6 candidates for elections director

Six candidates have filed to run for King County elections director in an election that will be held without a primary — and, apparently, with gloves off.

Before the filing period even ended Friday, one of the lesser-known candidates, high-school teacher and political gadfly Christopher Clifford, officially challenged incumbent Elections Director Sherril Huff's voter registration, claiming she doesn't live in the county.

Huff, who is moving this week from Kitsap County, said she now lives in King County.

Then there were suggestions of secret deal-making at state Democratic Party headquarters. And, oh yes, there's the candidate who said she probably wouldn't have run if someone hadn't threatened her.

It could be a long 7 ½ weeks.

The nonpartisan Feb. 3 election was set when voters last month decided they wanted to choose the elections director, an official who up to now has been appointed by the county executive.

Here are the candidates, in the order they filed:

• Huff, the former Kitsap County auditor who was appointed King County elections director early last year;

• State Sen. Pam Roach, one of the Legislature's most colorful and controversial members, who in the past has moved to new addresses to run for other political offices;

• Bill Anderson, a former bank-industry software engineer and executive who wants to bring better accounting to county elections;

• David Irons, a telecommunications entrepreneur and former Metropolitan King County Council member who unsuccessfully challenged King County Executive Ron Sims in 2005;

• Clifford, who has filed complaints about other candidates and public officials, and who is currently trying to recall Seattle Port Commissioner Pat Davis; and

• Julie Kempf, who was fired as King County elections superintendent after she was accused of lying about why thousands of ballots were mailed late in 2002. She denies she lied.

Kempf said she decided to run after she was threatened by political opponents who didn't want her to run. She declined to offer details of the threats. "If you give in to a threat, they've won already," she said.

Huff, who for months said she didn't plan to run for the position she already holds, shook up the race earlier this week when she changed her mind and said she was moving to King County in order to run.

After Huff's announcement, five other potential candidates dropped out: Ellen Hansen, Lloyd Hara, Alec Fisken, Jason Osgood and Ross Baker.

Hansen, former King County elections manager, and Baker, former County Council chief of staff, decided not to run after they attended a meeting with Huff and state and local Democratic Party leaders Tuesday at state party headquarters in Seattle.

Irons' campaign consultant, Sharon Gilpin, said she believed the meeting was held to convince Democrats to unite behind Huff. Of the candidates who dropped out, she said, "What were they offered?"

They weren't pressured into bowing out and weren't offered anything for doing so, said Hansen, Baker and others at the meeting. Hansen, who chairs the county Citizens' Elections Oversight Committee, said she initially decided to run because Huff wasn't running and later dropped out so the vote wouldn't be split between them.

State Democratic Party Chair Dwight Pelz said the race isn't about Democrat Huff versus Republicans Roach and Irons. "Sherril Huff isn't the Democratic candidate in this race, she's the competent candidate in this race."

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