Let the people decide who runs their elections

A group of concerned citizens has submitted 74,000 signatures to put a county charter amendment on the ballot that calls for the direct election of a King County elections director. The King County Council should not delay this question yet again and ignore the will of its citizens by refusing to put the charter amendment on the ballot this November.

It may come as a surprise that, although citizens have turned in the required signatures, the question of this new, elected office does not automatically go on the next general election ballot.

Under state Supreme Court interpretation of the King County Charter, the council now has three options: adopt the initiative and put the charter amendment on the ballot this November; do nothing and let the people decide this November whether to allow the final question on the ballot in 2008; put an alternative on the ballot, which may or may not require two different votes.

The council should not hide behind the process, and should put the question directly to the people this year.

We have debated the issue of creating an elected director of elections long enough. It has been almost three long years since we were talking about mail-ballot-processing foul-ups, the inability of the Elections Section to accurately reconcile all the votes, lost ballots, and the failure to count valid votes, such as that of Councilman Larry Phillips.

If 74,000 citizens aren't persuasive, consider that both the King County executive-commissioned blue-ribbon task force on elections and the council-commissioned citizens election-oversight committee have recommended a directly elected official to oversee elections.

The King County Council has implemented almost all of the recommendations of both these groups, except one: the direct election of an individual to supervise the elections process.

An elected official would have to face the voters every four years. Instead, our current system makes the elections director accountable to a partisan elected official. We still need accountable election leadership, preferably before 2008.

The King County Council has already voted 6-3 in favor of a motion creating a directly elected official to run elections — sort of. For political reasons, its implementation was delayed until 2009. Those who want to wait until 2009 no longer have that option. The voters will do it for us in 2008 if we don't let them vote now.

Why would we want to wait until after the largest election in King County history — the next presidential election — to add accountability to our election system?

It's unfortunate this citizens initiative has become a partisan issue. At its core, we are really asking whether the people should decide who runs their elections. It's time for partisan voices to step aside and allow the people's voice to be heard.

It's my opinion that we need someone running our elections who is accountable directly to the people. Every other county in the state already has one and the people have asked for the opportunity to vote. Let's not make them vote twice.

Reagan Dunn, R-Bellevue, represents District 9 on the Metropolitan King County Council. He sponsored the council motion calling for a directly elected elections official.