Washington: Yakima’s cost in fighting ACLU case tops $1 million | Yakima Herald

Yakima has now spent more than $1 million defending a voting rights case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union that upended the city’s elections system. Assistant City Attorney Helen Harvey said Wednesday the city has spent $1,074,062 to date — and costs will continue to rise. Yakima’s attorneys on Tuesday filed a request with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals seeking a stay of this year’s elections, and the city expects to file a friend-of-the-court brief with the Supreme Court by early August in a Texas case that could effectively reverse the outcome of the ACLU ruling.

Washington: Senate bill would let cities hold district elections | Yakima Herald

The state Senate is considering new legislation to give localities more authority to hold elections by district. Senate Bill 6129, filed Tuesday by Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn, would change state law to allow all counties and cities to hold district elections for their councils or commissions if local officials or voters so choose. State law currently only allows charter cities such as Yakima to change their elections systems, but a number of nonchartered localities with increasing minority populations, such as Pasco, have sought to create districts to improve minority representation. Yakima is one of just 11 charter cities in the state.

Washington: Yakima council OKs options for elections stay | Yakima Herald

The Yakima City Council will ask the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to consider a full or partial stay of this year’s elections. In a 4-3 vote Monday, the council approved a resolution asking for a stay and cited the city’s old elections system as the preferred method for voting this year. Under that system, only the positions now held by Maureen Adkison, Thomas Dittmar, Rick Ensey and Kathy Coffey would be up for a citywide vote during the November general election. Dittmar and Ensey have said they would not run this year.

Washington: State AG’s opinion on ACLU case could have wide reach | Yakima Herald

Reverberations from Yakima’s voting rights lawsuit with the American Civil Liberties Union are being felt across the state and in Olympia, where the state Attorney General’s Office is expected to release an opinion related to the issue. The opinion won’t have much, if any, impact in Yakima’s case. But it’s likely to be studied carefully in many other cities, especially Pasco. When Pasco officials saw how poorly Yakima fared in the ACLU lawsuit, they began drafting plans earlier this year to revamp their city’s election process in order to avoid a similar fate. Yakima has been ordered to change its election process by a federal judge who said its old election system violated federal election law by routinely suppressing Latino interests. Under the judge’s order, which is under appeal, Yakima City Council members would be elected by voters in their districts and would no longer be subject to citywide voting.

Washington: Yakima’s request to halt elections brings uncertainty | Yakima Herald

The first batch of Yakima election ballots already could be in the mail by the time the city’s request to halt new elections reaches the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Yakima City Council voted 5-2 Tuesday night to seek a stay of elections under a court-ordered system that put all seven seats on the ballot in new districts. A federal judge ordered the new system in February, but there was no push for a stay until just last week, when the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a Texas voting rights case that could undo the judge’s ruling in Yakima. The timing caused some council members to ask why the decision wasn’t made earlier, with one councilman saying it was the city’s own defense attorney who originally discouraged it. Another wondered openly whether the stay was merely an attempt by some to stay in office longer.

Washington: Yakima to submit amicus brief in Supreme Court voting rights case | Yakima Herald

Yakima will file a legal brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in support of a case that could upend the city’s new elections system, but it narrowly voted against asking for a partial stay in the upcoming elections. The City Council on Wednesday unanimously asked its attorneys to submit a friend-of-the-court brief in Evenwel v. Abbott, a Texas case that seeks to define the “one person, one vote” principle. On Tuesday, the Supreme Court announced it would hear the case sometime in the next year.

Washington: Bill intended to help minorities in elections | Spokesman-Review

A proposal to allow Washington cities to rearrange voting districts so minorities could have a greater voice in elections was praised Thursday as a way to avoid costly federal lawsuits; it also was denounced as a Trojan horse for more litigation. The proposed state Voting Rights Act passed the House on a partisan vote during the regular session but stalled in the Senate despite bipartisan support. It got an airing in a joint Senate committee work session Thursday though it’s unlikely to be revived for the special session, which is concentrating on budgets.

Washington: State Voting Rights Act gets an airing | The Spokesman-Review

A proposal to allow Washington cities to rearrange voting districts so minorities could have a greater voice in elections was praised Thursday as a way to avoid costly federal lawsuits and denounced as a Trojan horse for more litigation. The proposed state Voting Rights Act, which passed the House on a partisan vote during the regular session but stalled in the Senate despite bipartisan support, got an airing in a joint Senate committee work session. It’s unlikely to be revived for the special session, which is concentrating on budgets, but that didn’t keep tempers from occasionally flaring as legal experts disagreed on its effectiveness.

Washington: Yakima watching intently as Supreme Court considers Texas voting rights case | Yakima Herald Republic

U.S. Supreme Court justices will convene May 14 to discuss a Texas voting rights case that could impact Yakima’s legal fight with the American Civil Liberties Union. Meanwhile, an attorney hired by the city says negotiations to reduce the ACLU’s $2.8 million fee claim against Yakima are at a standstill. The Supreme Court conference, held behind closed doors, is a routine part of the decision-making process on whether to hear cases submitted to the court. An announcement on whether the case will be heard could come as early as May 18.

Washington: $981,000: Latest cost for Yakima in ACLU voting rights case | Yakima Herald Republic

Yakima has paid more than $981,000 in attorney fees and expert witness costs in its voting rights case with the American Civil Liberties Union, according to records released by the city today. The City Council voted 5-2 last week to appeal the case to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals after a judge in federal district court ordered the city to change its council elections system. City officials supportive of the appeal are hopeful a Texas voting rights case with the potential to be heard by the U.S. Supreme Court could give their argument enough weight to reverse the lower court’s decision.

Washington: State Presidential Primary May Be Headed for the Exits | Frontloading HQ

In a not-all-that-unexpected move, the Washington state Democratic Party voted this past weekend at its state central committee meeting to select and allocated delegates to the 2016 national convention through a caucuses/convention system. The party had already telegraphed the move with the earlier release of its draft 2016 delegate selection plan. With Washington Democrats set to hold caucuses in 2016, it does seemingly spell doom for legislation that has been working its way through the Washington state legislature this winter/spring. As it stands now, state law calls for a Washington presidential primary in May of any presidential election year. However, legislation (SB 5978) that has already passed the Republican-controlled state Senate in Washington calls not only for moving the date up to March, but also for the state parties to allocate some of their delegates based on the results of the primary election. Without buy-in from both parties, the primary would still be held but with all candidates from both parties listed together on the primary ballot.

Washington: Yakima to appeal ruling in ACLU voting rights case | Yakima Herald Republic

Yakima will appeal a federal court ruling in a voting rights case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, but elections under a new system ordered by the court will proceed later this year. Citing the possibility that the U.S. Supreme Court may hear a Texas case addressing the same issues raised in Yakima, the City Council on Wednesday voted 5-2 in favor of an appeal, with council members Kathy Coffey and Rick Ensey in the minority. But because the council didn’t seek a stay of the federal judge’s order, all seven council seats will be up for election later this year, as ordered by U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice.

Washington: New Yakima election system to go forward | Yakima Herald Republic

New elections will be held for all seven Yakima City Council seats this year regardless of whether the city appeals a federal judge’s order requiring a new election system, council members said Monday. And the council will see at least two new faces. Councilmen Rick Ensey and Dave Ettl said Monday that they won’t seek re-election. With Friday looming as the deadline for appealing the judge’s ruling in the voting rights case with the American Civil Liberties Union, the City Council has scheduled a special meeting at 2 p.m. Wednesday to decide on an appeal. If the city does appeal, the new system could eventually be thrown out, but council members said the city won’t stop the judge-ordered election.

Washington: Yakima County begins plans for redistricting despite city’s ongoing legal fight | Yakima Herald Republic

The city of Yakima hasn’t thrown in the towel yet on its legal fight with the ACLU, but county elections officials said Wednesday they are moving ahead with implementation of a court-ordered redistricting plan for the city. Yakima County Auditor Charles Ross said the decision was made Wednesday after consulting with the county’s attorneys. Ross, whose office oversees municipal and county elections, said updating the information in the county’s voter registration system would take about three days and will likely begin next week. “Our position is we’re going to implement the judge’s order,” Ross said.

Washington: Yakima will ask federal judge to reconsider ruling on voting districts | Yakima Herald Republic

The Yakima City Council will ask a federal judge to reconsider his decision in the city’s voting rights case with the American Civil Liberties Union, a move that will reset the clock on an appeal and give members more time to weigh their options. The decision was made Tuesday night during the council’s regular meeting. The vote was 6-0, with Councilman Rick Ensey absent. U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice of Spokane will have to respond to the motion to reconsider, which some people even in Yakima city government expect to be denied. However, it would give the city a new 30-day window to file an appeal after Rice responds to the motion. The city’s attorneys were expected to file the motion before midnight Tuesday.

Washington: Future of state Voting Rights Act unclear | Yakima Herald Republic

A proposed state Voting Rights Act remains alive this legislative session, but the odds of it passing the Republican-controlled Senate remain dim. On Wednesday, Senate Democrats attempted to pull Senate Bill 5668 from committee for a floor vote, but the motion was defeated along party lines, 26-23. However, this morning the Democratic-controlled House passed its own version of the Voting Rights Act by a vote of 52-46, again along party lines. It’s the third straight year that Democrats in Olympia have sought aggressively to move the bill forward. The law would allow residents to petition state courts for changes to local elections systems they believe violate the rights of protected minorities and other voters.

Washington: Yakima facing mounting costs in ACLU elections suit | Yakima Herald Republic

As the Yakima City Council considers whether to appeal a federal judge’s decision changing the city’s elections system, members are confronted with an issue of cost versus conscience. Most have at some point in the 21/2-year case come out opposed to changing the elections system. Yakima voters also rejected a separate redistricting proposal in 2011 brought about by a citizen initiative. Regardless, a federal judge has said the system violates the federal Voting Rights Act and on Tuesday ordered a new system of voting by district that includes two districts with a majority of Latino voters. Even if a majority of the council dislikes that outcome, their options for continuing the fight create potentially enormous financial challenges. It’s not just that the city has already spent $918,314 defending the case, or that the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the case, is expected to seek a sum even greater to cover its legal fees and costs. It’s also a question of where the money to pay for it comes from because the case isn’t covered by the city’s insurance policy.

Washington: Ruling bars state from treating free legal advice as a campaign contribution | The News Tribune

Free legal advice to a recall campaign isn’t a campaign contribution — neither is free legal advice in pursuit of that argument, and state campaign finance regulators can’t claim otherwise. That idea, the heart of a ruling issued Friday in Pierce County Superior Court, appears to end a four-year battle between backers of a 2011 county recall campaign and the state Public Disclosure Commission that has climbed to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals and back. It also adds a footnote to the stormy tenure of ex-Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer Dale Washam, the target of an unsuccessful recall effort in 2011. “The court correctly recognized that pro bono representation in civil rights cases cannot constitutionally be treated as political contribution,” said Bill Maurer, managing attorney in the Washington branch of the Institute for Justice, a Virginia-based public interest law firm. The institute is one of the parties in the case.

Washington: Federal judge orders district voting for Yakima in ACLU case | Yakima Herald Republic

Citing the disenfranchisement of Latinos under Yakima’s current council elections system, a federal judge on Tuesday ordered the city to conduct future elections using seven geographic districts — including two majority Latino districts. Under U.S. District Judge Thomas Rice’s ruling, all seven City Council positions would be placed on the ballot this year and candidates would be elected by voters solely from within their district. Under the ruling, candidates would no longer be voted on citywide. The ruling comes in a voting rights lawsuit filed more than two years ago by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of two Latino residents. Rice, of the Eastern District Court of Washington, ruled in August that the city’s hybrid election system of at-large and district voting routinely “suffocates” the will of Latino voters.

Washington: Secretary of state says we need 2016 presidential primary that counts | Seattle Post Intelligencer

Washington needs a 2016 presidential primary that’s not merely a “beauty contest” but will count in allocating Democratic and Republican convention delegates, Secretary of State Kim Wyman argued Tuesday. Wyman is asking the Legislature to revive the primary and to give it clout. She will run into resistance. The state’s Democratic and Republican parties are long wedded to their presidential caucuses, which maximize influence of party activists and provide lists of names for fundraising. “My goal is to secure a voice for our Washington voters with a plan that assures a meaningful election where the results are used to allocate at least part of the national convention delegates from our state,” said Wyman, the state’s lone Republican statewide elected official. Wyman estimated that the primary would cost $11.5 million, the bulk of the money to reimburse costs incurred by the state’s 39 counties.

Washington: Bills would allow voters to vote through email, fax, and without postage | News Tribune

Two bills in the Legislature aim to simplify the process of voting: One through providing prepaid postage on ballots, and the other by allowing voters to return ballots by email and fax. … The state would reimburse counties for the cost of postage. Critics say they support the intent of the bill, but are concerned about where to find the money. The bill would require $2.7 million in the next two-year budget, according to the Office of the Secretary of State. Counties would have to pay for the postage initially until they get reimbursed by the state. … Another proposal to allow ballots and signed declarations to be faxed or emailed also is prompting concern. House Bill 1143 would allow voters to do so by election night, without having to turn in a hard copy of their ballots to the county auditor. Armed forces members and overseas voters vote this way.

Washington: Moscoso introduces new version of Washington Voting Rights Act | HeraldNet

Democratic State Rep. Luis Moscoso has introduced a new version of the Washington Voting Rights Act. Moscoso introduced the bill Thursday, Jan. 28. It is scheduled for a hearing Thursday, Feb. 5, before the House committee on state government. It would empower local governments to tailor solutions to systemic electoral issues, which, he said, ensure fairness in local elections and a voice for all communities.

Washington: State House bill explores statehood for East Washington | Yakima Herald Republic

A group of conservative lawmakers from east of the Cascades wants a task force to provide recommendations on how to divide Washington into two separate states. House Bill 1818 would create a task force “to determine the impacts” of dividing the state in two along the Cascade range. The bill cites heightened differences of “cultural and economic values” as the reason for exploring the split. The task force would consist of 10 members from different caucuses in the House and Senate and from the Governor’s Office. It would have to report its findings to the Legislature by the end of September this year, according to the bill.

Washington: State Voting Rights Act returns in Legislature | Yakima Herald Republic

A bill drafted with Yakima’s council elections system in mind has returned for a third straight try at passing in the Legislature. The state Voting Rights Act, which would make it easier to force localities to switch to geographic district-based elections, was reintroduced Wednesday in the House and with a companion bill in the Senate. The bills are sponsored by Rep. Luis Moscoso, D-Mountlake Terrace, and Sen. Cyrus Habib, D-Kirkland. The proposal would make it easier to challenge a local government’s elections format in court if evidence of racially polarized voting exists.

Washington: Lawmakers suggest state pay for ballot postage | The Seattle Times

Covering return postage for the state’s all-mail balloting would cost about $1 million for a presidential election and about $2.7 million for the next two years, a Senate committee was told Monday. But supporters of a proposal to do just that say it would make voting more convenient and remove a possible barrier for poor residents. “Of all the barriers (to voting), being poor should not be one of them,” said Sen. Bob Hasegawa, D-Seattle. “I think today, for some people it’s pretty hard to find a postage stamp,” said Sen. Pam Roach, R-Auburn.

Washington: Yakima Valley Latinos getting a voice, with court’s help | Los Angeles Times

Graciela Villanueva should have been hosting a victory party on election night, celebrating a successful run for school board in this verdant valley of apples and wine grapes, peaches and hops. She had already been appointed to the spot on the Yakima School District board of directors, which oversees a student body that is nearly three-quarters Latino. She campaigned hard until the very end. She also ran unopposed. Jeni Rice, the only other candidate for Position 1, had dropped out of the race months earlier, although it was too late for her name to be struck from the ballot. Still, 61% of the vote last November went to the woman with the simple Anglo name who hadn’t campaigned. She had agreed that she would not accept the office if elected. Having won, she changed her mind.

Washington: Yakima may appeal voting rights ruling | Yakima Herald Republic

The Yakima City Council may yet appeal a federal court ruling that the city’s current election system violates the federal Voting Rights Act, but not for now. The council met in executive session for an hour Thursday morning with attorneys to discuss the city’s options. The city can either appeal the ruling, offer its own plan for a new elections system, or work with the American Civil Liberties Union, which filed the lawsuit, to attempt a compromise plan. After the closed-door meeting, which is allowed under state law to discuss legal action, Yakima Mayor Micah Cawley announced before gaveling the meeting to a close that the city would comply with the judge’s order. Cawley’s phrasing brought a stunned reaction from the small audience in attendance, who took it to mean the city would not appeal. Cawley later clarified that the city is still leaving its options open. “We’re not giving up any of our rights,” Cawley said after the meeting. “We’re going to comply with the judge’s order.”

Washington: Federal judge rules against Yakima in voting rights case | Yakima Herald Republic

After two years of litigation, a federal judge has ruled in favor of the American Civil Liberties Union in its voting rights lawsuit against the city of Yakima, bringing potentially dramatic change to Yakima city politics. In a summary judgment issued Friday afternoon, the judge said the ACLU’s case was strong enough to vacate a trial and should move directly to the remediation phase, where both the ACLU and the city will present proposals for changing the way City Council members are elected. The ACLU already has proposed all-district voting for the seven council members. The ruling determined that Yakima’s current election system violates Section 2 of the federal Voting Rights Act by diluting the Latino community vote.

Washington: Justice Department file brief against Yakima in ACLU voting district case | Tri-City Herald

The U.S. Justice Department says part of Yakima’s defense against an ACLU voting rights lawsuit “lacks merit,” according to a brief filed in federal court Friday. The brief was filed in response to a motion from the city of Yakima asking the judge to dismiss the case without a trial through summary judgment. Yakima’s attorneys argue an ACLU expert witness’ examples of how City Council elections could be redistricted exclude criteria required by the federal Voting Rights Act, making them unconstitutional. But the Justice Department disagrees in a 13-page brief that says little else about the case, which has been in litigation since August 2012. The ACLU came up with seven redistricting proposals, including at least one Latino majority district in each example. Five of the proposed district maps were based on general population and two were based on citizen voting age population.

Washington: Election observer with gun spurs open-carry debate | The Columbian

This Tuesday’s primary may not have had many election surprises, but it did produce a first for four-term Clark County Auditor Greg Kimsey: A certified election observer, whose job is to watch over those tallying votes, showed up wearing a .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol. Every day before leaving his house, Gerald “Rick” Halle says, he attaches his firearm to his hip. Monday, as the 48-year-old Vancouver man and certified election observer cruised over to the auditor’s office, it was no different. “I can’t predict when I walk out the door what’s going to happen,” Halle said, likening it to putting on his seat belt before starting the car. The county currently prohibits employees from carrying a firearm at work, but elected officials and the public are allowed to bring weapons into some county buildings.