| Field | Detail | Source |
|---|
| Full Name | Samuel Tye Menser (goes by Tye) | T1 |
| Residence | Thurston County, Washington (resident for approximately two decades) | T1 |
| Party | Democrat | T1 |
| Employment | Attorney for 21 years in public and private sector (1997-2018); Associate attorney at Morgan Hill, P.C. (approximately 2007); Provided legal services to indigent citizens through Thurston County Public Defense; Thurston County Commissioner, District 3 (incumbent, serving since 2019) | T1 |
1 Election History
| Year | Race | Result |
|---|
| 2019 | Thurston County Commissioner District 3 | Won (first term) |
| 2022 | Thurston County Commissioner District 3 | Won (56.4%, 69,524 votes vs. Vivian Eason 43.5%, 53,594 votes) |
| 2026 | Thurston County Commissioner District 3 | Pending (filed 5/4/2026; sole filer, running unopposed, re-verified 2026-06-10 against live WA SOS candidate list, status Active / In Primary, ballot order 1) |
2 Political Positions
| Topic | Position | Source |
|---|
| Climate Action | Helped pass Thurston County's climate mitigation plan; created one of the first green-energy financing programs in Washington state | T2 |
| County Budget | As Board Chair, presided over the 2026-06-02 budget amendment restoring County Clerk's Office and juvenile court funding amid the county's structural deficit. Per The Daily Chronicle (2026-06-08), the amendment restored $197,891 (2026) / $202,008 (2027) for two judicial proceeding specialists and $82,606 (2026) / $68,639 (2027) for part-time public counter services, which had been closed since 2026-01-20 after a $777,478 biennium cut. Pre-vote county release (2026-05-20) and ThurstonTalk (2026-05-21) corroborate the planned action and Menser quote; passage figures rest on Chronline's post-vote coverage | T2 |
| 2026 Campaign Platform | Campaign-site platform planks (candidate-stated): housing and homelessness, public safety and justice, environment and water quality, county operations and infrastructure, fiscal responsibility. Running for a third term | T2.5 |
3 Campaign Finance (PDC T1 Data)
| Metric | Value | Source |
|---|
| Total Raised | $6,102.17 raised as of 2026-06-11 (18 itemized records; latest receipt 2026-05-11). All contributions from individuals or candidate self, no PAC or organization money. Top donors, Adam Abrons $1,200, Jonathan Leary $1,200, Linda Gardner $1,200, Shelley Menser $1,000, Greg Horwitz $500, Peter Chramiec $250, Paul Berendt $150; unitemized small contributions $505; $72.17 candidate in-kind (domain fees) | T0 |
| Total Spent | $5,792.23 spent as of 2026-06-11 (13 records; latest expenditure 2026-05-17). Major items: $1,479.36 Thurston County Auditor Elections Division filing fee (2026-05-04); $1,600 Daniel Pailthorp campaign management (Jan 15-Feb 15 plus May-November); $1,000 Jordan Morris treasurer services (March-November); $842.50 Capitol City Press yard-sign stickers (2026-04-17) | T0 |
| Filing Entity | Filed May 2026 for Commissioner District 3 | T1 |
4 Endorsements
- Thurston County Democratic Women
- Washington Community Action (WCA)
- Lt. Gov. Denny Heck (WA)
- Commissioner of Public Lands Dave Upthegrove (WA)
- State Sen. Jessica Bateman (LD-22)
- State Rep. Beth Doglio (LD-22)
- State Rep. Lisa Parshley (LD-22)
- Sandra Romero (former State Rep. and former Thurston County Commissioner)
- Thurston County Commissioner Carolina Mejia
- Thurston County Commissioner Wayne Fournier
- Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders
- Thurston County Treasurer Jeff Gadman
- Port of Olympia Commissioner Joel Hansen
- Port of Olympia Commissioner Jasmine Vasavada
- Bob Iyall (former Port of Olympia Commissioner)
- Karen Valenzuela (former Thurston County Commissioner)
- Olympia Mayor Dontae Payne
- Olympia Mayor Pro Tem Yen Huynh
- Olympia City Councilmember Clark Gilman
- Olympia City Councilmember Dani Madrone
- Olympia City Councilmember Robert Vanderpool
- Olympia City Councilmember Kelly Green
- Olympia City Councilmember Paul Berendt
- Lacey Mayor Andy Ryder
- Lacey Deputy Mayor Malcolm Miller
- Lacey City Councilmember Carolyn Cox
- Lacey City Councilmember Maren Turner
- Lacey City Councilmember Ryan Siu
- Tumwater Mayor Leatta Dahlhoff
- Tumwater Mayor Pro Tem Kelly Von Holtz
- Tumwater City Councilmember Eileen Swarthout
- Tumwater City Councilmember Angela Jefferson
- Tumwater City Councilmember Meghan Sullivan
- Tumwater City Councilmember Peter Agabi
- Tenino Mayor Dave Watterson
- Bucoda Mayor Callie Carpenter
- Olympia School District Board Member Maria Flores
- Olympia School District Board Member Gil Lamont
- Olympia School District Board Member Renee Fullerton
- North Thurston Public Schools Board Member Sarah Tracy
- North Thurston Public Schools Board Member Michelle Gipson
- Pete Kmet (former Tumwater Mayor)
- Mark Brown (former Lacey Mayor)
- Robin Vazquez (former Lacey City Councilmember)
- Charlie Schneider (former Tumwater City Councilmember)
5 Notable Public Statements
“The board remains focused on finding budgetary solutions that restore vital in-person services to our residents, if on a modified or incremental basis.”
Thurston County news release (2026-05-20, T1) announcing the budget amendment scheduled for a June 2 board vote. Per The Daily Chronicle (Chronline, 2026-06-08), the board, with Menser chairing, passed the amendment on 2026-06-02, restoring $197,891 (2026) and $202,008 (2027) to the County Clerk's Office for two judicial proceeding specialists plus $82,606 (2026) and $68,639 (2027) for part-time public counter services (closed since 2026-01-20 after a $777,478 biennium cut), and restoring juvenile court probation funding. Passage and dollar figures rest on Chronline's post-vote coverage plus the pre-vote county release and ThurstonTalk (2026-05-21), T2 overall pending citation of the BoCC June 2 agenda packet or minutes. (2026-05-20)
6 Vulnerability Assessment
1 sourced findings. All sourced at T1 (Official Record) or T2 (Multi-Source Media) per clearthemud provenance model. No T3/T4 claims included.
Finding 6.1: Two Recall Attempts Filed and Dismissed LOW
- What happened
- Two separate recall petitions were filed against Menser during his tenure. The first (2020) was filed by activist Jon Pettit over 2019 Capital Improvement Plan votes and a COVID budget amendment; Pierce County Superior Court Judge Grant Blinn dismissed it as legally and factually insufficient (September 8, 2020). A second recall attempt in 2022 was also dismissed by the courts. Both petitions were dismissed.
- Source tier
- T1
- Political impact
- Low
- Defense
- Both recalls were dismissed as legally insufficient, vindicating Menser's conduct. Recall attempts against county commissioners are not uncommon, particularly on contentious budget and land use issues. Menser won re-election in 2022 with 56.4% of the vote despite the recall history, demonstrating continued voter confidence. He is running unopposed in 2026.
- https://ballotpedia.org/Tye_Menser_recall,_Thurston_County,_Washington_(2020)
- https://www.chronline.com/stories/judge-dismisses-second-recall-attempt-against-thurston-county-commissioner-tye-menser,285117
7 Source Verification
- Data Sources
- WA SOS, WA PDC, local media, public records
- Collection Date
- 2026-06-24
- Highest Tier
- T1 (Official Record)
- Methodology
- OSINT deep-dive using exclusively public-record sources. All findings at T1 or T2. No T3/T4 claims included.