11 apply for Constantine's County Council seat

Eleven candidates, including state legislators, local officeholders and a former presidential aide, have applied to replace Dow Constantine on the Metropolitan King County Council.

Constantine was sworn in as county executive Tuesday afternoon.

The council is scheduled to choose Constantine's successor by Dec. 14, after recommendations from an advisory committee that will interview candidates next week.

The committee, chaired by Seattle Storm co-owner Anne Levinson and Neighborhood House Executive Director Mark Okazaki, is to recommend three to six candidates.

Four candidates said they intend to run for election to the council seat in November 2010, while five say they prefer to serve as one-year caretakers. Two others weren't as definitive.

Council members have not reached agreement on whether to appoint someone who plans to run or one who doesn't.

Here are the candidates who intend to run for the seat if appointed:

• Burien City Councilmember Lucy Krakowiak, owner of Burien Massage Center, a King County Library System trustee and a founding member of Sustainable Burien.

• Normandy Park Mayor Shawn McEvoy, who is president of two manufacturing companies and served on a steering committee that helped write a chinook-salmon-recovery plan for the Green River.

• State Sen. Joe McDermott, of the 34th District, who also served in the state House and worked as a South Seattle Community College instructor, tour guide and Seattle Public Schools budget analyst.

• Vlad Oustimovitch, a Seattle architect and planner who previously worked on Seattle Housing Authority redevelopment projects and now operates a private community-development firm.

The following applicants said they would not run for election:

• Seattle City Councilmember Jan Drago, who was an advocate for downtown redevelopment and Washington State Convention & Trade Center expansion before she ran unsuccessfully for mayor this year. Drago's City Council term ends in just over one month.

• Public-policy consultant Helen Howell, a Seattle resident, who was director of the state Department of Financial Institutions, special assistant to Former President Clinton, deputy chief of staff to former Gov. Gary Locke, and vice president for public policy of Planned Parenthood Federation of America.

• Arun Jhaveri, Burien's first mayor, former Highline Community College trustee, former U.S. Department of Energy regional technology manager and now senior adviser to The Pacific Institute.

• Highline Water District Commissioner and former Normandy Park Mayor Kathleen Quong-Vermeire, who has worked on community land-use issues and helped create a city recycling program.

• State Rep. Sharon Nelson, an aide to Constantine, who has fought against an expanded gravel mine near her Maury Island home and sponsored legislation that regulates payday-loan companies.

Two candidates were less clear on whether they would stand for election:

• State Rep. Zack Hudgins of Tukwila, who has held management positions at Amazon.com and Microsoft, said he would not decide whether to run until after his appointment or after the 2010 legislative session.

• Jake Jacobovitch — a King County roads engineer, former Vashon Island School Board member, Vashon-Maury Island Community Council president and state Ferry Advisory Committee member — told the council he wants to run for election, but if the council decides to appoint a caretaker he would commit not to run.

Keith Ervin: 206-464-2105 or kervin@seattletimes.com