OLYMPIA, WA – Under Washington’s constitution, an officeholder elected to a partisan position who vacates their seat — through removal or resignation, say — must be replaced by someone of the same political party.
But what happens when the official who needs replacing did not state a party preference in their declaration of candidacy? On this question, the law is silent.
A proposed amendment to the state constitution seeks to address that omission.
House Joint Resolution 4212, introduced by state Rep. Skyler Rude, R-Walla Walla, offers a solution: If the person who vacated the office did not express a party preference, they could be replaced by someone of any preference.
It is rare for a partisan position — a role where the candidate can declare themselves a Republican or Democrat — to be held by a nonpartisan, but it does happen.
In the November 2024 Walla Walla County commissioner election, Bertha Clayton — who did not formally run as a Democrat but has ties to the Walla Walla Democrats — unseated a Republican.
Garfield, Asotin, Pacific, Grays Harbor and other counties also have nonpartisan officeholders in partisan roles, Rude told the House Committee on State Government & Tribal Relations at the resolution’s first hearing Wednesday, Jan. 28.
Vacancies come up regularly in county and state partisan offices, Rude said. The process of nominating a successor starts with the county political parties. When a county commissioner, for example, vacates their board seat, the central committee of that person’s party presents three names for the still-seated commissioners to choose from.
However, Rude said, “in my research I have not been able to locate a vacancy that occurred by an officeholder who had no party preference.”
“My concern is, if we have a vacancy in one of those offices, we may have to wait until a special election can be held, depriving voters of representation,” he said.
At the state level, “even though we don’t have any nonpartisan legislators, it’s within the realm of possibility that could happen,” he said, “and representation is important, and I think this is a fix that ensures that our constituents are represented.”
Under Rude’s proposed amendment, Clayton’s fellow commissioners — two Republicans — would not have to appoint a Democrat or Democrat-leaning contender to replace her.
“They could choose anybody, and so they’re not locked into three names,” Rude said in an interview. “They can go through whatever they want for their process to choose an appointee.”
If the proposed constitutional amendment passes both chambers, Washington voters would then have to approve it in the November 2026 election.
Rude also introduced a bill, HB 2460, to change the corresponding language in state statute.
Although it might seem strange that someone untethered to a party can run for a partisan position, Rude said, “I think it’s really important that we allow candidates to run with no party preference. That’s what democracy’s about, and the parties have so much influence in our system that I’m glad there’s a path for anybody to run for office, whether they align with a party or not.”
Erick Bengel, reporting on Eastern Washington issues during the legislative session, is with the Murrow News Fellowship.
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