Local News

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Five applicants have been recommended by a citizen panel to fill the Metropolitan King County Council seat of Bob Ferguson, who was elected state attorney general in November.

Rod Dembowski, Will Hall, Cindy Ryu, Keith Scully and Chuck Sloane are the applicants. They were selected from a field of 13 candidates by a 13-member citizen panel created by County Executive Dow Constantine.

Dembowski is a Seattle lawyer, Hall a Shoreline City Council member, Ryu a state representative, Scully a Shoreline Planning Commission member, and Sloane the county’s deputy ombudsman. All are Democrats, like Ferguson.

Under state law, Constantine must now recommend three candidates to the county council, which will pick one to serve the rest of Ferguson’s term this year. An election next year will determine who serves a full four-year term in Ferguson’s District 1, which includes northeast Seattle, Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, Bothell and parts of Woodinville and Kirkland.

Constantine’s citizen panel members: George Allen, co-chair, Metropolitan Seattle Chamber of Commerce; Kathe Fowler, co-chair, Washington Environmental Council; Susan Boundy-Sanders, Woodinville City Council; Sam Chung, attorney; Dave Freiboth, King County Labor Council; Beretta Gomillion, Center for Human Services; Michael Hatzenbeler, PROVAIL; Karama Hawkins, attorney; Behnaz Nelson, Local 17 Professional and Technical Employees; Ken Noreen, former president Shoreline Public Schools Foundation; Mian Rice, Port of Seattle; Dwight Thompson, former member Lake Forest Park City Council; Javier Valdez, Seattle City Light.