The King County Council has just voted unanimously (by acclamation, in a voice vote) to appoint Kurt Triplett (photo left; bio here) as interim King County Executive, serving until after this November’s election (in which he is not running for the job). He’s technically already got that job, having been elevated to it when Ron Sims left for his new federal job; he served for six years as Sims’ chief of staff. The other finalist was former Seattle mayor Charles Royer. Before this afternoon’s vote, several councilmembers said a major argument for keeping Tripllet is that continuity and stability are vital right now, since the county and region are going through “tough times,” as Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer put it, saying “we have to be united in the financial crisis that this county faces.” Right after the vote, Triplett entered the council chambers, hugged councilmembers, and began his speech by saying “I’m speechless”; he’s expected to take the oath of office tomorrow.