County Council set to interview candidates to fill vacancy in Council District 1

January 15, 2013

Summary

Candidate interviews to be conducted in Council’s Committee of the Whole

Story

Metropolitan King County Council Chair Larry Gossett said the process to fill the vacancy created by the resignation of Councilmember Bob Ferguson will begin with interviews of the three candidates recommended today by County Executive Dow Constantine.

“Our goal is to get a Councilmember to represent the over 220,000 residents of District 1 as quickly as possible,” said Gossett. “We will have a thorough vetting of the candidates sent to us by Executive Constantine with the focus of filling the appointment with the best of those candidates.”

According to state law, The King County Executive is responsible for proposing three nominees to the Council. The three candidates transmitted to the Council by the County Executive, in alphabetical order, are:

• Rod Dembowski — Attorney, Foster Pepper PLLC
• Will Hall — Councilmember, City of Shoreline; Senior Legislative Analyst, Snohomish County Council
• Cindy Ryu — State Representative, 32nd District

The Council will conduct interviews with all three candidates at a meeting of the Committee of the Whole, the only standing committee on which all members of the Council serve.

“As Chair of the committee that will review the candidates, I am committed to ensuring the selection process is fair, thorough, and completed as swiftly and efficiently as possible,” said Council Vice Chair Julia Patterson. “I look forward to working with the Council in selecting the best possible representative for the residents of District 1.”

The Council has 60 days to make the final appointment from the date the position becomes vacant on January 16. The appointee will serve in office until certification of the next general election in November.