In Judge Harvey Dunham’s eyes, the five-candidate contest for Position 6 on the Spokane County District Court is a referendum on him as the incumbent.

Partly, maybe, but it’s also a referendum on the controversial process that landed Dunham the job in the first place. After creating a special evaluation commission to screen 13 applicants for a vacancy on the bench, county commissioners ignored the group’s list of five recommendations and picked Dunham in what Commissioner Phil Harris called a political appointment.

Now, a year and a half later and facing election for the first time, Dunham is opposed by four worthy candidates. As a District Court judge, he has been adequate, but this election is the voters’ chance to examine a broader range of choices and render their own verdict.

In the unlikely event any of the five candidates wins more than 50 percent of the primary election ballots, that person will run unopposed in the Nov. 7 general election. Otherwise, it will be the top two vote-getters.

All five seem up to the job, but two — assistant public defender Christine Carlile and private attorney Mike Nelson — have backgrounds and qualities that put them at the top of the list.

Carlile was focused enough at 17 to set out on her own, get herself through law school and launch a career that has provided her with a variety of legal experience in military and civilian courts. She is measured and analytical, a problem-solver. By imposing the consequences of law-breaking firmly and fairly, she believes, the court can punish as well as have an impact on the causes of crime, can serve both justice and efficiency.

Mike Nelson practices mostly civil law but is a former city prosecutor, plus he’s had an up-close view of the criminal world as an undercover police officer. Of all the candidates, Dunham has the most years in the profession, much of it in other states, but Nelson has been practicing in Washington for 23 years, longer than any of his rivals.

Candidates Dave Stevens and Debra Hayes are both deputy prosecuting attorneys in Spokane County. Stevens and Nelson were among the five lawyers recommended by the evaluation panel in February 2005 when Dunham was named instead. All of the candidates have sufficient credentials for the position, and although their lists of endorsements and financial supporters vary widely, all can point to backing that demonstrates their legitimacy as prospective judges.

Carlile and Nelson, however, are especially impressive and merit a chance to advance to the general election.