Smith on Politics: Four Candidates for Two 46th Legislative District House Seats

Four candidates – all Democrats -- are running for two House seats in the legislative district that will include Lake Forest Park beginning with this year’s election.

Appointed to the 46th Legislative District Rep. Gerry Pollet faces a challenge from Sylvester Cann, who lost to Pollet for appointment to the position, which became vacant late last year, when David Frockt won appointment to the Senate to replace the late Sen. Scott White.

Cann has been busy raising money while Pollet has been barred from fundraising during the Legislative session.

Cann has reported raising $30,196 and spending $5,137 to Pollet’s $1,200 raised and nothing spent.

Two candidates are seeking the position that will be vacant with the retirement of  State Rep. Phyllis Gutierrez Kenny.

One is Jessyn Farrell, an attorney who is co-chair of the Puget Sound Regional Council initiative, made up of local elected officials from King, Pierce, Kitsap and Snohomish Counties, which sets priorities for $87 billion worth of proposed transportation investments.

The other is Sarajane Siegfriedt, a member of the King County Board of Equalization, chairwoman of the King County Democrats Legislative Action Committee and a member of the board of the 46th District Democrats.

Farrell has reported raising $5,700 to none for Siegfriedt.

Frockt who holds the 46th District senate seat by appointment has no announced opponent for the last two years of the senate term.

Big differences in how we fill vacancies in elected offices

The resignations of Jay Inslee as 1st District Congressman and Sue Rahr as King County sheriff show the differences in how we fill vacancies for elective offices.

While the County Council will appoint a sheriff to replace Rahr until a November election to fill the last 13 months of Rahr’s term, no one has the power to appoint a replacement for a member of the U.S. House of Representatives. The U.S. Constitution gives governors the power to make interim appointments for senators, but it allows governors only to call special elections for House seats and that can’t happen within eight months of the next Congressional election.

About this column: Journalist and Shoreline resident Evan Smith has covered local issues for nearly two decades. His politics column appears on Patch every other week.