Nearly two weeks after the election, Commissioner of Public Lands Doug Sutherland still has not conceded the race to Democrat Peter Goldmark.
Sure, Goldmark only leads by about 18,000 votes, and with aproximately 63,000 ballots left to count statewide, I suppose a Sutherland victory isn’t quite a mathematical impossibility. But more than half the remaining ballots come from King County, where Goldmark has won nearly 62% of the vote, so Sutherland is more likely to see monkeys fly out of his ass than pull off a come from behind win.
Oh, and with the race this close, I think it is fair to claim that HA’s coverage of Sutherland’s sexual harrassment scandal was a definite difference maker. Without a vibrant, progressive blogosphere this story never would have appeared on the front pages and the evening news. So score one for the good guys.
I’m glad that state and aquatic lands will soon be under responsible management! This is very important for natural fauna.
=:-D
are they counting the ballots with an abacus?
I have to confess that if it were not for Goldy, I’d have had no idea about who the candidates were in this race, and what the job entails. Thanks, Goldy!
The vote of the people is one encounter with reality that the right wing can’t avoid, as much as they try with their vote suppression tactics.
@3: Agreed. I didn’t realize or understand the importance of the position until the series of posts on HA about Sutherland.
I’m pretty sure that the rest of the 63,000 ballots come from Sutherland’s immediate family. No wonder he refuses to concede.
I live in an area (Lewis Co.) which suffered through some horrendous flooding last Dec. Goldmark correctly pointed out that much of it was directly attributable to Sutherland and his pals…the logging industry. It’s good news indeed to know that we will finally have a Commissioner of Public Lands who cares about the environment.
Yeah, the dirty-old-man story probably got some traction, but I’d guess there were a lot more people whose votes were influenced by Fairview Fanny’s expose about how Sutherland fiddled while the hillsides slid. Every once in a while, the Times manages to get something right, despite Frank’s increasing efforts to prevent it.
I hope the old man NEVER concedes. Where else would we be entertained by reminders of him as a serial ass fondler? The old man is a barrel of laughs!
Thanks, Goldy. It was shocking to me that Sutherland’s transgressions weren’t reported in the media.
I think the media probably called the race a little too early for Goldmark, but they called it correctly. Still, Goldmark was ahead 2.2% when they called it, and is only ahead by just under 0.7% now, so it was a very close call — and hardly the “insurmountable lead” that the AP said two days after the election.
Kudos for Goldy calling Sutherland on the carpet for the sexual harassment allegation. Well, it was a lot more than just an “allegation”. There wasn’t nearly enough coverage of this, but I think it made the difference with a lot of better informed and more independent minded voters. Certainly, Sutherland’s margins (whether of victory or defeat in given counties) were several points less in his favor throughout the Puget Sound area this time around, and that made the difference.
Goldy: The post on DNR’s Doug Sutherland suggests Carly Simon’s most famous song lyric, “You’re so vain. I bet you think this song is about you . . .”
To me, the strangest thing in the Lands Commissioner race is Thurston County. Ordinarily a strongly Democratic county, it gave Sutherland over 53.5% of the vote.
I suppose there might be the equivalent of an “inside-the-beltway” aspect to it, but that didn’t work nearly so well for Allan Martin and it certainly didn’t help Terry Bergeson (and she’s a Democrat).
I asked a knowledgeable Olympian about it, and she wondered too. She pointed out that DNR doesn’t have all that many employees in Olympia…
Yes, Goldy. I found this blog while researching the current elections and I will continue to use it to keep up with local current events. Thank you very much for your detailed posts about the PLC!
My sweetie works for DNR and DS told his employees today that he’s going to concede.
Goldmark just increased his lead to 20,000 votes. Kiss your sorry ass goodbye, Doug. It will be great to have a Land Commissioner who isn’t for sale to the highest bidder.
Doug Sutherland has a lot of political power in Olympia and Pierce county. Excellent scientists at DNR were ready to leave their jobs if Doug won this time around. Siting a great lack of ability to have their scientific voices heard. There has been a great amount of abuse by DNR managers toward scientists who do not see things the way Doug does. One was fired due to this recently. Other scientists have been ushered out the door before being fired. All political firings from Doug and his cronies. We hope they will be gone, including Fran McNair, Bonnie Bunting and all managers in aquatics. Look out! your jobs are next. Corrupt managers. Thank you voters, We welcome a new chief in DNR, a scientist.
Thanks Goldy!
This was a really important race that was almost lost as it was mostly below people’s radar and given that it was so close, it’s obvious that HA’s role in getting the sexual harassment story out must have been the difference.
Thanks all and Thanks again Goldy,
New Left Conservative #1.