Local

Don't like the way things are going for your candidate in the 40th Legislative District? Wait a week.

The race to replace Sen. Harriet Spanel (D-Bellingham) has been one of the wildest so far in terms of twists and turns, with a glut of candidates, late drop-outs, and an endorsement process gone slightly awry. And don't forget the Salmon Yoga Party.

So it continues today as the retiring Spanel announced her endorsement of Ken Henderson (D-Bellingham), whose campaign seemed on the rocks as recently as a month ago.

The Public Disclosure Commission held a press conference in Olympia today to release the latest edition of their already award-winning website.  The new site, found here, is meant to be simpler to use with more graphics, clickable variables and up-to-date figures.

In other words, PolitickerWA.com's nights just got a whole lot more exciting. Give it a shot and see for yourself.

The three candidates from Kitsap Peninsula's  35th Legislative District, Rep. Kathy Haigh (D-Shelton), Brad Gehring (R-Bremerton) and Marco Brown (R-Belfair), met Wednesday to discuss campaign issues at an Eggs & Issues event sponsored by the Bremerton Area Chamber of Commerce, the Kitsap Sun reports.

Haigh emphasized her signature issue, support for education, by highlighting the need for government to push for better access to post-high school opportunities for young people.

Both Brown and Gehring, meanwhile, tried to establish themselves as the candidate for the common man in part by calling for tax relief.

The Municipal League of King County released its ratings of candidates in King County legislative and judicial races Tuesday. The Municipal League is a nonpartisan volunteer group dedicated to keeping government open and effective.

Ratings ranged from "Not Qualified" to "Outstanding" with "Adequate", "Good", and "Very Good" between them. Most candidates received at least a "Good" rating, with just under ten percent of all 85 candidates reviewed achieving the level of "Outstanding".

That's right folks, the ballot measure that you thought you turned down is reappearing this year, because the people who brought you last year's package have heard your concerns and cut out both the roads and anything south of Seattle.

Opponents of Initiative I-1029, which would require more training for home care workers in the state, have filed a lawsuit arguing that the wording on the ballot petitions, which incorrectly called it an initiative to the legislature instead of one for the people, should be taken as fact.

Secretary of State Same Reed, however, stands by the initiative's misstated intent. 

The two state representatives in the 40th Legislative District, Rep. Dave Quall (D-Mt. Vernon) and Rep. Jeff Morris (D-Anacortes) have now both weighed in on their choice for the open seat being vacated by long-serving state Sen. Harriet Spanel in the 40th Legislative District, and they have agreed to disagree.

The two are splitting the endorsements between Democratic frontrunners Kevin Ranker (D-San Juan Island) and Ken Henderson (D-Bellingham). This past Friday Quall announced that he is backing Henderson, and on week earlier Morris threw his weight behind Ranker.

Dino Rossi is up in the polls, and Darcy Burner had a great fundraising quarter, making them two of this week's winners. Find out who else made the list of Winners & Losers. | CLICK HERE

Democrats Moses and Barbara Wilson of Bellevue filed suit against Republican King County Councilwoman Jane Hague, according to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer. The suit filed on July 8 alleges that Moses – an elderly veteran who is mentally incapacitated – was featured in print and television ads for Hague's 2007 campaign against his will, causing "mental anguish, mortification, (and) humiliation" and seeks monetary compensation from Hague and the Bellevue care center where he was staying.

Washington is trade-dependent, yet the strongest epithet a campaign can level is that opponents’ money comes from out-of-state? We should get over our provincialism and take that money all the way to the in-state bank.