Democracy in America means elected by the people for the people. It is also a political system based on advocacy and representation. The election of City Council members in Shoreline happens by majority vote. It is accomplished by campaigning on a political platform.
In 2001, Linda Montgomery was elected by a significant majority, on a platform she represents, a platform that includes a pro-Aurora Corridor project stance. Her choice to leave the post before her term is out is unfortunate and ill-timed. Though she says she did not decide until after the election to make this decision, she was thinking about it, since she quit her job, sold her house and got married this past summer. She announced in July that she would be unable to finish her term, but had not yet determined how long she could stay. It could be argued that if democracy had been her sole concern, then that would have been the time to give official notice, so the position could have been elected.
But that isn’t how politics always work. Just like any elected official, Montgomery was elected on a platform and there are two more years left for that platform. The fact that the Council wants to appoint her successor is the policy by which elected officers are replaced, mid-term. It’s how it worked this past June when the Metro-King County Council selected Steve Hammond to replace deceased District 9 Council member Kent Pullen, from a list of three candidates provided by the King County Republican Central Committee.
While some of those decrying the Shoreline appointment process raise the banner of “democracy,” their push to delay also smacks of political motivations.
And while Montgomery could have taken the high road, it is not undue manipulation that she, or the Council majority, wants to protect her platform. It’s purely political, and politics aren’t always nice.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
