Locke Appoints Mostly West Siders Governor Has Yet To Select Anyone From Spokane For Cabinet-Level Job In His New Administration

When Gary Locke was on the campaign trail, he promised he would be a governor for all of Washington.

But so far, with only one Cabinet-level appointment left to go, Gov. Locke has looked almost exclusively to the I-5 corridor to fill the highest-level state government posts.

No one from Spokane, the state’s second-largest city, has been appointed to a top position in the Locke administration.

The only appointee from east of the Cascade mountains is Jim Jesernig, who is staying on for a second term as director of the Department of Agriculture. Jesernig is from the Tri-Cities, 135 miles southwest of Spokane.

Asked if he will appoint anyone else from Eastern Washington, Locke said at a news conference last week that he still has some deputy spots to fill.

“We’ve looked, and we are still looking,” said Marty Brown, the governor’s liaison to the Legislature.

“He has actively instructed people to look at all corners of the state. But maybe they are so wise they don’t want to move over here. You can commute from Seattle if you don’t want to move. But not from Eastern Washington.”

Recruiting talent from Eastern Washington is not a new problem in Olympia.

Former Gov. Mike Lowry appointed no one from Spokane to his Cabinet. Some of his highest appointments from Eastern Washington were to the University of Washington board of regents, growth management hearings boards and the Northwest Power Planning Council, a regional body.

“After that, I think you have to start getting down to the board of cosmetology and things like that,” said Rep. Mark Schoesler, R-Ritzville.

Earl Tilly, mayor of Wenatchee and a member of Locke’s transition team, said Locke wanted Eastern Washington talent on his team. But it’s hard to get people east of the mountains to make the move.

“When we complain that we aren’t getting the geographic representation, you have to have candidates first. While there are a lot of good people in Eastern Washington, they just don’t raise their hands and go after it.”

He ought to know. Tilly says he became only briefly excited when his name surfaced as a possible candidate to lead the Department of Agriculture.

“We like our lifestyle over here. It just feels a little foreign going over to Olympia.”

Peter Goldmark of Okanogan lasted only four months as agriculture director under Lowry. Goldmark commuted by airplane until leaving his post to go back to his 7,000-acre ranch, wife and five children.

Goldmark was disappointed there is only one Locke Cabinet member so far from Eastern Washington. “It’s very important to have people participate in the process who have a stake in the outcome. And it is important to have people from Eastern Washington who have that perspective represented, not just people from the I-5 corridor.”

But those are the people Locke knows best.

The governor’s personal and professional ties are knotted west of the Cascades, not east of them. Locke is a Seattle native, a former King County executive, and a former state representative from a Seattle district.

He hasn’t been back to some Eastern Washington towns, such as Wenatchee, since before the September primary.

“Every new governor surrounds himself with people he’s comfortable with,” said Rep. George Sellar, R-East Wenatchee. “I was a little disappointed he didn’t reach out further to Eastern Washington. I was also surprised there weren’t more changes. He kind of rearranged the deck chairs.”

Many of Locke’s appointees are old Olympia pros from previous administrations. They have received high marks for depth of experience.

But Locke and his Cabinet will have to work all the harder to listen to East Side concerns, said Sen. Eugene Prince, R-Thornton.

“The test is, are they going to listen to us. Sometimes it’s terrible, sometimes it’s not bad. From his standpoint, he better make sure they listen,” Prince said.

“I’d love to have someone from Eastern Washington, but we have a lot of trouble all the time. It’s the distance. And it’s just so different - a different world.”

Sen. James West, R-Spokane, was philosophical about the situation.

“I realize it’s who you know. But I hate to keep feeling like a stepchild.”

He remembers a state map that used to hang in one of the Senate office buildings. “It only went as far as the Columbia River.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color photo