Rantz: Election security bills appear stalled by Washington Democrats
Feb 4, 2020, 6:07 AM | Updated: Feb 8, 2020, 9:34 am
Secretary of State Kim Wyman is asking the state legislature to pass two election security bills. But it appears Democrats are stalling them.
Washington Democrats are standing in the way of election security. Their motives seem questionable.
Under the current system, Washington has placed no restrictions on who can collect ballots on a voter’s behalf. A partisan activist group, for example, could use volunteers to collect ballots from voters to ensure they are counted. Sounds great unless the ballots are mishandled by the partisans. There’s not a penalty for that behavior.
Secretary of State Kim Wyman is fighting to make the necessary legislative fixes. But she’s running for re-election against a current Democratic lawmaker, State Rep. Gael Tarleton (D-Seattle). So color me shocked to learn that Wyman’s fixes appear to be stalling.
Conflict of interest?
At Wyman’s request, to address the election security issues, State Rep. Jim Walsh (R-Aberdeen) introduced HB 2647 and State Sen. Hans Zeiger (R-Puyallup) introduced SB 6412. Both bills appear stuck, thanks to the Democratic majority.
According to The Seattle Times, Sen. Sam Hunt (D-Olympia) takes issue with the Senate bill. He is the chair of the Senate’s State Government, Tribal Relations and Elections Committee. It’s up for discussion on Wednesday, but the Times Editorial Board gives off the impression that it may already be doomed.
Democrats should be very careful here. Wyman is a popular and effective Secretary of State. Her bills deserve discussion and an actual vote. And denying it a fair shot screams of potential dirty politics, denying Wyman another win in the office of which she seeks re-election.
Tarleton, a Democratic party favorite, doesn’t have appear to have any record to help secure our elections. Her website’s list of notable legislative accomplishments ignores what her role would be as Secretary of State, instead focusing on education and housing issues.
If there are issues some Senators have with Wyman’s bills, let them work those issues out in public so we can watch and listen. This is standard practice and a reasonable accommodation to make our sitting Secretary of State. Unless you’re concerned she’ll earn another accomplishment that will help her re-election campaign.
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