Anderson, 1-2-3 in county ballot

PENINSULA voters have several important decisions to make in this fall’s general election. Among them is whether to give Ranked Choice Voting more time to prove it can work better than it did the first time around last year.

Charter amendments

Voters should approve charter amendments 1 and 2. The main thrust of both these amendments is to move county elections to odd-numbered years.

County offices now come up on even-numbered years, which lumps them with state and federal campaigns. The focus during those even-numbered years is on the presidential, governor, congressional and state races. The county offices, which are more closely aligned with the odd-year municipal races, often get lost in the kafuffle.

Charter amendment 1 would also extend the term limits of council members and the county executive to three, from two. That means they could potentially serve for 12 years instead of eight.

The three-term limit makes sense, because it takes almost a full first term to figure out the layers of county government and how to get things done. Giving our county council members a third term would result in more effective government.

That’s especially true when we have a popular council representative, such as Terry Lee. There’s no doubt voters would happily give Lee another term. And, of course, voters always determine the ultimate term limit. They can vote out an unpopular council member or county executive after just one term, if they so choose.

Charter amendment 3 asks voters to abandon the Ranked Choice Voting system that got off to a troubled start last fall. Results were slow and confusing. The absence of a primary left many voters with an incomplete knowledge of the candidates, and it led to a fluke outcome in the assessor-treasurer race.

Voters should approve amendment 3 to repeal Ranked Choice Voting.

County auditor

When former Pierce County Auditor Pat McCarthy won the county executive seat last year, the county council appointed Jan Shabro to fill out her term. As the chief elections officer, the auditor must appear non-partisan.

Shabro has failed that test, at least in appearance. She’s taken advantage of the position to promote her own candidacy and surrounded the office with partisan individuals.

Challenger Julie Anderson should have received the county council’s appointment last year because she was then — and remains — the best qualified candidate for the job. It’s an administrative position that fits Anderson’s past experience nicely.

We endorse Anderson for Pierce County Auditor.