Different Parties But Same True Grit

Spokane’s 3rd Legislative District is known for its high poverty level. Once upon a time that would have been ammunition enough for a state lawmaker to take to Olympia, where deficiencies translated into eligibility for government handouts.

But times have changed. State and federal governments are scaling back their handout activities.

Luckily, citizens of the 3rd District have other capacities than funding - the state’s or their own - to draw on when meeting community challenges. This is the district where Spokane’s COP shops were born, after all. This is the district where the Neighborhood Leadership Institute took root.

When they vote next month on their legislative representation, voters in the 3rd District would do well to remember a couple of the people who have been partners in and helped to showcase that homegrown resourcefulness.

State Rep. Jeff Gombosky and Cheryl Steele would be exemplary choices for the two 3rd District House seats on the Nov. 3 ballot.

Gombosky is a Democrat and Steele a Republican but they have something in common that is more important than partisanship. Both have rolled up their sleeves and gone to work for their constituents. Both know how critical it is to empower people to create their own solutions.

Gombosky, who is being challenged by Republican Charlotte Karling, is director of the Institute for Neighborhood Leadership, a program that arms residents from all over Spokane with skills they need to become effective participants in community affairs.

He also has completed one two-year term in the Legislature, where he has established himself as a thoughtful and serious legislator. He has a solid grasp of issues.

In the district’s other House race, Steele is trying to unseat Rep. Alex Wood, a former radio talk show host now completing his first term.

Steele is the challenger but she is hardly inexperienced. Her work to establish and coordinate Spokane’s growing system of neighborhood police offices has brought her into contact with state and federal political figures. It also earned for her a national leadership award.

Gombosky and Steele are citizens first and politicians second. They can look at state legislative issues from a 3rd District perspective and craft solutions that combine responsiveness by the state with responsibility by the citizens.

We encourage voters to send their self-help attitudes to Olympia.