Second Legislative District Democrats say they endorse Calvin Goings – not Pat McCarthy – for Pierce County executive.

In a statement released late Tuesday, the group announced its endorsement and repudiated claims it had ever endorsed McCarthy. Both Goings, a county councilman, and McCarthy, the county auditor, are running for executive as Democrats in November.

The announcement contradicts a notice on McCarthy’s web site that claims the Democratic group endorsed her. According to the group, members in January unanimously recommended both Goings and McCarthy appear on the November ballot under the county’s new ranked choice voting system. However, they also unanimously picked Goings as their top choice but advised voters to list McCarthy second on their ranked choice voting ballot.

Chairman Bob Chamberlain says McCarthy has mischaracterized that action as an endorsement of her. The group says it wrote McCarthy and asked her to stop claiming the endorsement. And on Monday it withdrew its positive recommendation.

The news follows last week’s announcement that McCarthy had won the endorsement of the Master Builder’s Association. The Second District Democrats cited the MBA’s position on “planning for a sustainable future” as a contributing factor in its decision to withdraw its recommendation of McCarthy.

Below is the press release issued by the Second Legislative District Democrats.

[More:]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


Second Legislative District Democrats unanimously endorse Calvin Goings

At their meeting in Graham Monday, June 16 the Second Legislative District Democrats unanimously endorsed Calvin Goings as their sole recommendation for Pierce County Executive. The move was seen by the membership as a repudiation of claims that the Democrats had endorsed Auditor Pat McCarthy and a removal of ambiguities that had allowed her campaign to claim otherwise. In January, the members unanimously recommended that the Pierce County Democrats allow both Pat McCarthy and Calvin Goings to campaign as Democrats and be listed as Democrats on the ballot. The members at that time, after talking with both candidates, unanimously expressed a strong preference for Goings and recommended that, in this fall’s Ranked Choice Voting ballot, voters be advised to vote for Goings as first choice and McCarthy second in the Ranked Choice voting contest.

Unfortunately, says Bob Chamberlain, chair of the Second Legislataive District Democrats, the January resolution has been mischaracterized as an endorsement of Auditor McCarthy, a characterization rejected by those who voted for the original resolution. In April many persons received a widely-disseminated e-mail advertising that the Second LD Democrats had endorsed her. Several individual members complained and the Legislative District chair wrote to the Auditor asking her to assure that the mischaracterization would no longer appear in her advertising.

Her website, at least through June 17, presents the exaggerated claim[*] that the Second Legislative District Democrats has endorsed McCarthy.

The point was made more urgent when she announced her endorsement by the Master Builders’ Association. That organization opposes plans that promote planning for a sustainable future, in the opinion of those who took part in discussing the endorsement, requiring a direct confrontation of the false impression.

Therefore, on June 16, the Second Legislative District Democrats in their regular monthly meeting unanimously gave sole endorsement to Calvin Goings, removed positive recommendation from the candidacy of Pat McCarthy, and directed the Chair to prepare and broadly release this information.

[*]From her website, www.patmccarthy2008.org, link “In the News,” link “Staff Blog”:

2nd District Democrats endorse McCarthy

POSTED APRIL 27, 2008 at 10:05 pm

The 2nd Legislative District endorsed Pat’s run for County Executive citing her longstanding record of supporting Democratic causes. Pat is a lifelong Democrat. As a member of the 27th District Democrats, Pierce County Democrats, Democratic Women’s Luncheon Club and Washington State Democratic Party, Pat champions Democratic ideals, including building a fair and sustainable workplace, civil and women’s rights, education for all, and the welfare of our families.