Richmond Highlands man starts write-in campaign against unopposed Shoreline incumbent Councilman Hall

By Evan Smith

Richmond Highlands resident Michael Bachety has announced a write-in campaign for the Shoreline city council position that Councilman Will Hall now holds.

Bachety said Sunday that he decided to run for the position when he got his ballot and noticed that Hall and two other incumbents were running unopposed.

By the time he decided to make the write-in campaign, the deadline for registration as a write-in candidate had passed. Registered write-in candidates have their votes counted even with minor misspellings.

Bachety and his family have lived in Shoreline since 2009.

He said that he got interested in local politics when neighbors were talking about a possible land deal near their homes, a proposal to build a large apartment building on the only green space in the area.

“Every homeowner in our neighborhood was against this, and we then learned that the city council changed the setback ruling -- building 15 feet from the curb was changed to zero feet,” he said. “We will be losing our big trees and gaining a giant wall right off the curb. 

“The frustration only compounded when we were collectively ignored by the city council; they allowed the landowner to subdivide the property in order to move the building process forward and made no compromise on the setback ruling. 

“Why was the city council more concerned about future residents than the current ones? My concern was simply to have sidewalks put in, since there would be more traffic, more cars, more visitors, more deliveries. 

“Currently, residents and many Shorewood students literally have to walk in the street at points. 

“I have since learned of other high-density apartment buildings being considered in regards to the vision of Shoreline. What never seems to get talked about is how current infrastructure will grow as the population does. I hope to live in Shoreline for a long time, and I selfishly have to think 15 years from now when my children will be walking home from school in what will be a much more crowded city with many more frustrated and speeding drivers. 

“Receiving my ballot and seeing these same council members running unopposed was a final straw of sorts. This is not a proper democracy and officials can become apathetic if they feel there are no consequences to their decisions. What I have learned from listening to others is that this is a recurring problem. If elected officials do not proactively work to seek a common ground or a solution for the greater good, then the only thing left to do is protest, and that is why I come to you now to ask for your vote. 

“Compromise is not a dirty word to me and greater efforts should be visibly made to find solutions to satisfy the constituency that one represents. Also, as the fifth and youngest child growing up, I know all to well what it feels like to be bossed and ignored. I have tried to fight the good fight ever since."

Bachety said that he chose to challenge Hall because he found that of all the council members, Hall was the most dismissive of his neighbors’ concerns.

Bachety said that he plans to campaign only by using social media. He has not registered with the State Public Disclosure Commission or made any plans to raise or spend money. Hall has reported raising $8,913 and spending $5,115.

Shoreline had a write-in campaign four years ago, when Councilman Keith McGlashan was unopposed on the ballot. Write-in candidate Wendy DiPeso registered with both the County elections department and the State Public Disclosure Commission; she ran with the backing of the 32nd District Democrats, raised and spent $19,247, and campaigned throughout the city. Yet McGlashan, who raised 17,567 and spent only $12,118, won with about 79 percent of the vote.