Young "Keepers of the Capsule" take the oath Tuesday. OLYMPIA –Washington marked its quasquicentennial Tuesday with an eye to the future, swearing in a new group of children charged with sending a bit of today to coming generations. Quasquicentennials are 125 year anniversaries. They aren't…
John Oliver has fun with the latest innovation for getting salmon back to their spawning grounds.
Parking is free in Spokane today in honor of Veterans Day. Washington state parks are also free, for the same reason. Giving the rest of us two more things for which to thank veterans. Two small things, to be sure, compared to thanks for their…
Secretary of State Kim Wyman OLYMPIA – 1889 was a momentous year for Washington. Three of its largest cities, including Spokane Falls, nearly burned to the ground that summer then began to rise from their ashes. A second railroad announced plans to join the Northern…
John Oliver on Last Week Tonight reminds us what happens when state's go into the gambling business.
All of the races for the state Legislature, as well as Initiative 1351 which requires smaller class sizes, are now far enough apart that they wouldn't trigger an automatic recount, the Secretary of State's office said this morning. The I-1351 campaign was claiming victory over…
OLYMPIA – A paragraph in the political correspondents’ code requires us to tell voters “what it all means” on the Sunday after an election. Personally, I’ve always believed that by now you’ve all figured it out for yourselves, but to break the code means I…
The state initiative aimed at lowering class sizes increased its lead on the fourth day of ballot counting. The Washington Secretary of State’s website says Initiative 1351 leads by 9,172 votes. After Tuesday’s count, the measure was behind by about 12,000 votes. By Thursday’s count,…
Yet another Spokane developer has given his support to Scott Chesney, the city's planner who was abruptly dismissed from City Hall yesterday. Dave Black, who brought Target to the South Hill, said it was a "tragedy" that Chesney was fired. "The guy is a get…
Spokane County votes on the gun initiatives are almost, but not quite, a mirror image of each other. (Click on the "continue reading" function to see both maps on the same page.) That's not surprising, considering the two ballot measures essentially were competing with each…
Add one more prominent Spokane developer and a well-known downtown real estate attorney to the list calling for Scott Chesney to remain at City Hall: Walt Worthy and James Black. In a short email written early this morning to Jan Quintrall, the head of the…
Incumbent Sen. Mike Baumgartner topped Democratic challenger Rich Cowan in most precincts outside the city of Spokane. Inside the city, Cowan picked up votes in some South Hill and Northside precincts but Baumgartner showed strong in others.
Scott Chesney, Spokane’s planning director since 2011, abruptly left the city Wednesday for unknown reasons. “I resigned due to the mayor’s loss of confidence in me,” Chesney said in a text message. “I respect his choice.” Jan Quintrall, head of the city’s Business and Development…
The pattern for the U.S. House candidates in Spokane County was similar to those for most county offices. Democratic challenger Joe Pakootas captured some precincts in the city of Spokane, Republican incumbent Cathy McMorris Rodgers won almost everywhere else. For a closer look at the…
Spokane County turnout currently stands at 35.5 percent, which isn't very good, but there are still plenty of ballots to count. But as the map above shows, it wasn't consistent across the county, with much lower turnout in many of the city of Spokane precincts,…
Republican Larry Haskell beat Democrat Breann Beggs in nearly all precincts outside the city of Spokane to win the Spokane County prosecutor's race. For a more detailed look at the results, click on the PDF below.
Voters in staunchly Republican Stevens County strongly supported Cathy McMorris Rodgers, voiced vehement opposition to a state initiative to extend background checks for gun purchases and cast most of their ballots for incumbents in Tuesday's races. The Stevens County Auditor's Office counted on Tuesday 7,700…
In a pattern that became familiar in Tuesday's election, Republican County Treasurer Rob Chase carried most of the precincts outside of the city of Spokane, while Democratic challenger Amy Biviano won much of the city. For a better view of the results, click on the…
Auditor Vicky Dalton escaped the fate of other Democrats running for office, beating Republican challenger Alene Lindstrand by extending her winning vote totals beyond the city of Spokane to much of the other county precincts
Here's how the precinct votes broke down in the race between Tim Fitzgerald and Mary Wissink for Spokane County clerk. For a closer look, click on the document below.
In the Spokane County commissioner's race, challenger Mary Lou Johnson is winning the city of Spokane, and incumbent Al French is winning almost everything else. As the map of the Tuesday vote totals shows, Johnson did well inside the city limits of Spokane and some…
The Spokane park bond issue was passing handily around the city Tuesday night, picking up the needed 60 percent approval rating or better in most of the 137 precincts. As the map shows, it was getting a majority, although not the needed supermajority, in most…
One in three ballots in Washington state have been returned to county elections offices statewide. Spokane County is slightly better, at 39 percent. If you still have yours and are looking for a little help to make your final picks, scroll down to the last…
Washington voters who still have their ballots sitting on the counter may be searching for that last bit of information to help them decide how to mark the ballot on one particular race or ballot measure. Idaho voters may be trying to bone up before…
So you've marked your ballot and want to save a stamp by putting it in a drop box. Or you put the ballot somewhere where you wouldn't lose it when it arrived two weeks ago, and now you can't find it. Spin Control can help…
The Spokesman-Review's political team keeps a critical eye on local, state and national politics.
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