Editorial: Ferguson makes case as best choice for governor

By The Herald Editorial Board

The decision by Gov. Jay Inslee not to seek a record fourth term — the state’s only other three-term governor being the late Dan Evans — opened the field for the office for the first time in 12 years.

And we do mean “open,” with a total of 28 candidates seeking the post in the primary election. Following the primary, however, the top two candidates were no surprise: current state Attorney General Bob Ferguson, a Democrat, and former U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert, a Republican, offering voters qualified candidates to consider for the post.

Reichert, 74, served in the U.S. House from 2005 to 2019, and was King County Sheriff from 1997 to 2005, and led the investigation that captured the Green River serial killer in 2001.

Ferguson, 59, has served as the state’s top lawyer since 2013, Prior to that role he served on the King County Council from 2004 to 2013. After earning his law degree from New York University, he was a clerk for a U.S. District Court chief judge in Spokane and later for a U.S. Court of Appeals judge. He also worked for a Seattle law firm.

Just prior to the Aug. 6 primary election, the campaigns of Reichert and Ferguson were each sent requests for an interview with The Herald Editorial Board, as it considered its endorsements for the Nov. 5 general election. After repeated requests, the board had not received a reply from the Reichert campaign until Sept. 5, declining the invitation, citing “time constraints”; two months before the election.

As a matter of policy, the editorial board cannot endorse a candidate for state or local office unless that person has made his or her case to the board in an interview. While endorsements are made for specific candidates, the board strives to fairly represent to its readers the experience, qualifications and policy positions of all candidates interviewed. The board regrets the Reichert campaign’s decision to deny Herald readers that opportunity.

Ferguson was interviewed this week by the editorial board.

If Ferguson is elected, he will have followed the path of fellow Democratic Gov. Chris Gregoire, who also served three terms as Washington’s AG before succeeded by Inslee.

The state’s largest law firm is good preparation for the governor’s office, Ferguson said, because it demands a working knowledge and involvement with all state agencies and it demands a close working relationship with the governor on that office’s priorities and policies.

“I’ve certainly worked closely with Gov. Inslee. And those conversations are far-reaching and broad on many issues facing the state. And then, of course, we do work directly on behalf of the people,” he said. Even so, “I don’t think anyone’s truly fully prepared for the huge challenges facing the state.”

Those include, he said, homelessness, the opioid epidemic, public safety issues, affordability issues, climate change and more, although the issue for which he has heard the most concern from residents is that of affordable housing, which has been a focus in recent years for the governor and the Legislature.

It’s a particular concern for business, from large corporations to small businesses, he said, because employees can face difficulty in finding housing in the cities in which they work. Ferguson has pledged to see 200,000 affordable homes built in his first four years, and hopes to partner with the private sector to help provide those homes and continue work with officials, nonprofits, labor and others to increase the supply of housing, including further reforms to increase the pace of permit reviews.

Ferguson also listed public safety as a priority, noting that Washington state ranks 50th among all states for the number of law enforcement officers per capita. (While the state, as of 2022, ranked 23rd for its rate of violent crime, and below the national average, U.S. News and World Report this year ranked Washington 46th for public safety, in part because of its ranking at 50th for property crimes.)

“That’s not where we need to be ranking,” Ferguson said. He’s proposed an investment in the state budget that would allow local jurisdictions — police departments and county sheriff’s offices — to provide more hiring bonuses to attract candidates for vacancies. As well, he’d like lawmakers to consider increasing the ranks of the State Patrol, and encouraging the next attorney general to offer that office’s resources in assisting local prosecutions as needed.

Ferguson also said he’d keep a continued focus on the state’s needs to provided necessary resources for mental health care, and will appoint a “mental health czar” to his cabinet, and even set up the governor’s office temporarily within Western State Hospital in Lakewood, south of Tacoma.

Ferguson also pledged to continue the work started by Inslee on the climate crisis, fully backing the state’s Climate Commitment Act and what it provides for the state in solutions around transportation investments, reduced air pollution, community equity and increased training for the jobs necessary in transition to clean energy.

“I believe we need a governor who understands the science, believes the science, and can help lead a transition to a clean energy economy, and do that in a way that is good for climate, good for jobs, but also in a way that’s affordable for Washingtonians,” he said.

Ferguson, if elected, wouldn’t be sworn in until after Inslee has proposed his final budget and lawmakers have already convened their next session. So his input on the budget will be limited, yet his priorities include those listed above, but he also said he wants attention returned to K-12 education funding, noting that the percentage of the state’s budget that goes to education — specifically outlined in the constitution as the state’s “paramount duty” — has declined since the McCleary reforms were adopted and as its needs have increased, specifically for the areas of special education and mental health counselors.

Not by default, Ferguson has made his case to be the next governor of Washington state.

A thoughtful — and successful — attorney who has defended the interests of the state and its residents for 12 years, he knows the needs, challenges and opportunities that lie before Washington. And he is prepared to provide the leadership the state needs.

The editorial board endorses Bob Ferguson.

Candidate forums

Voters are invited to live and live-streamed forums sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Snohomish County and the Forum Coalition. A full schedule of forums with links is available at tinyurl.com/LWVSC2024Forums.