Kittitas County, WA – In a united show of support, every mayor across Kittitas County has endorsed Matt Mills in his campaign for Superior Court Judge. Mills, a highly respected deputy prosecuting attorney with the Kittitas County Prosecutor’s Office, has gained the backing of local leaders who believe he embodies the qualities necessary to serve the community with integrity, fairness, and dedication.
Ellensburg Mayor Rich Elliott, Cle Elum Mayor Matthew Lundh, Kittitas Mayor Rich Hink, Roslyn Mayor Jeff Adams, and South Cle Elum Mayor Jim DeVere have all expressed their confidence in Mills’ qualifications, citing his extensive legal experience, commitment to making the court accessible to all, and his strong connection to the local community as key reasons for their endorsements.
In response to these endorsements, Matt Mills expressed his gratitude for the trust and support of Kittitas County’s local leaders. “I am deeply honored to have the endorsement of each of these respected mayors. Their belief in my ability to serve our community as Superior Court Judge means a great deal to me, and I am committed to upholding the values of fairness, respect, and integrity in this role,” said Mills.
The mayors join a host of elected leaders that choose Matt Mills including Upper District Court Judge Craig Juris, County Prosecutor Greg Zempel, and former Ellensburg City Councilmember Jill Scheffer. Mills has also earned the endorsement of former opponent Margie Alumbaugh and respected local attorneys like Ken Beckley and Mark Garka.In addition to his work at the Kittitas County Prosecutor’s Office, Matt Mills has worked in private practice with firms, as a solo practitioner in family law, civil law (business formation, wills and trusts, creditor/debtor law, landlord-tenant law), criminal law, and patents and trademarks. Matt and his wife April live in Ellensburg and have four children. Matt is the Cubmaster of Cub Scout Pack 489 and he and April are currently developing a rural retreat center in Klickitat County for families with children with special needs.
Margie Alumbaugh is throwing her support to Matt Mills in the race for Kittitas County Superior Court Judge, Position 1.
Alumbaugh was previously a candidate for the judge position, but was eliminated in a close three-way race during the 2024 Primary Election that also featured Mills and Chris Herion.
Mills and Herion will square off in November’s general election for the seat on the bench. Herion finished first in the primary, with 39% of the vote. Mills was second with 31%, while Alumbaugh had 28.7%.
Mills’ campaign announced the endorsement Tuesday. Mills is currently a deputy prosecuting attorney in the Kittitas County Prosecutor’s Office; Alumbaugh is an Ellensburg attorney who works under contract for the county as a public defender in superior and district courts.
“I am pleased to announce my endorsement for Matt Mills. I have had the pleasure of working with and appearing in court with him,” Alumbaugh said in a press release.
“He is fair, practical and has the ability to show compassion where the situation requires,” she added.
Mills said he was grateful for Alumbaugh’s endorsement.
“During the campaign, she brought up important topics of fairness and equal access, which I will advance in the courtroom,” Mills said. “Through my work helping found the Behavioral Health Court and my work with some of our most vulnerable populations, I understand the need to ensure that the court is accessible and fair to everyone.”
Matt Mills is ready for his path to take a turn.
A deputy prosecutor in Kittitas County Superior Court, Mills is now one of three local attorneys running to replace Superior Court Judge L. Candace Hooper.
Hooper, the current judge in the Superior Court Judge, Department 1 position, decided against seeking another term and has announced plans to retire.
Before changing careers and attending night school at Seattle University’s School of Law where he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence, Mills worked for 10 years in the biotechnology industry.
Mills graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in biochemistry in 1997. He met his wife there, and after she graduated in 2000 with a degree in engineering mechanics, they came to Washington.
“She actually had competing offers from Boeing and the Navy. But the Navy hired her to go work at the shipyard in Bremerton,” Mills added, where she worked on submarines.
He was employed at ZymoGenetics, a biotech/pharmaceutical firm in Seattle for about eight years, taking the ferry over from Bremerton.
When children entered their family picture, their journey took a turn.
“When we had our first kid, we decided I should probably go back to school; make some more money,” he said.
He had just turned 30. Mills continued with his day job while attending the Seattle University law program at night. He graduated in 2008.
“Thought I’d go into patent law; passed the patent bar. But then I ended up working for a lawyer in Silverdale who was a general practitioner. I decided I liked the courtroom stuff so I stuck with that,” he said.
It wasn’t the first time Mills had decided to start anew and blaze a new trail.
He grew up in Wisconsin, in Cleveland, a little village with a bank and a grocery store, about halfway between Milwaukee and Green Bay. The high school was in nearby Sheboygan.
His father had been a veterinarian, mostly for dairy farmers, and Mills once thought he’d do that too, someday.
“My dad’s activity was so romantic,” he recalled, going to each farm, knowing every family. “I rode around with him in the summers. My first job was kind of his de facto assistant.”
“For a long time I thought I’d take over my dad’s business. Toward the end of the ’90s, I kind of saw that family farms were starting to go away,” he said.
“Law really never crossed my mind until I found the Seattle U program,” Mills added.