Evan Smith: Kagi gets top Municipal League rating

By Evan Smith

ShorelineAreaNews Politics Writer

Incumbent Democratic State Rep. Ruth Kagi has won an “Outstanding” rating from the Municipal League of King County. Kagi is the only one of the nine 32nd Legislative District candidates on the primary-election ballot to get the League’s highest rating.

The League announced its ratings of legislative, judicial, municipal and county candidates in contested races a few days ago. The League rated candidates as “Outstanding,” “Very Good,” “Good,” “Adequate” or “Not Qualified,” using four criteria: Involvement, effectiveness, character and knowledge. The League uses questionnaires, interviews with the candidates and information from references to determine its ratings.

The League lists the ratings without comment or explanation.

Municipal League Co-Chair Gabe Meyer told me Friday that voters should use the League ratings as only one tool in evaluating candidates. He said that he has often voted for candidates with lower ratings than their opponents because of the candidates' stand on issues. He said that the League had neither a liberal nor a conservative bias, but, rather, a “bias for competence.”

Kagi, who is running for a seventh two-year term in 32nd District representative position 2, has two opponents in the August primary: Republican Gary Gagliardi, who won an “Adequate” rating, and Stan Lippmann, running as a Democrat, who was rated “Not Qualified.“

In the State Senate race to replace retiring Democratic Sen. Darlene Fairley, Republican David Baker and Democrat Patty Butler both won “Very Good” ratings, and Democrat Maralyn Chase got a “Good” rating.

In the contest to replace Chase in representative position 1, Democrat Cindy Ryu was rated “Very Good,” Republican Art Coday won a “Good” rating, and Democrat Doris McConnell had an “Adequate“ rating. Ryu’s ratings continued on a roller-coaster ride. The League had rated her “Very Good” in a losing bid for Shoreline City Council in 2003, “Outstanding” when she won election to the Council in 2005 and “Adequate” when she lost a re-election bid in 2009. Neither Coday nor McConnell has a record of past League ratings. When McConnell won election to the Shoreline Council in 2007, the League didn’t rate Shoreline candidates.

In the Senate race, Chase got the same “Good” rating she had in re-election bids to the State House of Representatives in 2006 and 2008. She had a “Very Good” rating in 2002 and was unrated when she ran unopposed in 2004, Baker’s “Very Good” rating was a step up from the “Good” rating he had when he challenged Fairley for the Senate seat in 2006. Butler’s “Very Good” rating also was a step up from the “Good” ratings she had when she ran successfully for the State House in 1996 and unsuccessfully for re-election in 1998.

For Kagi, this is the fourth time that the League has given her an “Outstanding” rating. She twice got” Very Good” ratings, and once was not rated when she ran unopposed.

In the one contested election for a position on the Shoreline District Court. a contest that will be on the general-election ballot but not the primary ballot, the League gave an "Outstanding" rating to appointed incumbent Marcine Anderson and a "Very Good" rating to challenger Dennis J. McCurdy.