Monroe council race narrows
Published 9:00 pm Sunday, August 26, 2001
By Leslie Moriarty
Herald Writer
MONROE — When filing week was over, it looked like this race was going to be crowded.
But it appears to be thinning out.
Jim Hunnicutt, the incumbent in Monroe City Council Position 3, is running for re-election. And three well-known politicians in Monroe filed against him.
They are current Mayor Bob Holman, current council member Wayne Rodland and former council member Robert Wilcox.
Holman, Rodland and Wilcox served at the same time as Hunnicutt, who has been on the council for 14 years.
On opposite sides of most city issues, the trio said they decided to file against Hunnicutt because they wanted him to have some opposition.
But since filing, Rodland and Wilcox have decided to throw their support to Holman, and although their names will appear on the ballot, they want the general election to come down to a contest between Holman and Hunnicutt.
Holman and Wilcox confirmed that, but Rodland’s wife said her husband plans to wait until after the primary to decide for sure. He did not return telephone calls.
Hunnicutt said he isn’t bothered that all three filed against him, or that Holman is now his only real opponent.
"I don’t want to sling any mud in this campaign," he said. "I want to run on my record of service to this community, and I believe I will be re-elected."
Holman said he decided to run for council rather than for mayor again because he thinks he can be more effective on the council.
"As mayor, I don’t get to vote," he said. "I just carry out the wishes of the council. I want to be more a part of the process, rather than just the implementation."
Holman was a council member for 10 years and has been mayor for the past six years.
"Being mayor requires that I be available during the day, and I can’t do that without letting my business falter," said Holman, who owns a sporting goods and gun shop.
He says being a business owner is an advantage over Hunnicutt because of his experience with financial management. Hunnicutt is a retired Snohomish County employee.
Holman believes working with the county, state and federal governments is the way to getting a highway bypass around the city.
"Much of the traffic isn’t local," he said. "It’s people who drive through our city to get to points east and west of here. A bypass will address that."
Hunnicutt said the traffic is "choking" Monroe.
"Getting the state to see that a bypass is needed here and getting it funded is a priority," he said. "It’s a safety necessity."
He also sees open government as an issue.
"We have to do our business by the laws as they prescribe," he said. "We have to listen to the citizens and be responsive."
Hunnicutt said he is the best choice because he is not the candidate for this seat who was fined for violating state laws for using public funds to assist in a campaign.
"I am honest, upfront, and I tell it like it is," he said.
The state’s Attorney General’s Office investigated a complaint of an open meetings violation against a number of Monroe council members and Holman about three years ago. The lawsuit was dropped.
But the state’s Public Disclosure Commission fined Holman $2,500 for using a city newsletter to promote a sewer extension issue. Holman agreed, without admitting fault, to pay the fine.
But Holman said the incident came down to dirty politics, and he doesn’t think it is an issue in this campaign.
You can call Herald Writer Leslie Moriarty at 425-339-3436
or send e-mail to moriarty@heraldnet.com.
