Marcia Kelbon admits that she really hadn’t been politically active until two years ago.

“I was commuting back and forth to Seattle and I saw that city fall apart and I saw the same thing happening over here,” the Quilcene resident said in an interview with The Leader after announcing her candidacy for the Washington State Senate.

Citing problems of drug abuse, a lack of adequate policing and the unhoused, she got involved as she saw other glaring problems.

“I started realizing how hard it is for younger people to make a go of it here and I don’t want to see us become a ghost town peninsula. It’s not just the young but the retirees too, and I have the background to address those things. Rather than throw in the towel I thought, let’s do something so that all of the generations can make a good go of it here.”

Kelbon considers herself a moderate.

“We’re in a pretty polarized country and a pretty polarized state and as was the case during my county commissioner race, I’m hoping people avoid political labels and look at what the candidates stand for. I’m for our government letting people do things instead of not letting them do things. I hope people are open-minded because I am certainly open- minded,” she said.

Kelbon is a chemical engineer, attorney, former US Navy civilian engineer, former biopharmaceutical executive, and current Quilcene fire commissioner. 

“Washington state was a wonderful place to build a rich and rewarding life when I moved here over forty years ago,” she said, “I was readily able to seek higher education, raise a family, educate my children, start and grow a business, and purchase and build a home.

“But our children and grandchildren, particularly on the Olympic Peninsula, do not have the same opportunities in this resource-rich state today,” she added. “Fuel and long-term care taxes reduce the reach of our dollars; too many of our children receive a sub-standard education; and drugs are rampant and our police are not empowered to keep us safe. Housing is also in short supply and costly, and businesses face an uphill battle.”

Kelbon stated that she handled child abuse and neglect cases for the State Attorney General’s office while completing her law degree, then practiced as a patent attorney. She most recently served for 19 years as a senior executive and the general counsel of a biopharmaceutical company. She has served as a Quilcene fire commissioner since 2022 and volunteers with East Jefferson Habitat for Humanity and the Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group in addition to assisting with other community affairs.

She lives with her husband of 43 years and a boxer dog on a tree farm in Quilcene. Two of Marcia’s three adult children and a granddaughter live on the Olympic Peninsula.