On November 30, 2006, the Governor received an appeal from Rhys Sterling relating to the Office of the Secretary of State's denial of a petition to amend Chapters 434-220, 434-230, and 434-335 WAC. The Governor's Office denied Mr. Sterling's Petition on January 12, 2007.
DATE: January 17, 2007
Richard E. Mitchell
General Counsel to the Governor
January 12, 2007
Ryhs Sterling
P.O. Box 218
Hobart, WA 98025-0218
Re: Rule Petition Concerning Chapters 434-220, 434-230, and
434-335 WAC
Dear Mr. Sterling:
This letter is in response to your renewed petition dated November 29, 2006. In that petition, you requested that I recommend to the Secretary of State the adoption of amended rules allowing the addition of a "None of the Above" option on the party preference section of a partisan primary election ballot.
You first petitioned to the Governor's Office on this issue on
August 10, 2006. By letter dated September 19, 2006, we
responded to that petition noting that the Governor lacked
jurisdiction to consider petitions to adopt new rules under
the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). On September 25,
2006, you requested a clarification of that letter, which
denied your petition on jurisdictional grounds. On September
26, 2006, we sent the clarification. You subsequently revised
your petition to the Secretary of State to amend rules, which
was denied, and are now appealing the second denial.
After reviewing your re-petition concerning amended rules and
the Office of the Secretary of State's response, I concur with
its decision and am therefore also denying your repetition to
me.
During the 2006 Legislative Session, the Legislature heard
testimony on the issue of whether to include a "None of the
Above" option on a consolidated primary ballot and declined to
pass the bill. See House Bill 2484, 2006 Legislative Session.
Additionally, the Secretary of State expressed reasonable
concerns about your recommended amendments. Considering these
concerns and the Legislature's interest in this matter, I
decline to recommend your suggested changes to the Secretary
of State.
I appreciate your commitment to ensuring the protection of our
election system and encourage you to continue to work with
your local representative on this issue.
Sincerely,
Christine O. Gregoire
Governor
cc: Katie Blim, Assistant Director of Elections, Secretary of
State
Antonio Ginatta, Executive Policy Advisor, Governor's Office