By Jim Haley and Warren Cornwall
Herald Writers
When you read your general election voters’ pamphlet, you might as well ignore the ballot title for the "Right to Plow" initiative, the only countywide measure facing voters Nov. 6.
The pamphlet contains the wrong ballot title for Initiative 01-02.
County officials were notified of the mistake Wednesday by John Postema, one of the initiative’s proponents, after voting pamphlets began arriving in mailboxes.
The upshot:
Postema learned of the mistake from supporters who called him, furious at what they suspected was an effort to undermine the initiative, he said. After talking with county officials, he said he didn’t believe the mistake was intentional. After all, it was immediately evident to people.
"If it was a conspiracy, I’d say they better do a better one," said Postema, the owner of a large nursery and president of the Snohomish County Farm Bureau, the initiative’s sponsor.
The difference in language was critical because the new ballot title made clear the measure was designed to distinguish between agriculture and development, and exempt agriculture from some development regulations, he said.
"It is the core issue," he said.
Backers took the matter seriously enough to take the county to court earlier to force the ballot title change. A Snohomish County Superior Court judge in June ruled in favor of the Farm Bureau.
With that ruling, the erroneous voters pamphlets and ballots ran the risk of breaking the law, Postema said.
"They’re actually in contempt of court," he said.
The original ballot title was written by the Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Snohomish County Auditor Bob Terwilliger called representatives of the three major political parties, as well as the Snohomish County Council and executive, to notify them of the problem.
It’s a big goof that will cost the county thousands of dollars, but Terwilliger said he’s happy the mistake was quickly discovered.
"We thanked (Postema) profusely for putting us on notice of the error today rather than tomorrow," Terwilliger said Wednesday.
Absentee ballots had been scheduled to go to the post office today, and they also would have contained the erroneous ballot title. Now, the county’s printer will be working through the weekend to produce the corrected absentee ballots by Monday, elections manager Scott Konopasek said.
Terwilliger said he has no idea how much the mistake will cost. To print absentee ballots, it normally costs 33 cents each.
What happened?
"I don’t know. It was an honest mistake," Konopasek said. "At this point, I’m just interested in getting it fixed."
The cost will come out of the auditor’s budget, Terwilliger said.
Later, Konopasek said he will investigate how the original ballot title penned by the prosecuting attorney was sent to the printer instead of the one approved by the judge.
"I will find out what broke down afterward and make sure it never happens again," Konopasek said.
You can call Herald Writer Jim Haley at 425-339-3447
or send e-mail to haley@heraldnet.com.
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