As Primary election ballots are set to be mailed next week
for the August 7th election, I wanted to share our recommendations
with you on the Supreme Court races and three other very important races for
consumers and citizens.
Election statistics show that about twenty percent of voters
skip the judicial races on their ballots.
We know it is critical to have the right men and women leading our
judicial system. We want to share with
you the candidates we support and some reasons why.
There are three Supreme Court races on your ballot:
In the first, for Position 2, we recommend voting for the
incumbent Justice Susan Owens. Owens has served on the high court for twelve
years ably, while her opponents have no judicial experience.
For Position 8, we recommend voting for Justice Steve Gonzalez.
Gonzalez, a former Assistant US Attorney, King County Prosecutor, and
King County Superior Court Judge, was appointed to the bench last year. Ha has an outstanding record, throughout his
legal career, of commitment to justice issues.
In contrast, his opponent was rated ‘Not Qualified’, by his local
colleagues in the bar association, in his races for lesser judicial offices.
For Position 9, we recommend that you vote for John Ladenburg.
For the Court of Appeals, Division II, Position 2, please
vote for Brendan Williams who is the
son of Wayne Williams and has an exemplary record of public service as a
Supreme Court Clerk, State Representative and Deputy Insurance
Commissioner. Brendan has been a strong
advocate for the rights of injured workers.
If you live in Thurston County we urge you to vote for Jim Johnson for Superior Court Position
2. Jim is a very good attorney and
familiar with workers’ compensation law.
We would also like to make recommendations on three
statewide offices of great importance to citizens and civil justice: Governor, Attorney General and Insurance
Commissioner.
In the Governor’s race, Jay
Inslee is the clear civil justice candidate. Prior to public office, Jay was an attorney
representing victims in Yakima. He then
began a long career of public service where he has diligently protected
citizens’ constitutional and civil rights, and been a champion of worker and
consumer protections. In contrast, his
opponent Rob McKenna has fought to remove or reduce citizens’ ability to hold
government accountable through the court system and favors insurance companies
providing workers’ compensation benefits.
The Attorney General is the chief legal officer for the
State of Washington and its citizens, and 90% of the office’s job is
representing the state in civil cases.
We strongly recommend Bob
Ferguson for this job. Bob is a
lawyer and King County Councilman, who has committed his campaign to protecting
public safety, going after fraudulent actors alike mortgage lenders and
servicers, prosecuting polluters, and protecting taxpayers against fraud and
abuse. Bob would be a champion for us
all as Attorney General and deserves your vote.
Last but certainly not least, incumbent Insurance
Commissioner Mike Kreidler must be
re-elected. Commissioner Kreidler has
been the number one champion in the state shaping our insurance system to try
and make it work for consumers in every line of insurance. The Insurance Industry writes $30 billion worth
of business every year in our state, and he uses his office to fight to make
sure consumers are actually getting the coverage they pay for, fighting delay
or denial of legitimate claims, and trying to reduce rates and create a fair
system.
We hope you have found this information helpful. We are sharing our views with you because of
our strong belief and commitment in our office that every client who walks in
our door seeking a chance for justice through the court system depends on these
public servants. Please, fell free to
share this, if you think it’s helpful, with family and friends. Regardless of your views on these races,
though, please make sure you vote on August 7th. We owe it to each other to participate and
have our voice heard in our electoral process.
Please feel free to ask us.
If you have further questions, or if you need more information, you can
view the voters’ guide online at: https://wei.sos.wa.gov/agency/osos/en/Pages/OnlineVotersGuide.aspx. If you are not registered to vote or need to
update your registration, you can do so, in seconds, online at: https://wei.sos.wa.gov/agency/osos/en/MyVote/Pages/MyVote.aspx.
Thank you for your time, and for taking part in our
democratic process,
A summary of our recommendations is:
Supreme Court
Position
No. 2 – Susan Owens
Position
No. 8 – Steve Gonzalez
Position
No. 9 – John Ladenburg
Court of
Appeals Position No. 2 – Brendan
Williams
Thurston County Superior Court
– Jim Johnson
Governor – Jay Inslee
Attorney General – Bob Ferguson
Insurance Commissioner – Mike Kreidler
