Slog - The Stranger's Blog

Line Out

The Music Blog

« Zizek is for Real | PostSecret »

Thursday, December 15, 2005

Is it Jim Compton’s Seat?

Posted by on December 15 at 10:21 AM

Is it possible? I actually agree with Dave Meinert about something—the Seattle City Council should appoint Dwight Pelz to Compton’s seat. As Josh Feit pointed out yesterday on SLOG, Pelz got more votes (71K) in his race for a seat on the city council this November—a race he lost to incumbent Richard McIver—than sitting council members Jean Godden (63K), Tom Rasmussen (62K), David Della (65K), and Jim Compton (63K) got when they were elected. Pelz didn’t win, true, but it’s also true that he has the support of more voters in Seattle than four current city council members. Surely that counts for something.

After appointing Pelz to Compton’s seat the City Council should immediately vote to create districts for council seats so that in future Seattle council members can’t wander off like a confused Alzheimer’s patients without anyone noticing. I’ve been hearing for more than a year that Compton wasn’t engaged at City Hall—hell, he was hardly bothering to show up for work. He wouldn’t have been able to get away with checking out if he were representing a neighborhood, its various groups and activists getting up in his face, and not the entire city. And if Compton represented a district we wouldn’t be talking about appointing someone to “Compton’s seat” as if it belonged to him personally. We would be talking about appointing someone to West Seattle’s seat or Fremont’s seat or Magnolia’s seat or Ballard’s seat, which would make it clear that the seat belonged to the city and the voters and not the politician currently occupying it.

So long as we have “at large” city council seats individual council members can coast along—all the while cashing huge city paychecks.

Compton, like all his colleagues, is among the highest-paid city council members in the country. From November 18 issue of the Seattle Times:

Members of Seattle’s City Council, already among the highest-paid in the country, are about to join the ranks of public employees pulling down six-figure salaries. A pay raise will boost the salaries of council members Jan Drago, Nick Licata, Richard Conlin and Richard McIver to nearly $104,000 next year, up from $94,000 now. Ten years ago, the job paid $71,000. Among the nation’s 40 largest cities, only Los Angeles pays its council more.

When folks complained about how much our city council members are paid, Jan Drago had a Marie Antoinette moment: “I frankly think you get what you pay for,” she told the Seattle Times. Except in cases like Compton’s, when we don’t get what we paid for—not even close.


CommentsRSS icon

Yeah, but they still won't make as much as John in the Morning @ KEXP.

Dan, I agree with you on district elections. But your comparison of Pelz's votes in 2005 with the votes in 2003 is apples vs. oranges. Turnout was almost 50% higher in 2005 than it was in 2003.

Maybe the voter turnout in '05 had to do with more interesting candidates like Pelz. Well that, and voting against insipidly stupid initiatives like 912. Thank god people were smart about that one!

Pelz? When my neighbors and I received Pelz's city council campaign mailing showing him wearing a hardhat and saying that Sound Transit is on
time and on budget we all had a
good belly laugh. I really can't
take anyone serious who would
make such a claim.

Frankly, I couldn't find much difference between McIvar and Peltz
in their campaigns this last election.
There sure wasn't much disagreement
between them in the candidate forums.
Does the city really need or want another McIvar?

I can live with Tina Podlodowski
or Sue Donaldson as an interim member
only. Martha Choe would be good too.

You are correct in your assessment of the
need to have council members representing
a city district. Compton's resignation
absolutely confirms this.

Per my earlier request, anyone know of
an casinos making book on this yet?



Nevermind Sharkansky, who's a gigantic Pelz hater.

Pelz got a shitload of votes, and he'd be on the council if Seattle didn't have a healthy dose of liberal guilt.

my only problem with Pelz being appointed to Compton's seat is that I've come to love the idea of Pelz as State Party Chair. Hell, I know he'll get paid more on the council, but I'd love to see what he could do with our nutty state party...

Dan-

I completely agree on Districts but, it has been turned down twice in the last decade so it will have to stay on the shelf where the voters put it.
At the this point, I think the discussion should be on whether it is better to have caretaker or a candidate for the next round.
I am leaning towards caretaker. The appointee will not have a mandate and should not just be running office and using position at City Hall for fund raising.
There is also the question of whether this person should have already tested the waters. Pros they have dealt with being a cadidate and the press. Cons the have been rejected and will be seen as recycled.
And there is the question of how open and transparent the process will be? Will the names be posted online with their resumes? Will the council publicly show its process and thinking?
Lastly, there is the question of whether Seattle politics operates on white lists and black lists. Who is being considered and why or why not?

A whole series of articles, I look forward to reading.

Zander Batchelder

http://www.dwightpelz.com/

Dear Washington State Democrat Activist,


Paul Berendt will step down as Chair of the Washington State Democratic Party. I am writing you to let you know that I will be running to serve as State Party Chair...(weblink above has complete letter)

I'm not one to side with the Shark but he's got a point there. Turnout increased 46% in 2005 from 2003 despite a 3.5% drop in registered voters.

If one were to hypothetically project Pelz's vote total (out of 154,964 votes) of 71,718 onto the total votes cast in all of the five city council races in 2003 (around 115-120K votes each), Pelz's 71K votes comes out to an equivalent of about 55,000 votes in each race, which would make him an easy hypothetical loser in all those races. So citing his vote total compared to the totals of those who ran in 2003 is a misnomer.

Quantity isn't always quality. That doesn't mean I wouldn't support Pelz as the new city councilmember, though.

jim compton is a boob...when you run,you have to commit, and not be so self-serving. what a joke.

i think an interim person would be good for the council--someone who would have no agenda, would be able to get stuff done, and who might make the mayor a little nervous. i always liked tina podlowski and martha choe and sue donaldson.

the council needs some major ass-kicking by a tough woman.

Pelz as the state's Demo party
chairman? Perfect! He and Chris
Vance will compliment each other
rather well, and Pelz will have
the opportunity to broaden his knowledge of the "Other Washington"
i.e., Omak, Walla Walla, South
Bend, Pasco, etc. It's the perfect
job for this person.

--Jensen

Comments Closed

In order to combat spam, we are no longer accepting comments on this post (or any post more than 45 days old).