Mill Creek councilman who lives in Snohomish will resign

MILL CREEK — City Councilman Sean Kelly has said he plans to resign and repay Mill Creek his salary for the past few months, after admitting that he has moved to a different city.

The seat is likely to remain vacant at least through the end of the year.

Kelly called City Manager Rebecca Polizzotto on Tuesday, after election results were certified, to tell her he planned to resign. He did not attend the council meeting that evening.

“We are awaiting the receipt of the resignation,” city spokeswoman Joni Kirk said.

Kelly won re-election in blowout fashion Nov. 7, trouncing political newcomer Carmen Fisher with more than 71 percent of the vote.

That happened after Fisher filed a voter-registration challenge in late October, alleging that her opponent had moved to Snohomish over the summer.

Snohomish County’s Canvassing Board on Nov. 17 determined that Kelly had, in fact, moved out of Mill Creek. That would have nullified any votes he was ineligible to cast at his new address. But the decision has no bearing on his council seat.

Fisher notified the City Council Tuesday that she’s seeking court action to have Kelly’s candidacy disqualified.

“The Council will not interfere with the legal process by making a premature appointment, and will await the court’s decision,” a city press release said.

City officials contend that council membership is a function of state electoral law and the City Council cannot remove one of its own members without legal action.

“The Council seat will remain vacant for the remainder of 2017 since there is not sufficient time to go through the selection process with only two Council meetings remaining in 2017,” the press release said

Questions about where Kelly lives surfaced in the weekly Mill Creek Beacon in September.

Kelly won his first council term four years ago. He works as an aerospace systems engineer and has experience as a project manager.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.