ELECTION DAY
Today is the day to VOTE! You have until your local post office closes to mail in your ballots or until 8 p.m. to drop off your ballots at your local ballot drop box. The big statewide issues are Ref. 71 and Initiative 1033. In King County, the race for Executive is between Dow Constantine and former TV anchor Susan Hutchison. In Seattle, the Mayor’s race looks like a toss up between Mike McGinn and Joe Mallahan.
State-wide issues:
From today’s Seattle PI report:
Referendum 71 asks voters to “approve” or “reject” expansion to the state’s domestic partnership law, which grants same-sex registered domestic partners additional state-granted rights currently given only to married couples. Under state law, heterosexual seniors also can register as domestic partners.
If approved by voters, [Initiative 1033] would cap the amount of money flowing into the general checking accounts of city, county and state governments. Annual revenue increases would be limited to the rate of inflation plus population growth. Any taxes above and beyond the revenue cap would be used to lower property taxes the following year. The state’s Rainy Day Fund would not be subject to the cap, and politicians could collect taxes above the limit by asking voters for approval.
Susan Hutchison, Dow Constantine
King County Executive Race:
The latest polling has Dow Constantine out 10 points ahead of Susan Hutchison. Constantine currently serves on the King County Executive Council as Chairman. Hutchinson is a former Hutchison, a former TV news anchor for KIRO 7 in Seattle, is executive director of the Charles Simonyi Fund for Arts and Sciences. Prior to the Primary, Hutchison had an enormous lead over all candidates. Post-primary, Hutchison led Constantine by 5 points as late as October 13. Although the race is officially non-partisan, the polling shows that Hutchison is favored by more Republican voters while Constantine is favored by more Democratic voters.
Joe Mallahan, Mike McGinn
Seattle Mayor’s Race:
The latest King 5 poll has the race between Mallahan and McGinn in a statistical dead heat. The Seattle Post Globe writes up the race here. The Seattle Stranger analyzes the likely outcomes here based on the Undecideds who vote at the end of the contest.
No matter where you stand, please just fill out your ballots and send them in! We’ll see you around at the election parties tonight. And we’ll report on some of the national races a bit later in the day.
