Who’s the better Democrat for City Council?

Published 6:00 am Wednesday, August 15, 2007

A candidate wants to know why his party endorsed his opponent in non-partisan race.

In choosing which Bainbridge City Council candidates to endorse in the primary election, Kitsap 23rd Legislative District Democrats followed their bylaws to the letter.

The letters used to convey those endorsements, however, weren’t treated so scrupulously.

“Bill Knoblock (sic) is running for his third term on the Bainbridge City Council and is being endorsed for the third time by Democrats in the 23rd,” reads a message on the organization’s website.

True, except that the Bainbridge councilor hoping to retain his Central Ward seat spells his name Knobloch, instead of “Knoblock,” as it appears twice in the endorsement statement.

While no one’s complaining about the spelling, several candidates are questioning the methods by which different organizations make political endorsements.

John Waldo, who is running against Knobloch, said he is disappointed not because he wasn’t chosen by the 23rd District Democrats, but because he was never contacted or interviewed by anyone at the organization before it made its endorsement.

“If you don’t know what people stand for,” Waldo said, “how can you pretend to be in a position to endorse them?”

Waldo, who said he has contributed financially to the campaigns of local Democrats in the past, also questioned whether political party organizations should be making endorsements at all in non-partisan races, like those for City Council.

Feelings were mixed among many primary candidates, seven of whom are vying for four spots in the Aug. 21 election. Most said that given the choice they would always prefer to be interviewed by those making endorsements, but most also acknowledged that groups are free to support candidates as they please.

“It doesn’t bother me,” said Lauren Sato Ellis, who along with Waldo and CarolAnn Barrows is seeking Knobloch’s seat. “I don’t think it’s completely appropriate for them to be involved in a non-partisan race, but they’re entitled to do what they want – they’re an independent group.”

Robert Dashiell, who is running against Kim Brackett and Curtis Winston for a seat in the South Ward, had a similar take.

“I think they have a right to endorse a candidate if they choose to,” said South Ward candidate Robert Dashiell. “I’m more disturbed by their process of not interviewing candidates first.”

Brackett, who received endorsements from both the 23rd Legislative District Democrats and Bainbridge Conservation Voters, said she’s learned through experience that endorsement processes vary.

For example, most newspapers, including the Bainbridge Review, interview all the participants in an election before supporting a particular candidate.

But forgoing interviews doesn’t break any rules, said Lori Anderson of the Public Disclosure Commission.

“It’s an issue of free speech,” she said. “Anybody has the right to endorse anyone they want to.”

Leaders of the 23rd District Democrats say they agree with Anderson’s assessment, which is why they’ve been endorsing candidates in non-partisan races since the mid-1990s.

To be endorsed, candidates must be nominated by a paying member of the group, of which there are about 300, according to State Committeeman Jim Sharpe.

Once nominated, members vote on whether to endorse a candidate. There are no interviews prior to the vote, though an endorsement requires approval by 75 percent of members at the meeting.

“A lot of times, what the candidates have to say doesn’t make much difference,” Sharpe said.

The meeting

About 60 members – including some people from Bainbridge – turned out last month at the meeting in which Knobloch and Brackett earned the group’s support in their respective races.

Though he called Waldo a “good Democrat,” Sharpe said the Winslow attorney hurt his campaign in the party’s eyes by switching races at the last minute.

Waldo originally filed to run against Barry Peters for the At Large position before jumping into the Central Ward race just before the filing deadline. The switch, along with the fact that the group usually favors incumbent Democrats, was enough to land Knobloch the endorsement.

“(Waldo) acts like he’s a long-term Democrat, but I don’t know who he is,” said Remo Barr, Chair of the 23rd District Democrats executive board. “He can be a member and come to our meetings.”

Sharpe added that the organization sometimes will endorse Republicans in non-partisan elections, including one this year in a Central Kitsap school board race.

At the other end of the political spectrum, the Kitsap County Republican Party follows a different procedure. Endorsements by that group come via a majority vote by board members, according to Central Committee Chairman Jack Hamilton.

Prior to the vote, the group interviews all Republican candidates using a multi-part questionnaire. In addition to the interview, candidates sometimes are given background and credit checks, Hamilton said.

“We certainly do our homework,” he said. “But the general policy is that the county party will not endorse a candidate in a contested primary.”

Regardless of which group is making an endorsement, Winston said he would prefer a thorough interview process, such as the one he went through with the Bainbridge Conservation Voters.

Though he didn’t win their endorsement, Winston said he appreciated being given an opportunity by the group to present his platform.

He couldn’t say the same for 23rd District Democrats.

“Do I think it was a fair and equitable process?” Winston said. “No. But everyone’s got their first amendment right to say politically which candidate they support.”

Waldo expressed his disappointment at length last week in a letter to members of the group.

“If you were a group of folks sharing a particular interest germane to city government who all happened to be Democrats, and so labeled yourselves (e.g., 23rd District Democrats for the Environment), I wouldn’t have any real problems with you action, although I’d be cross that there were no interviews or any other attempt to ascertain my views,” he said. “But by your name, you purport to speak to and for ALL of the Democrats in the 23rd District, including me and all three of my opponents.”

He added: “I have no idea why you have concluded that my opponent might be a superior choice for Bainbridge Island City Council. More to the point, since I’ve never spoken to any of you about any political issue, I doubt you have any idea either.”

Waldo argues that council races “are non-partisan as a matter of law, and for a reason – as the old saying goes, there is no Republican or Democratic way to fix a pothole.”

Sharpe sees things differently.

“I would disagree with that,” he said. “I think there is a difference between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to fixing potholes – the taxing policies of Republicans don’t lend themselves to fixing potholes.”