Right-wing conspiracy theory politics grip Sequim, a small Washington coastal town

A political firestorm was provoked in Sequim, Wash. last year, shortly after the town got a new mayor, who turned out to be a promoter of right-wing QAnon conspiracy theories.

This year, one of the mayor's main backers – a Q conspiracy apologist named Donald "Donnie" Hall – is working with a slate of candidates on the northern Olympic Peninsula.

Hall is a self-styled political kingmaker and Clallam County Republican. He co-founded a group in 2019 he called the Independent Advisory Association, which recruits and trains conservative-populist candidates, including Sequim Mayor William Armacost.

Hall said his main goal for the Independent Advisory Association is to give like-minded candidates the campaign basics they need to compete. But online and in interviews, he also offers rationalizations for QAnon and advocates like Armacost.