Municipal League Rates 41st Legislative District, County Judge and Sheriff Candidates

The Municipal League of King County has released its ratings and questionnaires of candidates for the legislative, judicial and sheriff races.

Candidates in the 41st legislative district, which covers Mercer Island, ranged from "Good" to "Very Good," according to the Municipal League. King County Sheriff's candidate Steve Strachan, who was the interim appointment when Sheriff Sue Rahr left her position, was rated "Outstanding," and his challenger, Mercer Island resident John Urquhart, was rated "Good."

The only Mercer Islander to earn an "Outstanding" rating was Gary Ernsdorff, a Senior Prosecuting Attorney for the King County Prosecutor's Office. He is running for an open seat on the King County Superior Court (Position 46) and faces Seattle lawyer Judith H. Ramseyer — a former law clerk in the U.S. 9th District — who also earned an "Outstanding" rating. The race is one of five that will be determined this August and November.

Under state law, the Aug. 7 Primary Election will whittle each local, state and federal race down to the top-two candidates, and voters will elect the winner in the Nov. 6 General Election.

According to the nonpartisan Municipal League, the Candidate Evaluation Ratings attempt to answer the question: How well could a candidate do the job? The ratings do not consider a candidate’s political affiliations or standing on specific issues and instead, they assesses a candidate’s potential to be effective in office, according to the organization.

The process is similar to a job interview – with a diverse group of citizens serving as hiring managers. The result has been called a “Better Business Bureau” for voters.

Municipal League volunteers reviewed candidate questionnaires, studied the public record, spoke with references, and conducted interviews with candidates. Committee members then rated each candidate on four criteria: involvement, character, effectiveness and knowledge, according to the league's press release.

The full list of candidate evaluation ratings and the candidates' completed questionnaires are posted on the League’s website at www.munileagueratings.org.

Municipal League Ratings

Legislative District 41

Washington State House of Representatives Position 1

To download the candidate questionnaires, go to the 2012 Washington State Legislature – Candidate Ratings website.

To download questionnaires, go to the 2012 King County Sheriff – Candidate Ratings website.

To see more candidates in the five King County Superior Court Judge races and download questionnaires, go to the 2012 King County Judicial – Candidate Ratings website.