I consider the results -- the excruciatingly slow results -- of the GOPrimary to be a disaster here in Coeur d'Alene. Instead of one legislator who seemingly fights every visionary move of the city, we now are on the brink of having two. Why? Mary Souza and Kathy Sims are fixated on forcing their vision of local government onto this community. They kept their eye on the ball and rallied their troops (Citizens Against Virtually Everything) to provide enough votes in a voter-depressed closed primary to pull this off. I suspect the many of us were bone tired from successfully fighting them on the 2012 recall attempt and then turning around last year to depose the uber-conservative Coeur d'Alene School Board and protect the centrist majority on the Coeur d'Alene City Council. Mary Souza's election to the state Senate should be a wake-up call that it's time to form a year-round coalition that will elect good officials to represent Coeur d'Alene in the partisan legislative races as well as protect nonpartisan seats on our school board, city council, North Idaho College and hospital elections. I suspect Balance North Idaho was spooked by the scolds who wondered if the successful organization was going to drop its nonpartisanship to get involved in partisan races during this year's primaries. NIPAC tried but found itself enmeshed in a closed primary that favored the other side of the local GOP divide. The Reagan Republicans, who generally endorse wisely in GOP legislative races, were a non-factor this year. We have six months until the general election. The chances aren't good that centrist Republicans, Democrats and majority Unaffiliateds can deny Tea Party Republicans seats in the courthouse. But Democrats have candidates in all races but the coroner's. Also, there's two seats to protect on the North Idaho College Board of Trustees. Those who worked so hard to deny the Tea Party sweep should take a breather -- and then consider how they can expand their group to have a year-in, year-out impact on Coeur d'Alene elections. The losses sting. But there are two examples to consider in bouncing back -- the terrific success of the school board and council elections last year. And Mary Souza's return from the political dead to senator-elect in six months. If she can do it, those who won the battles over the last two years can too/DFO.