Recall Councilmember Lisa Herbold? Online petition piling up names, but here’s what the official process requires

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

An online “petition” urging a recall of District 1 City Councilmember Lisa Herbold has almost 2,400 names so far.

But if you added your name thinking you’ve taken action to recall the West Seattle/South Park councilmember – you have not.

Certainly, a popular online petition like this is a major sign of discontent. However, state law spells out an entirely different process to remove an elected official. We looked into that, and into whether anyone had actually initiated that process.

The toplines of the process are on this page of the King County Elections website. That page points to the “jurisdiction manual,” which in turn points to this section of state law, which begins:

Whenever any legal voter of the state or of any political subdivision thereof, either individually or on behalf of an organization, desires to demand the recall and discharge of any elective public officer of the state or of such political subdivision, as the case may be, under the provisions of sections 33 and 34 of Article 1 of the Constitution, the voter shall prepare a typewritten charge, reciting that such officer, naming him or her and giving the title of the office, has committed an act or acts of malfeasance, or an act or acts of misfeasance while in office, or has violated the oath of office, or has been guilty of any two or more of the acts specified in the Constitution as grounds for recall. The charge shall state the act or acts complained of in concise language, give a detailed description including the approximate date, location, and nature of each act complained of, be signed by the person or persons making the charge, give their respective post office addresses, and be verified under oath that the person or persons believe the charge or charges to be true and have knowledge of the alleged facts upon which the stated grounds for recall are based.

For the purposes of this chapter:

(1) “Misfeasance” or “malfeasance” in office means any wrongful conduct that affects, interrupts, or interferes with the performance of official duty;

(a) Additionally, “misfeasance” in office means the performance of a duty in an improper manner; and

(b) Additionally, “malfeasance” in office means the commission of an unlawful act;

(2) “Violation of the oath of office” means the neglect or knowing failure by an elective public officer to perform faithfully a duty imposed by law.

The petition has to be filed with King County Elections, which in turn would have the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office review it, and then it would go to a Superior Court judge. If the judge ruled it valid, then signatures would be gathered over an up-to-nine-month period. How many signatures? “… legal voters equal to twenty-five percent of the total number of votes cast for all candidates for the office to which the officer whose recall is demanded was elected at the preceding election.” That would be a quarter of the 35,959 votes cast for District 1 City Council in November 2019 – 8,990.

If all that happens, a special election would be set for between 45 and 90 days later, and a response to the charges would be sought. The recall would require only a simple majority vote. (Herbold would not otherwise go back before voters until 2023, if she runs for a third term.)

We checked with KC Elections to see if this process had been initiated for Herbold; so far, it has not. As you might have seen in citywide media, though, there is an active recall effort for Mayor Jenny Durkan (whose first term ends next year) and as of this morning, KCE spokesperson Halei Watkins tells WSB, a petition has just been filed seeking the recall of Councilmember Kshama Sawant (a previous attempt, Watkins says, was rejected last month as incomplete).

The online petition in support of recalling Herbold was started by Tim McConnell, who says he is not planning to pursue the formal process – he launched the Change.org site primarily as a way to express frustration with Herbold on issues such as the police budget cuts. He has tried to talk to her personally, McConnell told WSB, but she hasn’t returned his messages. He says he’s heard from many people who feel their concerns aren’t being heard either, and he hopes that this visible display of discontent will help her understand that, even if no one else pursues a formal recall.

145 Replies to "Recall Councilmember Lisa Herbold? Online petition piling up names, but here's what the official process requires"

  • tsurly August 18, 2020 (12:54 pm)

    It is clear that Tim still has an ax to grind after Tavel handily lost the election. Please refer to prior discussions on this blog where Tim was quite the vocal Tavel supporter.   Everytime I’ve emailed Lisa Herbold’s office, I’ve gotten a pretty prompt (within a week) response, so I feel like this is made up. Perhaps its because I pose my questions/concerns in a constructive, non-combative manner. You catch more bees with honey rather than vinegar, as the saying goes.I really try and keep politics and business in separate silos, but this is really making it difficult for me to continue patronizing West Seattle Runner.  

    • WSB August 18, 2020 (2:08 pm)

      I should note 2 things: #1, he made it clear this was a personal decision – the info on the change.org page and second, he did not contact us about this. Commenters have been mentioning it for a week or so and then people started emailing about it a couple days ago. Some of them clearly were under the impression that the online petition is an actual recall campaign and so I decided to do this story to clarify that. We contacted Tim just to ask if he planned to pursue an official campaign, since KC Elections told us no one had filed one yet. (If anyone does, please let us know – there’s no spot on the KCE website showing “active petitions” so all I can do otherwise is check back periodically.)

      • tsurly August 18, 2020 (2:37 pm)

        I completely understand your position and, to your defensive, was well aware of the change.org petition before you mentioned it above. I’m just getting a bit sick of these neighborhood busybodies who feel entitled to speak on behalf of all residents (I’m pretty sure that is what we elected Herbold to do, by an 11% margin) when it comes to matters of policy. It is childish to start these frivolous recall petitions just because you have a problem. Tim has a direct line of communication to Lisa through the West Seattle Bridge Task Force; perhaps he should be more engaged there rather than mostly being a fly on the wall (I’ve watched every meeting in its entirety). We are dealing with very complex issues that take time (no matter who is in office) and money (that we do not have), and require input from large stakeholder groups; running off and crying to mommy with a recall petition because you don’t like how the other kids are playing with you is not the way to work through these problems. NOTE: I have absolutely zero connections with Herbold, SDOT, etc. I’m just another WS resident affected by the bridge closure like everyone else, I’m just not irrational.  

        • mok4315 August 18, 2020 (3:32 pm)

          I also am sick of those who feel entitled to speak on behalf of all residents. The problem is that Lisa seems to be acknowledging only some of her constituents and ignoring those of us who don’t follow her ideologies and who want her to uphold the stance she ran on last year. She shouldn’t be representing herself, she should be representing us. All of us. Now, I don’t know who the silent majority/vocal minority is here, I don’t think any of us do. But the majority of people who are against SPD defunding have not gotten a response from Lisa, myself included. This petition is not a recall, as Tim and WSB explained. But maybe it can get our voices across to Lisa, who has thus far chosen to ignore us.

          • alisa August 19, 2020 (8:58 am)

            I wish that someone would begin this process.  There are several city counsel members that should be recalled, just as you’ve said they are representing their personal interest/positions and not that of the majority of people.  The majority of people do not think defunding the police is the answer to the issues that need to be addressed.  If  anything we should increase funding for police training, national registry of proven offending police officers, mental health evaluations for police and homeless on the streets, etc….

          • Kim Depew August 21, 2020 (10:28 pm)

            You are exactly right! The Seattle City Council is a bunch of idiots listening to a small mob of unlawful lunatics!!  Are you kiddding me??? Way to force Carmen Best out who embodies the whole black lives matters principals, again what is wrong with these incompetent dingdongs, they should be cutting their own salaries too. I would sign a recall petition in a heartbeat and help collect signatures too. 

        • wscommuter August 18, 2020 (3:39 pm)

          There is nothing irrational in being upset by Herbold’s incompetence.  It’s fine that you support her – you’ve got the right to do so.  Characterizing the petition idea as “childish” and “frivolous”, however, reveals your perspective and is badly minimizing the genuine anger many of us feel, most especially following her recent debacle re Chief Best and the vote on SPD’s budget.  I agree that recall efforts are/should be few and far between – however, I’m very comfortable in supporting that measure now, under these facts.  As an aside, it is interesting to me that you report responses from Herbold’s office when you email her.  I’ve emailed her office three times in the past few months and never received a single response of any kind.  Perhaps they only respond to their supporters.  

          • Jon Wright August 18, 2020 (4:57 pm)

            I don’t think it is childish or frivolous; I think impotent is a better characterization. Online petitions are the epitome of slacktivism.

        • SunshinenRain August 18, 2020 (4:05 pm)

          I’m kinda thinking Tsurly actually has an axe to grind with McConnell….here s/he criticizes his performance in an unrelated task force meeting…hmmm….I’m seeing a trend Tsurly.  

        • WTF August 18, 2020 (4:23 pm)

          She will respond to bridge inquiries. She ignores those related to her bait/switch about SPD. You run for public office, you are responsible for all issues under that office on behalf of your constituents. No one should have to attend or voyeur in on another issue’s meeting to be heard or responded to about another. She needs to own up.

        • NotHerbold August 19, 2020 (9:00 am)

          He certainy speaks for me! After I found myself packed between 20 people living in the 2 Single Family homes next to mine, I called the city to have an investigation started into the ADU/DADU limits on non-family occupants only to find out Herbold led the charge to drop those limitations last October. I’m living in my own personal hell as a result of this woman, and I am HAPPY to sign ANY petition to recall her at this point. 

    • ACG August 18, 2020 (2:13 pm)

      I have tried emailing and calling Herbold. Emails have never been returned. I have emailed recently and also before the last election on various issues. VM was full when I tried calling recently. I can understand his frustration about hearing nothing back from her. I’m glad you were lucky enough to get a response. Not everyone is, I guess. 

    • J August 18, 2020 (2:27 pm)

      Incredible that tsurly gets a response from Lisa Herbold.  I have written repeatedly over the last few months and never received a response of any sort.What’s the secret password tsurly?

    • SMH August 18, 2020 (2:34 pm)

      Tsurly, Good on Tim for standing up for keeping our community safe, even though there is risk of people finding out he owns a local business and knowing that some folks may be like you, may choose to boycott due to a differing opinion. That can be a huge risk in Seattle. Glad someone isn’t afraid to take a stand and cower to bully tactics. Secondly, can you give me insight on how you get a response from Lisa? I have not been able to get responses to my recent kindly emailed and concerned letters. Lastly, it sounds like you are making assumptions that Tim is both a liar and combative, I wouldn’t exactly say your choice of honey is catching any flies. 

      • tsurly August 18, 2020 (4:41 pm)

        SMH it is his choice to be a small local business owner and interject in politics, and I’m sure he is aware of the consequences.  I find it abhorrent that he would advocate for utilizing finite government resources, to bring what appears to be baseless legal action, during a time of significant budget shortfalls and higher priorities, just because he doesn’t like what she is doing. So yeah, I’m going to dangle the $1000+ a year my household spends at his business to tell him that I don’t want this. If he wants to be a politician, then consider me a lobbyist telling him what I want (or don’t want) and putting money on the table to back it up.

        • CMT August 18, 2020 (10:54 pm)

          Regardless of my view on a recall – I’ll now make it a point to make up some of your $1,000 year (flex) because I abhor intimidation tactics happening all too frequently these days.  And hopefully others feel the same and your faux outraged call-out will result in more business for him. 

        • SMH August 19, 2020 (11:08 pm)

          Tsurly,Betting my bottom dollar that if you agreed with him, you wouldn’t be acting like such a baby. I don’t think that someone being a business owner means he shouldn’t care about politics. That is a super weird philosophy that you have…but my guess is that it’s your stance this time around because you have a different opinion than he does.  I’m curious for you to fess up about where you work? And does your career preclude you from political views?

        • STURLY August 20, 2020 (1:04 am)

          Tsurly, what I hear you saying is small business owners need to shut their mouths and keep their opinions to themselves, while others get to hide behind a keyboard and say whatever they want. Got it. 

    • Roms August 18, 2020 (3:18 pm)

      You’re very lucky to have had her reply to your emails. Did you get any answers recently on tough subjects, like BLM- and defund-related ones?Last year and earlier this year, I did have her staff usually reply to my emails when they were about  bus issues, the viaduct, etc. But since June, I’ve not had any answers when I was asking her to clarify her positions, the next steps she envisions, etc., since I was at a loss with what she has been doing.

      • tsurly August 18, 2020 (4:18 pm)

        I received email responses from here office on the following dates:- July 16th pertaining to bridge related non-motorized transportation options (being fairly critical of select bike and pedestrian proposals. I was told, in brief, things were still fluid and they were still receiving feedback form stakeholder groups- August 8th  in response to my inquiry on how funds removed from SPD’s budget would be reallocated; I was encouraged to watch the August 10th council meeting where that would be discussed.Although brief and a bit underwhelming, reasonable responses, IMO, given the sheer number of calls/emails I imagine her office is receiving. Perhaps I’m just a lucky, who knows.

        • Roms August 18, 2020 (7:06 pm)

          Thanks for your answer. Was there anything in the responses you received that clarified or added information to what is being shared in the weekly email, or that one can learn during the very technical Council sessions which are broadcasted? I still feel I’m in the dark on what she’s trying to achieve at a detailed level.

    • Jim August 18, 2020 (4:07 pm)

      Tsurly >>>I really try and keep politics and business in separate silos<<<      I can really see how hard you try.  What a cheap shot.  I, and probably many others, wouldn’t have even associated Tim and WSR until you recommended boycotting.  

      • small biz owner with an opinion August 18, 2020 (6:55 pm)

        I agree with Jim.  Tsurly- shame on you.  Small business owners should be able to voice their opinions about political things and yes they are taking a risk by doing so, but like Jim said folks wouldn’t have even known, if you had not thrown Tim’s relationship to the store out there.  Small business owners have been suffering for months with little or no support from those that represent us.

      • KM August 19, 2020 (7:17 am)

        Nonsense. Anyone who is a conscientious spender is generally interested in finding out who their money goes to. I was curious and had a hunch (his name has been published before) and a quick Google search led me to his business. I do my best to “vote with my dollars” so there are some local businesses I stay away from. I imagine those with different politics will maybe start to shop some of these stores. Some might not care at all. These are all fine options! As a small business owner myself, I know the risks of putting oneself/business out there, and I believe in spending in ways to support a better community vision. 

        • Jim August 19, 2020 (1:42 pm)

          Okay, KM, how about you and Tsurly put your names and the names of your businesses on here since you think it was appropriate that Tsurly outed Tim’s business for revenge.

          • SMH August 19, 2020 (11:15 pm)

            I agree! Some of these people who claim to be so conscientious about where they spend their dollars likely spend on some pretty corrupt corporations if they were to look at ALL their spendy choices. 

    • Tim August 18, 2020 (5:14 pm)

      TSURLY, here is one of the emails I sent CM Herbold, I received no response. I feel I was tactful, respectful, and clear.  It was sent  on the 11th of June. Councilwoman Herbold, I would like to say on behalf of my family and my business, that we do not support the defunding of the Seattle Police Department. I have been educating myself on what defunding the police means, and at this time I do not support it in any form. I find it to be a knee jerk reaction brought on by pressure from a vocal minority, and I have spoken to many of my friends and family that don’t believe it is a good idea either. I know right now it doesn’t seem popular to back the SPD, and I am aware that there is definitely work to be done to eradicate racism, but to hold all cops accountable seems a bit of an overreach. How about make it easier for cops to report violations and remain anonymous. Or disband the police union that seems to protect bad officers and punish those who report violators. But to defund the service that I rely on for the protection of my business and family just means I will have to find alternative ways to continue that protection. I fully support the movement to hold cops accountable, I fully support the message of Black Lives Matter, I am all for equal protection under the law, I proudly served this country shoulder to shoulder with many people of color, and I also support my police department. It is possible to do all those things, it is not an either or, regardless of what others scream and yell at people that don’t believe exactly what they believe. This toxicity has gotten out of hand, and people are afraid to speak up in fear that they will be shouted down, or in the case of a small business owner, be boycotted or damaged for not holding a radical belief. I have spoken to many small business owners on my block that fear speaking out against defunding the police. I hope you can be a voice that speaks for those to afraid to speak up for themselves. This is a difficult time for everyone, but the lack of productive dialogue is making things worse. I know you are on the side of defunding the police, as your politics have been very progressive traditionally. But you also represent people that don’t share your hard left view, and I am asking that you represent us too. For scope, my friends that live outside Seattle consider me a liberal, or at the very least, a democrat. But here my views are equated with the far right, which I find disturbing, as I consider myself a moderate to left leaning person. My business is involved in helping the food bank, the Help Line, we donate to every school auction, and raise money for many charities around West Seattle. We donate shoes to the Union Gospel Mission, and have volunteered there before we opened our business and ran out of time.I tell you this so you understand that we feel our business is important, not only to us, but to our community. And taking away the only protection for our livelihood would put us in a dangerous position. So I ask you to consider radical changes to the SPD, but not defunding it, or worse, disbanding it.I look forward to your response.

      • tsurly August 18, 2020 (8:11 pm)

        Tim that is exactly how you should convey your concerns,  and honestly agree its lame that you have not received a response. However, I still standby calling your actions call for a recall as childish and baseless. Based on what  WSB posted above justifying a recall, you are accusing Lisa Herbold of a criminal or unethical act by voting to cut $3M from SPDs $400M (0.75%) budget. I will spare the details of what those cuts actually entail, but it should free up police to actually do police work and respond to crimes that warrant their response, not be social workers, crisis counselors, etc.  If you or any other West Seattle resident have direct evidence that justifies her being recalled, then bring it. 

        • Tim McConnell August 20, 2020 (1:24 am)

          If you took the time to read any of the updates on the petition, you would know this whole thing started as a Facebook rant on my personal page. I never intended to actually recall CM Herbold, as Change.org is a symbolic gesture platform. It was click bait that I posted in frustration over the lack of response I was getting from CM Herbold. I wanted a few friends to sign it and I was going to pass it on to her office, hoping maybe she’d respond. A bunch of people shared it and it took off. I never promoted it, as it was never intended to have more than 20-30 signatures. It was done in jest and anger. But it clearly struck a cord with people.  It went viral on its own. I had nothing to do with its huge response, I just created it and posted it. It had nothing to do with my business, or my voting for Phil Tavel, and it definitely doesn’t have anything to do with me being on the WSBCTF. But you made it your business to tell everyone who I was and what business I was affiliated with. Your post was the first post to this article. In it you also called me a liar, and you threatened to stop shopping at my business, all because of a Facebook post on my personal page? You get to pass judgment anonymously, safe behind your keyboard. And I find your knowledge of me to be a tad unsettling. I feel you are attacking me personally, and are less upset with the petition. If you truly shop at my business, you know where I am. Feel free to come talk to me, express your opinion and we can talk like adults. If you choose to no longer patronize my business because I wanted my voice heard by my representative, that’s your right. But I would like an apology for calling me a liar. You don’t get to question my character while hiding behind your computer.

          • tsurly August 20, 2020 (9:57 am)

            Your presence in the community and outspokenness has, in my opinion, made you a bit of community figurehead. With that, you have the ability, and power, to reach people who will actually listen to you. Your words have meaning, and your choice to specifically use “recall” in an online petition, even if you intended it as a symbolic gesture, has had an impact. Someone will follow your lead and file a recall petition against Lisa Herbold, which will uselessly suck up already stretched government resources, on what appears to be a disagreement in policy, not a legitimate case of malfeasance. I envision this process will likely require some kind of response from Herbold, wasting her time, which would be much better focused on the bridge, how to deal with the severe budget shortfalls, keeping a city running during a global pandemic, and the million other more important things. For the record, I’m really not a big fan of hers, she was just the best of the three choices we had for our council member last year. Given the disasters she has had to deal with as our councilwoman this year (COVID, the bridge, police protests), I respect and appreciate her responses and handling of them.I did not tell anyone who you were or what business you are affiliated with; that information has been plastered all of this blog long before I got here, and you yourself enshrined that in the public record during the first WSBCTF Meeting. To directly quote you: “Hi I’m Tim McConnell, I live and work in the Admiral District, I’m a 30 year West Seattle Resident, and my wife and I own West
            Seattle Runner, we’ve been doing business here for 10 years, and I’d like to
            represent the people of the Admiral District, and business people in general.”

            In regards to me effectively calling you a liar about not receiving a response from our council member, I do apologize for that. Based on other comments in this thread, others, including you, have not had the same experience as me in consistently receiving replies on my emails. All constituents deserve the courtesy or a response, regardless of policy position.Lastly, we all have a finite amount of political capital to spend o the issues we care about, and I personally don’t want to waste mine on this subject, which is why I’m choosing to remain anonymous. 

          • Tim McConnell August 20, 2020 (1:26 pm)

            Your presence in the community and outspokenness has, in my opinion, made you a bit of community figurehead. With that, you have the ability, and power, to reach people who will actually listen to you.” I think you miss the point of the petition completely. If I wield so much influence and power, how is it that CM Herbold did not respond to my repeated emails? I think you have an image of me that doesn’t match up with the actual me. I am a small business owner, not a politician. I have opinions, as does everybody.  Why should I be penalized for them? My business helps many local charities, we donate to every school auction, we collect shoes for the homeless, and we put on a charity race benefiting the WS Foodbank, all out of our own pocket. I never asked to be a figurehead, I just try to do things that I think will make our community a little better. If people want to ask me about questions or highlight an event we put on, that’s on them. I don’t go seeking attention for myself, I only promote my business, as any business person would. I bet we have a lot of common interests, and I bet we have similar opinions on may other things. But you decided to dox me the moment the article was posted. You continue to hang your business over my head, and you continue to post things about me in an unsettling way, all because you disagree with me on one topic? This virus has been tough on all of us, and I am sorry you had to take a pay cut. I had to lay off my entire staff and try to keep my business open by selling everything via email and phone, both of which I hate.      I couldn’t get a hold of CM Herbold to discuss my concerns, but you obviously now where I am, and you could have easily asked me to clarify my stance, but you didn’t. You continue to cast dispersions while remaining anonymous. Eventually you will be outed, and I hope you don’t get treated they way I have. Especially if you were only trying to stand up for yourself.  

      • melissa August 18, 2020 (8:59 pm)

        Tim, I find your letter thoughtful and eloquent. I also disagree with it, but I certainly respect it. I don’t, however, respect a petition to remove a politician you disagree with. She was duly elected and performs her duties as she believes is correct. If a person disagrees with her, they should find out who is running against her and engage in the democratic process of supporting the campaign of someone they support. I’m absolutely not a fan of Mayor Durkan and will carefully research her opponents in the next election and support someone I believe will do a better job. I wish that these discussions didn’t devolve into attacks and bitterness. I’m also sorry she didn’t respond to you. My guess is that she’s pretty overwhelmed with emails. How many people are in District 1? I’m not sure, but I’m guessing that in these crazy times if Ms. Herbold and her staffers answered all of them, they might not have time to do much else.

        • Tim August 20, 2020 (1:37 am)

          Melissa, thank you for your respectful response, they seem to be lacking in this day and age. I also want to set the record straight, the petition was originally just a way to vent on my Facebook page. I know change.org is not an official platform, it’s symbolic. I just picked a bold headline and wrote a scathing paragraph or two to vent my anger. I posted it to my personal Facebook page, never intending more than 50 people seeing it. It went viral and turned into what you see here. I know I have zero evidence of malfeasance, and I didn’t file with any agency. I took 5 minutes to create the petition to voice frustration. The end. It was astounding to me how much it resonated with people. I never intended nor thought it would get this big, and I never actually thought I could recall CM Herbold. I was just pissed she kept ignoring my emails. 

      • Dkm August 18, 2020 (10:20 pm)

        Thank you Tim for taking action. I back you 100%. I know many will. We are tired of not having our voices heard. I enjoy your store very much, and love supporting a West Seattle small business owner. 

        • Jon Wright August 19, 2020 (11:06 am)

          Your voice was heard last November. You need to accept that more people who bothered to vote had a different opinion than you.

          • Ned Nederlander August 19, 2020 (6:34 pm)

            I don’t understand anyone criticizing a resident who actually does something about his dissatisfaction with his rep. Yes, Herbold got a mere 4K more votes that a really weak challenger, but the process recognizes that you can question a candidate even after they win an election. There’s nothing wrong with that and the minimal financial cost of doing so pales in comparison to the waste and lost opportunities of Herbold and the council.Tsurly must be a staffer, neighbor or good friend of Herbold. (S)he gets way too defensive about her and is quite the advocate.

          • Tsurly August 19, 2020 (8:47 pm)

            Check your reading glasses Ned. I clearly stated above that I have no affiliation with Herbold, I just don’t like neighborhood busybodies who feel like they speak on my behalf.

          • Ned Nederlander August 19, 2020 (9:28 pm)

            Definitely a staffer or volunteer.

          • SMH August 19, 2020 (11:20 pm)

            Ned, I suspect the same thing.  The way he has seemed to stalk McConnell’s life and out his biz….seems very suspect and not very “true” West Seattleite

          • tsurly August 20, 2020 (1:25 pm)

            SMH, see the link I posted above. Tim put the details of his life and business out on the internet, not me. Additionally, as also pointed out above, I’m not really a fan of Herbold (didn’t donate a dime or minute of time to her campaign), but thought she was a better choice than Tavel or Kolding, and I think she has done a reasonable job shoveling the dung heap that was dropped on us (and her) this year.  I’ve lived in West Seattle for 7 years, so I think I qualify as a West Seattleite, whether that fits your criteria or not. 

  • k August 18, 2020 (1:00 pm)

    I’m all for recalling this counsel, but let’s get this going and do it right! Let’s PDR everything we possibly can and go after her for misfeasance and violation of the oath of office (knowingly not listening to her constituents and as head of the public safety committee, voting for an enacting something with significant impacts to public safety with ZERO plan). A lot of people are frustrated. Let’s rally and put an end to all of this.

    • Practicalist August 18, 2020 (1:34 pm)

      For jeezusuz sake, turn off the internet grandma/pa and learn how politics works. Just because you disagree with an elected official’s stance on an issue or approach to policy does not make it malfeasance or a violation of oath of office. A lot of people may be frustrated, but certainly last November nowhere near enough people were frustrated to unseat Herbold (56% to 44%). My advice, stay involved in the process and get someone who isn’t an amateur clown to run against her in 2023. 

      • Dunno August 18, 2020 (2:45 pm)

        Practicalist is spot on!  Only problem, dos anyone want to be on the Seattle City council?  I know the people I’ve liked and known that were on the council wouldn’t touch being on it now with 12 foot pole.(longer because of covid)

    • David August 18, 2020 (1:40 pm)

      Agreed. In addition to your comment and what is outlined in the   change.org petition, Ms.Herbold  paid $500 to settle an ethics violations complaint ( as reported by WSB on Feb 4 2020).  Ms. Herbold also publicly suggested the firing of SPD officers based on race (on her Twitter profile and  subsequently widely discussed in the media). I am not an attorney and don’t know if these are grounds for recall, but they might be, or they could amplify the case for recall.

      • AMD August 18, 2020 (4:00 pm)

        Lisa Herbold DID NOT say that at all.  She pointed out that SPD is not required to lay off officers in seniority order and that they can use other criteria.  The most common alternate criteria discussed is doing layoffs based on number of complaints.  This addresses the underlying issue and ensures layoffs are performance-based.  Her comments were in response to Carmen’s Best’s insistence that layoffs would inherently lead to more POC officers being laid off than white ones, but Lisa’s response DIT NOT suggest using race as the criteria.

    • Ann August 19, 2020 (7:23 am)

      I will certainly sign a legal recall petition for most of city council including the mayor.  Hear! Hear!

  • West Seattle Lurker August 18, 2020 (1:20 pm)

    This calls for a task force. 

  • Michael Ostrogorsky August 18, 2020 (1:22 pm)

    This is so incredibly stupid. We just had an election and Phil Tavel lost decisively. So now we’re going to recall elected officials whenever they cast a vote we don’t like? Then what’s the point of even having fixed terms for our elected representatives. 

    • My two cents ... August 18, 2020 (2:32 pm)

      @ Michael Ostrogorsky – kind of like how the council unanimously approved the nomination of C. Best for the SPD leadership role and then turned around and cut the salary for that position (which in part achieved their desired goal of having C. Best step down).

      • CAM August 18, 2020 (5:13 pm)

        The state government has proposed cutting the salaries of all state employees in order to make up for budget shortfalls but have only been able to achieve that for non-union employees so far. Should all those employees take that action as a personal insult and affront and walk off the job immediately? Or maybe should they be big enough to realize it isn’t personal or about them? Let’s stop treating that situation like it was somehow a valid response. 

      • WSJ August 18, 2020 (6:25 pm)

        Sounds like a great reason to vote against her, but clearly doesn’t rise to the level of malfeasance.

    • DudeWhere'sMyBridge? August 18, 2020 (5:35 pm)

      It is not stupid.  Regardless of the margin, she made certain claims and positions to engender that vote (cue the October 2019 video of her supporting more police).  What we expect is for her to pump the brakes and focus on the key issues that really affect us – like, maybe, the bridge?  Instead, she has joined the other operational novices on the council and misappropriated the energy of the BLM protest movement to try socialist-leaning experiments for the city, including spending all the rainy-day funds with nary a dime set aside for…the bridge.  I think a lot of voters were duped in thinking we had someone who would counter – not team up with – Sawant.  It is worthy of the discourse of a recall attempt.  If it doesn’t clear the hurdles, then clearly we are in the minority.  But I think 10+ light cycles southbound on West Marginal and the Carmen Best resignation have caused a lot of people to reconsider.  

      • Canton August 19, 2020 (9:19 pm)

        Dude… Spot on, very well said.

    • Resident August 19, 2020 (12:47 am)

      Yes, when our elected officials don’t vote for what the majority of their constituents want then they can get recalled.

      • Tsurly August 19, 2020 (5:47 am)

        No, they cannot be recalled, look at what WAB has clearly spelled out above.

  • PedroTheLion August 18, 2020 (1:40 pm)

    Lias has utterly failed in representing the people of our district. Rather than taking a measured approach to the issues and getting a sense of our community’s actual needs and wants, she gets led around by the nose by Sawant and the small fraction of people who go around to people’s houses at night chanting. Sorry Lisa, that’s not having your pulse on the community. That’s disregarding the majority of your constituants – the hard working, tax paying people who spend their time making their own way without handouts, and raising their kids and bettering themselves and their community in other ways. She and her ilk are the Trumps of the left – just as bad, and just as destructive and decisive.  I’m sure their intentions are better, but you know what they say about the road to hell . . . Of course, they live in a bubble and are too blind to see it  When I saw Lisa’s recent post about taking actions not grounded in reality, it hit the nail on the head and really drove home how ill equipped she is to lead. She’s caught up in the moment and a victim of some adolescent, ego-driven fantasy of wanting to feel like she’s part of some special “movement,” instead of concentrating on her real job – improving and maintaining roads, schools, and public safety (all of which are going downhill under current leadership,  who have all but squandered the biggest boom in our city’s history, with nothing to show for it). In short, Lisa has got to go before she does even more damage to our wonderful and diverse city. 

    • North Delridge August 18, 2020 (2:33 pm)

      “the hard working, tax paying people who spend their time making their own way without handouts and raising their kids and bettering themselves and their community in other ways”  Are you the ghost of Ronald Reagan or something? Who are you to assume that those who receive assistance are not hard working or tax paying and are therefore less deserving of Lisa’s attention or less deserving to vote her in, which the majority of residents in West Seattle did last November.  This is doubly insulting to imply what you are in light of the big increase of assistance needed to keep everyone afloat with the obvious increase in unemployment. 

    • My two cents ... August 18, 2020 (2:35 pm)

      @pedrothelion – good recap of the frustrations and challenges our community is up against with Councilmember Herbold. Always seems to be chasing a headline compared with real, substantive change and progress.

    • Cogburn August 18, 2020 (2:41 pm)

      I agree. Selecting representatives does not always pan out when they campaign on one thing and deliver the opposite. Several large issues have not been well addressed by her and they affect WS strongly. We need a representative who uses power and authority for those who elected her and not both peaceful and criminal protesters. How many of them live in WS and pay taxes here? Few if any. Herbold should not be beholden to those that yell and demand or to Sawant. She is our representative and I don’t think many of us in WS want what is going on, and not to mention the bridge, which she rolled over on for a ten years fix, ten years. Ten years? Now that’s some great negotiating with other council members don’t you think? 

  • David August 18, 2020 (1:45 pm)

    Agreed!

  • helpermonkey August 18, 2020 (1:51 pm)

    He has tried to talk to her personally, McConnell told WSB, but she hasn’t returned his messages.”  – wow, shocking….not. I know many, many people who have contacted Herbold and yet I don’t know one person who actually has had her respond. 

    • tsurly August 18, 2020 (2:42 pm)

      See my comment above. I’ve emailed here office about a dozen times over the past few years, and have always received a response. Courtesy and respect, even if you disagree with the position, is how you get a response. 

      • SMH August 18, 2020 (4:03 pm)

        I can assure you that my emails have been courteous and not responded to, Tsurly, you honestly must just have a magic touch. 

        • melissa August 18, 2020 (9:02 pm)

          I sent an email that she responded to, as well. In fact, in it I opposed a Sawant proposal and Ms. Herbold informed me that she did not intend to support it. 

    • Jon Wright August 18, 2020 (2:42 pm)

      I don’t know how lazy or incompetent somebody needs to be to NOT communicate with  Councilmember Herbold. You can sign up for her weekly newsletter. She appears at meetings for many local organizations. She has public in-district office hours. She has an office downtown. She uses email. I suspect anyone who wants to have a respectful conversation with Lisa wouldn’t have much trouble making that happen. However, I would also be willing to bet that irate rants email rants to her don’t go as far towards to getting a response back. And I hope everyone realizes this isn’t Mayberry…there are about 100,000 constituents in District 1 so perhaps expectations on what sort of response is likely need to be tempered?  

      • Will S. August 18, 2020 (4:14 pm)

        Jon, your reference to Mayberry and your insistence on lowering expectations for public officials are  both insulting. Before moving to Seattle, I worked for a ward councilmember representing about 80,000 people in a city of 650,000. If I let a constituent’s email go answered for 24 hours, I’d have been fired. It didn’t matter if the tone of the email was impatient, annoyed or disrespectful, and it didn’t matter if the constituent disagreed with the councilmember’s policy position. I’m not going to dumb down my expectations for my current councilmember just because Lisa Herbold can’t keep up, although I have stopped asking her office for help because I’ve never been satisfied with the response. All that said, there clearly is no basis for recalling Councilmember Herbold, and this online petition is a waste of time. (Elections matter.)

      • SMH August 18, 2020 (5:26 pm)

        She uses email to apparently respond to people who agree with her agenda according to what we are seeing on this thread. Her weekly newsletter, which I receive sporadically, is not a conversation. Working over full time hours, I cannot go to her in-district office hours.  I have not done any irate rants in my emails. And, for the sake of argument, if I did, why shouldn’t that also get a response? We justify violent protests, stating that rioting and looting is how we will finally get change. Therefore, a rude email should fall under the same category.  

        • Resident August 19, 2020 (7:21 am)

          I love that people are saying the protests outside of a council members home is ok but a terse email is not and that the former deserves a response and yet the latter does not.  What world am I living in?!

  • Dan August 18, 2020 (1:52 pm)

    In our Orwellian era of politics, the “silent majority” is the loud minority. Herbold *is* listening to her constituents. Police do not want to be, and are not social workers, yet we use them that way.

    • PedroTheLion August 18, 2020 (3:00 pm)

      “The silence majority is the loud minority.” Hogwash. And Herbold and the council know this. Ever wonder why they are so afraid to put up any of their ideas to a popular vote? 

      • KM August 18, 2020 (4:19 pm)

        Because that’s not the way representation works. You elect people to represent your interests. Apparently Lisa doesn’t represent yours, but it’s a pretty simple system to figure out regardless. 

      • WSJ August 18, 2020 (6:28 pm)

        You clearly have no idea how local representative government works. We are not a direct democracy

  • WSMom August 18, 2020 (2:03 pm)

    Even if it’s not the correct way to go about it I signed it anyways!

    • Yma August 18, 2020 (4:10 pm)

      We voted. That person is there. Don’t like it, vote different next time. 

  • evmyers9989 August 18, 2020 (2:04 pm)

    I feel like Lisa Herbold represents me, I voted for her and am happy with the policies she is fighting for. 

    • Riiiiiight August 18, 2020 (4:45 pm)

      You must not (ever) drive across the WS bridge then? Glad her amazing leadership is working for you! 

      • heartless August 18, 2020 (6:49 pm)

        I think she’s fine.  And, for the record, I’ve also not been driving across the bridge.  

      • Foop August 18, 2020 (7:02 pm)

        I also supported Her old and continue to do so. I also got responses from my emails. I think her communication on the bridge is excellent, what so you expect her up there pouring concrete?

    • melissa August 18, 2020 (9:04 pm)

      Likewise, Evmyers9989. I do as well. And I’m not sure why people think that she’s responsible for the fact that we don’t have a working bridge.

      • Wesley A. August 19, 2020 (9:39 am)

        It’s absolutely about the bridge.  Herbold is supposed to represent West Seattle.  There were multiple failings in the monitoring of the bridge over the past several years.  Our representative (Herbold) should have been monitoring that monitoring.  Instead she was too focused on issues that do not directly impact her representatives.  When the bridge was closed it was a shocking surprise to Herbold.  The question we need to ask is ‘why?’. The argument that she has communicated on what others are doing for the bridge (since its closure) are not the issue.  It’s her failures before the closure that are the true representation of her leadership.  

  • chemist August 18, 2020 (2:22 pm)

    It’s interesting that the burden of signature collection during a pandemic meant that a hardship declaration waived the signatures/fractional salary payment requirement and was the cheapest way to get on the ballots (probably a factor in having 3 dozen candidates for governor) vs a recall petition still needs to collect physical signatures on a paper form.

    • CAM August 18, 2020 (5:19 pm)

      Why is that interesting? Should the government be beholden to run special elections at the drop of a hat just because someone can get a bunch of “people” to sign and internet petition? Having extra names on a ballot costs the government hardly anything but the cost of a special election would bury us with the frequency it would happen if those restrictions were removed. 

  • GWS August 18, 2020 (2:26 pm)

    We’re living the lyrics to a song – “…Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right, and here I am stuck in the middle with you…”

    • mok4315 August 18, 2020 (3:39 pm)

      Nice :)

  • evmyers9989 August 18, 2020 (2:26 pm)

    You are more then welcome to start a national movement in support of police violence, but i don’t see it catching on.

  • Jon Wright August 18, 2020 (2:26 pm)

    Folks need to accept that last November, Councilmember Herbold was re-elected handily. These days, some people seem to the think the more outrage they express, the more they deserve to be catered to…and the angrier they get when that doesn’t happen. It is frustrating when someone who isn’t your preferred candidate gets elected, but that’s how our system works. Your opportunity to “recall” Councilmember Herbold comes in November 2023. Rather than wasting everyone’s time with this recall folly, get to work recruiting 4,547 people to vote for someone else–that was Lisa Herbold’s margin of victory last year. Election day 2023 is only 1,115 days away. You just need to find four people a day! If this crusade is as righteous as it is claimed to be, that should be no problem.

    • SMH August 18, 2020 (4:02 pm)

      My guess, by the response thus far, she won’t get re-elected this time around. People’s eyes have been opened

      • Foop August 18, 2020 (7:03 pm)

        If you followed that logic last November (basing off of comments here) you would have been wrong. Just saying…

    • Peter S. August 18, 2020 (5:17 pm)

      @Jon Wright:  I didn’t vote for Lisa the last election, I reluctantly accepted the results as “the will of the people”, and I completely agree with your first sentence.  However, do you not see the irony in your second sentence given the activities of the last several months?  It’s great that Lisa (or her staff) respond to those who already agree with her position or to some of the less controversial topics, but it’s disingenuous to suggest that proves she isn’t non-responsive to the rest of us who don’t agree with her.  And, I do know how to respectfully initiate contact even though I’m not happy.  Recalls are, and should be, a last resort with a very high bar for qualification.  Sort of like impeachments, right?  

  • Dale August 18, 2020 (2:33 pm)

    Councilmember Lisa Herbold will not respond to anyone who disagrees with her.  I was fortunate to be included in a meeting with her several years ago, during her office hours at the South Park Community Center.   Five of us were there to attempt to explain our concerns about unintended consequences of her proposed legislation relating to residential landlords.  We were all calm and respectful.  We just disagreed with part of the proposal, and wanted her to hear about why.  After a few minutes of listening to her tell us why we were wrong and uninformed, she declared the meeting over and left,  None of us in that meeting were under 60 years old, and no one managed more than four rental units.   She didn’t care.  And I know the usual Marxists that troll these comments will attack me for renting out property that I worked my entire life to own.  Go for it.

    • Ice August 18, 2020 (3:55 pm)

       And I know the usual Marxists that troll these comments will attack me for renting out property that I worked my entire life to own.  Go for it.” Has anyone ever told you that you have a victim complex?

    • wsguy123 August 18, 2020 (3:57 pm)

      Dale sums it up nicely. She has an agenda and isn’t interested in any povs that conflict. Tsurly keeps saying he gets replies but based on his/her general comments, is anyone surprised tsurly gets responses from Ms Herbold? But he/she says we must be doing it wrong (not nice, etc) if we don’t hear back.  SMH

      PS, earlier above I stated Ms Herbold doesn’t hold office hours but I was mistaken. I am sorry.

    • WSJ August 18, 2020 (6:35 pm)

      “She doesn’t agree with me, and wouldn’t change her mind!” Yeah, that’s called leadership in the face of criticism. But please, cry harder about how hard it is for retired millionaire landlords, they’re the real victims here. 

    • Lagartija Nick August 19, 2020 (9:20 am)

      Dale here claims to be respectful then calls everyone who disagrees with him “Marxists”. Do you people ever listen to yourselves?

  • Timothy August 18, 2020 (2:53 pm)

    This is a fantastic idea but we need a worthy challenger or it’s all for naught. Phil Tavel ran on “social justice” and seemed even worse than Herbold (before she flip-flopped) so I would be concerned that he would go along with these extreme measures and I don’t think he has what it takes to fight for West Seattle. There is nothing wrong with social justice of course, but people who openly declare it as part of their platform tend to be the extreme types like we currently have.I would be happy with a moderate/centrist who understands that you can still have law and order and safe communities without being unfair towards other communities. And someone who wouldn’t hypocritically claim to be a progressive social justice advocate and then not support the first black female police chief. They talk about fighting for equal pay for women and minorities and then they try to slash her pay by 100k and make her the most underpaid in the nation. Ridiculous!

  • Jay August 18, 2020 (3:08 pm)

    I think its incredibly disingenuous to suggest Herbold can’t be reached. When I reached out to her office to express concern over the violent attacks on peaceful protesters I got a very prompt reply, it may have been a form response but it was on topic and related to my concerns (which is more than I would have expected compared to previous experiences in a smaller city).  There’s also plenty of video of her engaging with the night protesters who wanted to be heard… and it seems like their message was (which is great).I continue to support Herbold. While I agree that the council needs a more clear plan, I don’t trust Mayor Durkan and found her and Chief Best’s responses to the protests  reprehensible.

    • SMH August 18, 2020 (5:18 pm)

      This confirms our suspicions, she responds to those of you who agree with her, but for those of us raising concerns, she turns a deaf ear. 

    • Timothy August 18, 2020 (10:55 pm)

      Did you not express concern over the violent attacks by rioters? And were you aware that the police were required to respond to violence and rioting? The police have been fine to be honest. 

      • Jay August 19, 2020 (9:23 am)

        Did I express concern for bullies who attacked a child and then harassed the person who videoed their attack on that child?No. Did I make a point of supporting a reprioritization of budgets with the hope that in the future when there are protests they’re met with something like community outreach advocates meant to de-escalate the situation, not armored individuals looking for a fight. Yes!

  • Doug August 18, 2020 (3:35 pm)

    The best thing to do is make sure Lisa Herbold & Co. hear your concerns. It’s time they actually engage with residents and get their input before making decisions with absolutely no plan.https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/editorials/editorial-speak-up-seattle-and-tell-city-council-how-to-proceed/

  • B. August 18, 2020 (3:46 pm)

    I voted for Lisa, I donated to her campaign and I thought she had the ability to represent me. I have written several times, no replies, I have read her weekly letters and replied still no reply. I question why she has not reached out to her constituents and asked our opinions about defunding the police or our input for ideas. When it re-election time I am sure I will hear from her asking my support. I understand signing the petition really men’s nothing but I am hoping she understands the frustrations of her people. 

  • KM August 18, 2020 (4:28 pm)

    Lisa and team sometimes respond to me, sometimes not. I have to wonder if people who are always mad and not getting responses are writing rude letters. I wouldn’t respond either—we saw how the women on the council were treated over a damn street vacation for a sports stadium, I imagine the hate they get about SPD is even worse. I would be deleting that toxic ish so fast based on the subject line alone.

  • Huck August 18, 2020 (4:41 pm)

    I signed the petition.I hope (if nothing else) it makes her question her own policies. My bet is she won’t bat an eye though.

  • Heartless? August 18, 2020 (5:32 pm)

    So I said to my friend, “Lisa needs to remember that she represents all the people of West Seattle, not just the ones who voted for her.”  He looked me straight in the eye and said, very succinctly, “No she doesn’t.” Food for thought. 

  • Les August 18, 2020 (5:39 pm)

    Herbold has not replied to my emails either. She has piled a broken campaign promise on top of ethics violations. Clear candidate for recall. Tim is not in this alone. There needs to at least be a written recall request to the county. We can pull together and accomplish that. It would be one thing if Herbold communicated a plan to West Seattle (“here’s how we can reallocate police funds and keep our community safe”) but she has not. Failure. Must recall.

  • wseaturtle August 18, 2020 (5:57 pm)

    Well I don’t know how I got here tonight.I’ve gota a felling that something aint right.

    • Sarah August 18, 2020 (8:55 pm)

      Herbold has lost my support and I was happy to take all of two minutes to sign the online petition .  I want to send her a clear message that I do not appove of the recent actions. No doubt she is following the numbers on the petition as well as this post.
      Yes, we need a better option in 2023. 

  • JasoninWS August 18, 2020 (6:42 pm)

    Herbold is a mixed bag and echo the disappointment of many to see her change course so quickly and recklessly on SPD support. But let’s  hear more about the Sawant recall that was filed. If she can be removed and we get some sane replacement, can then focus on the at-large positions up in 2021.

  • Mj August 18, 2020 (6:50 pm)

    While the online petition is not a legal process it does show a lot of frustrated constituents. 

    As a person who has spoken in front of the Council pointing out the technically correct decision on an issue I am an expert in to make that did not align with their position I was totally dismissed. The City’s own data supported my position yet they ignored it

    The same dismissal of SPD involvement shows the need for new leadership.  

  • David August 18, 2020 (7:12 pm)

    I have written multiple emails to Lisa Herbold and have never heard back.  My emails were critical of her failure to keep her campaign promises made in Oct 2019, so this is one more data point to what we are seeing on this thread:  she only replies to those who she agrees with and ignores the rest of her constituents. 

  • HarborAve August 18, 2020 (7:14 pm)

    I wrote Lisa Herbold, City Council, the Mayor and Chief Best regarding a unproked threat made against my family and my pet from a person living in an RV who was on drugs.  Only person I heard back from was Chief Best who thankfully had SW Precinct follow up on the initial police report.  Still haven’t heard from any others.  Its too bad that public safety is a concern of Lisa Herbold.  I actually voted for her…..fooled me once. 

  • John Collins August 18, 2020 (7:14 pm)

    You people voted for her. It’s that simple….  

    • mok4315 August 18, 2020 (11:31 pm)

      Over 40% of us did not…

  • Joseph August 18, 2020 (7:17 pm)

    Rather than just a recall, I would like to see the City Council members salaries defunded, their SPD escorts and protection taken away, their City Hall offices given to other City employees, and their electronic key cards taken away. Since they all hate SPD so much, they can pay for their own armed security. They can work from home and do not need taxpayer-funded offices. They wouldn’t need key cards to access City Hall and couldn’t let protesters inside after hours if they had no offices there. 

    • WSB August 18, 2020 (9:12 pm)

      One datapoint, the City Council does not have ‘escorts.’ The SW Precinct captain affirmed that in Q&A at tonight’s Crime Prevention Council meeting.

    • West Seattle Dad August 19, 2020 (10:43 am)

      Best things I’ve read. DEFUND SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL! 

  • TJ August 18, 2020 (8:03 pm)

    I didn’t vote for Herbold, don’t like her, and honestly don’t think she is equipped to be a politician in a big city. But, I think this whole thing is comical. She got voted in. That’s the way it is. I commented on numerous stories on here before and right after the election last year that people need to understand who and what they were voting for. “Grassroots” sounds cool, but perhaps thats not what is best in a city. She has proven to not be able to stand up to the rest of the council mob and make decisions for herself. Seattle is one of 5 or 6 super liberal cities nationally where this defund the police movement has taken hold, and there is no way anyone in any of these councils will raise a opposing voice. She is one. Zero backbone. Well, time to deal with the results of voting Herbold in. If you voted for her then you have absolutely no place for regret and to try to change it. This city stinks now, and the politics are driving that. I am 48 and just made an offer on a house in Scottsdale Arizona. I won’t be able to leave for a year, and while I own my house here outright I have no desire to ever come back even though I was born and raised here in West Seattle. 

    • Lagartija Nick August 19, 2020 (9:29 am)

      Great, then you can cheat on your taxes and freeload off the good people of Scottsdale then. 

  • KBear August 18, 2020 (8:36 pm)

    Well, Council Member Herbold has little to fear from folks who have no understanding of how city government works, how a recall works, or even how to spell “council” correctly. I’m frustrated that Herbold participated in a vote that forced out our first Black female police chief. That’s not a good look for Seattle. Didn’t care for the head tax debacle either, after they watered the tax down and left it at just enough to upset businesses but not enough to do any good.  But I can’t think of anything Lisa’s done that rises to the level of criminality required for a recall. You’re free to not vote for her in the election. (You do vote in elections, don’t you?) But recalls are for very special situations. This is just a politician with whom you disagree. 

  • SK August 18, 2020 (9:22 pm)

    I emailed a request to talk to Lisa about defunding the police issue and I was awarded a phone interview After the council’s vote. Nonetheless, I asked her about her change in agenda from October 2019 to where we are now. She did not mention the protests or Black Lives Matter, but said she had been doing a lot of researching and reading and now felt differently about a large and expensive police force. She also mentioned  the expense of overtime costs. I shared my views with her of how many of my friends and neighbors do not feel safe as it is and do not feel defunding or reducing the police will make us safer. She was courteous, but our views do not align anymore — i signed the petition!

    • ACG August 18, 2020 (10:49 pm)

      That’s interesting. She campaigned on increasing the police force. People who agreed with that platform voted for her to represent them and champion those ideas. She won the election as a result of those votes. She then changes her mind. That’s fine, people can learn new things. Problem is, the people elected her based on her stated principles during the campaign. She was elected to represent the people and to work for those ideals she told voters she would work towards. She can change her mind personally, but her job is to represent those people who voted for her based on the platform of her campaign. She is no longer representing those who voted for her based on those stated campaign ideals.     Bait and Switch. Isn’t that illegal in other areas of business and advertisements?  LOL. 

    • Chuck August 18, 2020 (11:45 pm)

      Yours was an important conversation SK and I thank you for your efforts and recap. What a fraud she is! Reading and researching my arse. While this petition may not have any legal merit, the flame is lit and Lisa knows her seat is hot. The sooner this turns into a legit effort, the better. The silent majority is a real thing but we’re not gonna be pushed around and stay quiet much longer. I cannot wait until this so called “leader” is gone.

  • Bill August 18, 2020 (9:54 pm)

    I despise Herbold and believe she does a great disservice to West Seattle.  That being said she was duly elected having attracted a significant majority of votes cast.  That is the nature of the beast.  The multiple failures of her leadership will hopefully engender a stronger opponent who actually understands both the issues and the logistics of campaigning.  Until then we are left with articulating our opposition in whatever forums are available.  

    • Elton August 18, 2020 (11:05 pm)

      +100 to thisI’m not a big Herbold fan, but calling her recent behavior as malfeasance worthy of a recall is a bit of an exaggeration.

  • Bill August 18, 2020 (10:00 pm)

    Herbold’s weekly newsletter is the most thoughtful, well-informed, data driven communication I’ve seen from any elected politician. Highly recommend. 

  • Business owner August 18, 2020 (10:31 pm)

    TLDR:  Just want to “second” Tim… aka, support… as for the rest, I, “we” see it, but many don’t understand that a lot of us businesses are incredibly liberal, yet super conservative when it comes to business.  I have a drug addict/drunk, come into my business daily demanding free coffee (sans wearing the mask that we all have to wear or get called in to the health department)… with respect, I demand payment (to cover the cost)… basically just reminding him that I am a business and not a free for all.  But- when saying this in front of customers (who support the protests etc., mind you, he is white and in need of detox/social services)… everyone throws a couple dollars at me… to support him (whilst retreating heavily due to him being unmasked, spitting demands of coffee/money etc.). NOT knowing that I have a relationship with this guy… he KNOWS that I give him a deal, hook him up… I make sure he PAYS, just a bit.  Because that is what creates accountability… he thought he could get stuff for free by coming in and demanding it… he was banking on customers just throwing money down.  Once he knew that I will give him what he asks; respectfully, if he pays for the product… guess what? He comes in with cash, gets his coffee with a severe discount… but we ARE NOT perpetuating a behavior that is extremely the norm and almost judged by those who don’t see what we have to deal with daily.  Times are tough… but we, as small businesses, are the ones that “hook up those in need”, but have no patience for those that USE us.  TIM- I got you- I think you know me (former employee taking down your front lawn:)… got your back.  Not even interested in those that just don’t “get” it.  West Seattle: know that the small businesses are the lifeline… we make West Seattle cool.  We support, we donate, give to every school auction… give, give, give… SO- out of curiosity, anyone out there willing to, maybe, with their expertise, help us community folk to keep West Seattle… well.  West Seattle. 🍸😆😘🤬.Actually- Tim- Just subscribing to you (and I never allow my kid to “like” or subscribe” to anything).Thanks for your contribution and support for the bridge coalition… the local group that is working for the west seattle constitutes… maybe I want free shoes… but I think you would be an amazing candidate in the city council.  

    • tsurly August 19, 2020 (11:24 am)

      No doubt that small businesses are PART what make our small community cool, but your interests do not trump those of everyone else that makes up this community. Lots of people in this community (including myself) donate time, money etc. to a multitude of causes; it is not exclusive to small businesses. I took a voluntary 30% pay cut a few months back to prevent four of my employees from having to take hour reductions/furlough when some of their work was paused or cancelled.  Quit playing the victim, times are tough for everyone, not just small businesses. 

  • onion August 18, 2020 (10:36 pm)

    That Herbold won the last election is irrelevant. Citizens of this district are unhappy and pissed off. Herbold and almost the entire council got swept up in the vocal protests and lost common sense and the right to legislate and lead. Their failures will cost the city dearly. Recall.

  • Small business owner#3 August 19, 2020 (8:01 am)

    Tim, I support you as well and how people are reacting to this is hilarious!  All the Herbold supporters up in arms about how you don’t understand government and are unwilling to except the last election.  It’s called political theater people!!!  It’s about doing something to catch attention for an issue. You stated that it was to voice displeasure and you way over achieved that goal. I’ll be by soon for some new shoes!

  • WestofHolden August 19, 2020 (8:35 am)

    I think the recall petition is kind of silly and not really appropriate for the circumstance, however, I understand it and have even considered signing it. I, like others,wrote and called the council member about my concerns with defunding the police without an analysis, plan, or dialogue with the broader community and received no reply.  There have been zero attempts by the council member to reach out to constituents on this very consequential decision and it does seem antithetical to what she ran on.  To be clear I support police reform and I don’t want people of color to be treated differently. I want effective, unbiased interventions to crime and I want safety for people for businesses for homes, but to do it without any plan, dialogue, or even conversation with the police, broader community and activist community is absolutely ridiculous and unacceptable. 

  • SouthofHolden August 19, 2020 (8:36 am)

    I think the recall petition is kind of silly and not really appropriate for the circumstance, however, I understand it and have even considered signing it. I, like others,wrote and called the council member about my concerns with defunding the police without an analysis, plan, or dialogue with the broader community and received no reply.  There have been zero attempts by the council member to reach out to constituents on this very consequential decision and it does seem antithetical to what she ran on.  To be clear I support police reform and I don’t want people of color to be treated differently. I want effective, unbiased interventions to crime and I want safety for people for businesses for homes, but to do it without any plan, dialogue, or even conversation with the police, broader community and activist community is absolutely ridiculous and unacceptable. 

  • LauraPalmer August 19, 2020 (1:37 pm)

    Lisa Herbold is doing a great job, as is the City Council. I’m so appreciative to live in a community with a representative like Ms. Herbold and in a city with a council that stands up for what is right rather than talking out of both sides of their mouth to make up for their inaction (see Mayor Durkan). Now please go all the way in creating and enforcing a plan to abolish SPD and REPLACE them with a new agency that protects and serves ALL of this city’s residents. 

    • KM August 19, 2020 (4:16 pm)

      Amen!

    • Huh August 20, 2020 (10:36 am)

      “Talking out of both sides of their mouth” is the very basis of the petition. She was for the police before the election, and now she’s against the police. It is the definition of both sides of their mouth. I’m not sure how that isn’t clear.

  • JPM August 19, 2020 (5:55 pm)

    Lisa Herbold violated the city’s ethics code and paid a settlement as documented by court records.  Her recent actions are the exact opposite of her campaign promises. This is not the representative I want for my district.  Therefore, I fully support  a recall effort.

  • GatewoodHillMan August 19, 2020 (9:20 pm)

    I fully support the Herbold recall petition and intend to sign it.  For all of the reasons folks above have mentioned.  Hopefully this gets her attention.  But here’s the two-edged problem.  If the petition succeeds and she is recalled, who takes her place??   Or does the Council seat go vacant until the next election?    Without a known replacement we’re sort of Ready, Shoot, Aim.If it fails, then she is vindicated and will proceed as if she had complete support and nothing had happened.I do think a motion should be made to defund the City Council.  That sends a message similar to the one they sent Carmen Best.  We don’t value you so we’re cutting your salary.  Anyone who has ever worked in corporate America knows the subtext when your pay is cut…..we don’t want to terminate you outright but would really like it if you just sort of disappeared.Further, the Council’s action is very “Trump-ian” as one writer noted above.  I don’t like you and you’re not toeing my line so take a hike.  How many cabinet members has he gone through?  So defund the City Council, terminate them all, then re-instate the Council with at large members rather than by individual district.  The city actually ran better when each Council member had more broad based support and a more city-wide perspective.

    • WSB August 19, 2020 (9:24 pm)

      “The City Charter gives the City Council 20 calendar days to fill a vacant Council position.”

  • Maggie August 19, 2020 (10:11 pm)

    I support GATEWOODHILLMAN ‘s post (idea also mentioned by others) about defunding the entire council.   Wouldn’t know where to begin, but would love to see this happen.  Defund them and send them back to their alternative universe.  However, if this is not feasible, let’s at least recall Lisa Herbold.  

  • anonyme August 20, 2020 (6:46 am)

    Voters deserve to be heard, and not just at election time.  Just like candidates need to do their jobs for the full term, and not just during the campaign.  I liken this situation to the recent ruling on ‘faithless electors’ in the Electoral College.  When an elected official takes actions that are the polar opposite of a campaign promise, it should be considered ‘faithless’.  It’s ridiculous to accept that someone who has so betrayed her constituents should be allowed to remain in the job for 3 more years.  If there are no consequences other than the possibility of not being re-elected, then we will continue to elect brazen liars.

  • Voter Done With Lisa August 20, 2020 (11:18 am)

    Who will be willing to start the legal process as outlined at the beginning of this article to recall Lisa Herbold ?  I will gladly sign the legitimate petition that will legally start the process to remove this imposter.  Perhaps some of the aforementioned businesses would be willing to have petitions available for people to come by and sign.  Some of us might end up spending some money at those businesses while there.  Let’s get the recall party started !

  • KF Arbor Heights August 20, 2020 (12:13 pm)

    I cannot believe that the 11% of the voters that elected this lady would do so now were they to have known that she would be part of the group responsible for eliminating the West Seattle Police Precinct station.How many minutes, hours will it now take for ANY officer to respond to our area from Beacon Hill?

    • WSB August 20, 2020 (3:18 pm)

      The Southwest Precinct is NOT going away.

  • smik August 20, 2020 (1:28 pm)

    I have received her emailed letter for a while now and have written to
    her on several occasions and never get any kind of reply.
    City council has known there was a problem with the bridge for years,
    and has done nothing to fix the problem.
    When the bridge closed there should have been an immediate plan that
    went into effect.
    The people of West Seattle should have been told there was a problem
    that could get worse.
    What would have happened if the bridge had collapsed? 

  • Avory August 20, 2020 (2:24 pm)

    When I first started reading the replies, I saw that many folks, myself included, are outraged by Lisa Herbold not following through on her campaign promises.  As I read on, I realize that her handling (or lack thereof) of the bridge failure, before and after it was closed,  is also ground for her recall.   It is bitter irony that Lisa Herbold is the Chair of the Public Safety and Human Services committee. Let’s recall Lisa Herbold.

  • #triathlete August 24, 2020 (2:42 pm)

    Lisa shot down my idea of sponsoring a twice daily west seattle triathlon as the only realistic means to get residents off of the island. (Bike to elliott bay, swim across, run to your office and then repeat in reverse at night). She failed to recognize the health benefits to our stranded community along with meeting SDOTs goal of people ‘walking’ as an acceptable replacement for a car. 

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