At the heart of our state lies our natural resources, bound closely with the rich traditions of Tribal nations. This week, alongside my colleagues at the Department of Natural Resources, I hosted a summit of Tribal Leaders from across the State. We opened the event with a special gift of smoked salmon that I prepared for our Tribal Leaders, honoring the deep significance salmon holds for us.
Our Native communities rely on salmon and the land that we live on. Protecting salmon is not about politics for us, it is our sacred duty and a connection to our community, culture, and history.
Our current Land Commissioner, Hilary Franz, has prioritized Tribal summits to facilitate engagement with Tribal leaders and ensure our state government upholds its obligations to treaties and tribal-protected rights. Collaborating with all 29 tribal governments, who have faithfully stewarded this land for generations, is critical to the prosperity of our state’s future.
As a proud member of the Makah Tribe, a commercial fisherman, and someone who has worked on salmon recovery efforts at the Department of Natural Resources, I bring both a unique lived experience and a rich professional history to this work.
With our salmon populations on the decline, safeguarding our natural resources is more urgent than ever.
As Commissioner of Public Lands, I will work hard to ensure that salmon recovery efforts succeed. My opponents in this race are deep-pocketed politicians, backed by wealthy special interests. After looking at their PDC filings this week we know they outraised us last month. This is bad. To catch up, we need to raise $6,500 by our mid-month deadline on Tuesday. Can you help?
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I grew up understanding the importance of caring for and living off the land. I will work hard to ensure that future generations can enjoy all that Washington has to offer.
Thank you for supporting me.
– Patrick
