OLYMPIA--In an effort to resolve conflicts over the redrawing Washington's political boundaries, the State Redistricting Commission is scheduling weekly meetings and splitting up into "bipartisan" subcommittees. At their monthly meeting Tuesday, commissioners acknowledged they are far apart on plans for legislative and congressional boundaries. Legislative…
OLYMPIA -- So it's the calm before the election night storm here in Olympia, and with time to spare on the way back from the Washington State Redistricting Commission meeting today, (story above) I stopped to admire the fall colors which are still very much…
Spin Control has been counting down to Election Day for you since...well, almost since last Election Day. And we realize that most people who read political blogs have voted by now. But if for some reason you haven't -- or more likely you know someone…
Mayoral candidate David Condon over the weekend got another big lift from the state Republican Party. The GOP contributed $38,000 to Condon’s campaign on Saturday, according to reports filed to the state Public Disclosure Commission. Late last month, the party gave his campaign $25,000. Condon,…
OLYMPIA -- Nearly 21,000 residents who either signed up to vote or updated their registration by using a state web site might not have been mailed a ballot or may have been sent a ballot for their old address. The Washington Secretary of State's office…
One angle of Initiative 1183 that has not been the subject of millions of dollars worth of commercials for and against is choice – as in will my choice of liquor be better or worse if the measure passes? With campaigns arguing over whether people…
Spokane County Elections Office says it has received slighly more than 89,500 ballots, or 33.66 percent of all the ballots it sent out a couple weeks ago. That's counting nearly 10,000 that came in today's mail or the pickup of weekend deposits in drop boxes.…
When David Condon began to publicly criticize Mary Verner's handling of the Otto Zehm case, Verner said Condon's critique was further victimizing the Zehm family "by attempting to elevate himself." The Inland Northwest Leadership Political Action Committee, which has spent about $25,000 on the mayoral…
You have until 8 p.m. Tuesday to mark your ballot, place it in the proper envelopes, seal and sign the envelopes and take it to a drop box or mail it. Be sure if you mail it on Tuesday, it will be postmarked that day,…
OLYMPIA – Tuesday is Election Day 2011 – or what passes for one in a state that mailed out its ballots two weeks ago and will spend more than two weeks counting the returns – but it could be a key day for Election Days…
The Spokane County Republican Party, which has previously declined to endorse candidates running as Republicans against Democrats when they declined to sign the county party's platform, has sent out recommendations for how to vote in Tuesday's nonparitsan city elections. The picks include: David Condon for…
It was clear on the evening of Aug. 16 that the race for mayor was Mary Verner's to lose. But a lot has happened since then, including the conviction of Officer Karl Thompson. So will she hold on? As far as we at Spin Control…
Most readers can remember when Tuesday would've been called Election Day, capital letters included. Most of the ballots would have been cast between 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. Barring some problem with equipment, most of them would've been counted between 8 p.m. and some time…
Only one of the 10 candidates on the ballot next week for Spokane city office agreed to sign a pledge promising to oppose any Spokane Police Guild contract unless the union agrees to stronger police oversight, the Center for Justice reported this week. A coalition…
Police spokeswoman Officer Jennifer DeRuwe declined to comment this week about her "totally sucks" comment becoming a major highlight of the David Condon campaign for mayor. DeRuwe made the comment last month soon after sending a news release announcing that the department eliminated its property…
Daylight Savings Time ends Sunday, which means we fall forward...No, we spring up...No, we autumn leave. Dang, I never can remember that saying. Whatever. This video explains the whole concept of saving daylight (or not) in great detail.
Fall colors on the Capitol Campus. OLYMPIA -- November is a month when the weather in Western and Eastern Washington shift, and at some point it's nicer over here than it is in Spokane. I think that happened on Thursday, when the snow fell, as…
OLYMPIA – Led by a multi-million dollar battle for who controls liquor sales in Washington, initiatives and candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot have spent more than $18 million on trying to sway voters in the last three weeks. This may come as no surprise…
OLYMPIA -- Five days left in this election cycle, but here's some candidates for the 2012 election. Sen. Craig Pridemore, D-Vancouver, said today he'll run for State Auditor. Longtime Auditor Brian Sonntag announced more than a month ago he wouldn't seek re-election, and Rep. Mark…
OLYMPIA – It’s apparently all in, or all out, for Washington state’s involvement in the liquor business. After studying two proposals to take over the state’s liquor distribution system, the Office of Financial Management is calling for a pass on both. Voters could still order…
OLYMPIA -- The upcoming special session of the Legislature may complicate campaign cash-grabbing for some candidates, but give others a leg up. State law bans state elected officials from accepting campaign contributions during a special session and from 30 days before a regular session until…
OLYMPIA -- After studying two proposals for taking over the state's liquor distribution system, the state Office of Financial Management is calling for a pass on both. In a letter to the Liquor Control Board, OFM Director Marty Brown says the proposal's "do not represent…
Different organizations regularly put out lists of cities that they think are the most livable, most environmental, best for kids or seniors or families. And then there are the other lists, the mirror images of the ones above. Daily Beast has a new list of…
Super committee co-chairwoman Patty Murray gets more money from defense contractors than any other member of the panel assembled to find ways to cut the budget deficit. So says Common Cause, a public watchdog organization and longtime critic of the campaign financing system, in a…
If you're wondering about what the fuss is over an ad from a county GOP party in Virginia, this is one of the early local reports that shows the renderings of President Obama and Rep. Nancy Pelosi as zombies. It was far enough over the…