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Get registered for presidential primary

Fri., April 22, 2016

The following are abridged versions of Northwest editorials. They do not necessarily reflect the view of The Spokesman-Review’s editorial board.

Yakima Herald-Republic, April 20

The May 24 presidential primary is more than a month away, but some important deadlines are drawing nigh for those who want to vote but aren’t yet registered.

The first key date is Monday, for those who want to register online, or to change address or perform some other update online. A later deadline, May 16, allows for registration and updates for those who do so in person at their county courthouse. Ballots will go out in early May and can be returned by mail or dropped at ballot boxes on or before May 24.

The presidential primary is different from the “top two” primary that has been in place for several years for local, county, state and federal races, and in which voters may pick candidates of either party. Since Washington doesn’t register by party, voters taking part in the presidential primary must check a box for party preference and sign an oath that they are either Republicans or Democrats; the oath will be public record.

Republicans will allocate their national delegates according to the primary results; Democrats, who conducted their presidential caucus in March, will not recognize the primary vote in determining their delegates.

For Republicans, next month’s vote could play an important role in determining the presidential nominee. Democrats have far less at stake – except to compare and contrast the results of the May primary and the March caucus. But at least for one party, the vote matters.

The (Vancouver) Columbian, April 21

PARKS AT CROSSROADS. As it commemorates National Park Week and offers free admission at more than 400 sites across the country, the National Park Service sits at a crossroads.

The park service, which oversees facilities such as the Fort Vancouver National Historic Site, is facing a $12 billion bill for maintenance that has been deferred over the years. At Fort Vancouver, according to the service’s report for fiscal year 2015, that deferred maintenance totaled $24.7 million. At Mount Rainier National Park, the number was $285 million, and at Crater Lake National Park in Southern Oregon the need was $84 million.

All of which represents a disappointing state of affairs in what should be a celebratory centennial year for the National Park Service. The organization has helped preserve land for the benefit of the people – all the people – rather than allowing for the selling off of scenic areas or the parceling out of vistas to the highest bidder.

All of this seems particularly relevant these days with small, outraged groups of people questioning the efficacy of having the federal government hold land on the public’s behalf.

Those debates extend well beyond the National Park Service, yet the agency represents the benefits that come with easy access to public lands. In Washington, that means protection for Mount Rainier National Park; conservation of the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area; and the creation of the new Manhattan Project National Historic Site at Hanford.