Tom Beben (Mason County Commissioner Board District 2, Washington, candidate 2024)
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Tom Beben (No party preference) ran for election to the Mason County Commissioner Board District 2 in Washington. He was on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024.[source]
Beben completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
[1]Biography
Tom Beben provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on October 4, 2024:
- Birth date: June 8, 1980
- Birth place: Wiesbaden, Armed Forces Africa/Canada/Europe/Middle East
- High school: Thomas Sumter Academy
- Bachelor's: Coker University
- Gender: Male
- Profession: Restaurant Owner
- Incumbent officeholder: No
- Campaign website
- Campaign Facebook
Elections
General election
General election for Mason County Commissioner Board District 2
Pat Tarzwell and Tom Beben ran in the general election for Mason County Commissioner Board District 2 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | ||
Pat Tarzwell (R)  | ||
| Tom Beben (No party preference) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Mason County Commissioner Board District 2
Richard Beckman, Pat Tarzwell, and Tom Beben ran in the primary for Mason County Commissioner Board District 2 on August 6, 2024.
Candidate | ||
| Richard Beckman (R) | ||
| Pat Tarzwell (R) | ||
| Tom Beben (No party preference) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Election results
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Beben in this election.
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Tom Beben completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Beben's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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In 2007 Tom and his wife opened Smoking Mo’s, a small take-out food stand. In 2012 they purchased a historical building in downtown Shelton. After a complete remodel, with a focus on restoring and protecting the historical features of the space, the restaurant thrived. In 2019 their preservation work continued in another historical space to add High Steel Beer Co. to their business portfolio. The microbrewery’s beer catalog celebrates the Pacific Northwest experience by using locally grown flavors, honoring local landmarks, and celebrating local folklore. Smoking Mo’s was voted #1 BBQ restaurant in Western Washington by King 5 News voters and has been awarded Business of the year by Shelton-Mason County Chamber of Commerce. It was also honored by Pacific Mountain Workforce Development as the recipient of The Nancy Payne Award. Tom is a proud member of The Shelton Rotary Club. He has served on the Shelton-Mason County Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, and in 2018, he was selected as their Citizen of the Year. He also coaches Jr High basketball.
Tom is a proud father.- I want to bring back the feeling of community and connectivity that we’ve lost. I want to find new ways
to celebrate that which unites us. I want to find a path forward to building a county fairground and Mason County welcome center, and I will advocate for more community centric events like a county fair
and rodeo. These types of events not only strengthen our collective bond, they also bolster our local economy. - I recognize and appreciate the great benefit and work that our local industries like logging and aquaculture have served our community. While protecting those industries, our land and our waterways, I want to focus on untapped revenue potential from renewed tourism efforts, utilizing the foundation and opportunities that we already have in place here. I believe we are more than just a stop, we are a destination. We are not just the gateway to the Olympics, we can be The Playground of the Olympic Peninsula
- With new income coming into our community from increased tourism, we can fund new efforts to improve our infrastructure and to provide better facilities and resources to our county employees and local businesses. Tourism income can offset the financial burden of property taxes on local taxpayers, and affordable housing can exist in Mason County again. I will work tirelessly to research solutions that have proven to be successful in areas similar to ours to create a sensible and comprehensive plan to treat mental illness and drug abuse in our community. Ultimately I want to make Mason County a safer, more affordable, sustainable and peaceful place to live.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
