Voters in the 21st legislative District must decide two races for the state House of Representatives. The residents of the south Snohomish County district, which includes Lynnwood and Edmonds, would do well to stick with one veteran legislator while choosing a promising newcomer in the other contest.
The two superior candidates are both moderate Republicans, incumbent Renee Radcliff and first-time candidate Stan Monlux.
In what is certainly an uphill effort, Monlux is challenging two-term Democrat Mike Cooper for the district’s position 1 seat in the House. Cooper, who serves as vice chair of committees on transportation and ecology, generally takes thoughtful, balanced positions on the issues within the Democratic mainstream in Olympia. And Cooper, a lieutenant with the Shoreline Fire Department, is not afraid to speak his mind forcefully.
Even against a capable incumbent, though, Monlux offers voters good reason to choose a newcomer with considerable promise. Monlux appears to have the kind of common-sense perspective that might help Olympia overcome some of the partisanship and gridlock that has plagued the Legislature. In the early 1990s, he was a leader in the state chapter of the Concord Coalition, a bipartisan group that advocated balancing the budget at a time when such responsibility appeared beyond D.C. His views, including a strong interest in improving education, represent the moderate wing of the Republican Party, which has too often been outnumbered in Olympia.
Monlux has gained potentially valuable experience by serving on the Edmonds Planning Board. As a software executive, Monlux would bring an extraordinary understanding of an important sector of the state’s economy and a variety of business skills that would be useful in legislative decision-making. With the Legislature failing to work well enough together to head off a series of recent initiatives, voters should look for chances to bring in new members with potential as problem-solvers.
In the race for Position 2, Renee Radcliff offers the district a chance to support what is right in the Legislature. She has proven effective in working across party lines, even while rising within the House Republican caucus to be a vice chair. She has been a strong supporter of public education, including higher education. As vice chair of the House Higher Education committee, she has taken a particular interest in the needs of local community colleges. Outside the Legislature, Radcliff serves as president of the Everett Area Chamber of Commerce, giving her a strong perspective on business concerns.
Her opponent, Ned Daniels, is a teacher and a member of the Lynnwood City Council who has also served on boards of the county health department and Community Transit. Unfortunately, he brings a rather critical tone to the campaign, an attitude that promises more partisanship if he were elected. More discouragingly, the deeply fractured state of the Lynnwood City Council only raises more concern that Daniels would prove more a hindrance than a help in Olympia.
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