Dan Newhouse

House Republicans chose their leadership late last week, opting to keep most of the same leadership roles as they were during the 2008 session.

Rep. Richard DeBolt (R-Chehalis) was re-elected minority leader, a post he has held since 2006.

"It’s an honor to be re-elected Leader by my House Republican peers. I’m excited about the direction of our caucus and impressed with our incoming freshmen," DeBolt said in a statement. "We are looking forward to unveiling our ideas and engaging not only our Democrat [sic] colleagues, but the public, in finding solutions for the challenges facing our state."

Springtime in an election year means no rest for the weary over at the PDC. Besides the usual fundraising minutiae, there is also the fact that nary a day goes by without new candidates filing for office. Here is a rundown of the action so far this week.

Chris Mulick reports that Democrat Mark Jay Flanders will challenge Rep. Doug Erickson in Whatcom County's 42nd, and John Nyberg, also a Democrat, will join the race for retiring Rep. Bill Fromhold's seat in Vancouver's 49th. He also notes that Republican Michael A. Novack is seeking to be the M.A.N. for Rep. Timm Ormsby's (D-Spokane) job in the 3rd District.

Over in Kitsap County, the Caucus blog says Republican Larry Cooney will challenge Rep. Sherry Appleton in the 23rd.

Finally, the Yakima Herald reports that professional kayaker Tao Berman (D-White Salmon) will challenge Rep. Dan Newhouse, the Sunnyside Republican, in the 15th District.

"I understand that very conservative Republicans probably are not going to vote for me," Berman told the Herald regarding his entry into the solidly Republican district. "However, I believe there are a lot of Republicans who really share my values,"