOP has overlooked a potentially terrible strategic play of events: No candidate to run against the special favor candidate if Sheldon gets eaten alive.

Suppose fruit loop tribal favor Lucas beats Sheldon in the primary? In the past that would have been highly unlikely. However, with the new rules for primary elections, voters cannot cross party lines on the upcoming ballot; thus incumbent Sheldon will get almost no help from conservatives who care about other GOP races. He's pretty much on his own to face the liberal cannibals of the 35th eating their own in the primary.

Though it seems pretty clear the vast majority of voters in that district not owning a firecracker stand would not vote for candidate fruit loop tribal favor Lucas, if she wins the primary, voters will have to chose between her total nonsense and the GOP candidate (even though the GOP machine is content to leave Sheldon alone to focus on other races).

Enter dark horse candidate Mark Shattuck. Mark called me late this week to let me know he was throwing his hat into the race. I've known Mark for about 2 years through various political efforts. He was one of the many who testified for (D) Senator Kastama's Shared Parenting bill this winter and is pretty versed in our county GOP platform. He was also one of the few who represented Thurston County at the state convention this year, which isn't easy to do if you actually work for a living.

Mark is no novice to politics. He's held a couple of local offices in the past, but is otherwise a no name to the political machines. I have to say that his filing may have been the stroke of genius that could save voters of the 35th from a catastrophe. If you are REALLY a liberal, you're going to love to watch Mark debate some pretty important issues and I encourage everyone to take off their party hats when that happens. As I said, he was one of many who testified for the Shared Parenting bill this past session. Anyone versed in those arguments understands the difference between liberals and Democrats. If you're not, just follow the money trail and see where it leads.

Although strategically, Mark's presence in the race will not be fully comprehended by most of us until after the primary, I'm glad he's running and wish him the best.