Ferguson and Reichert waste no time launching general election campaigns
The general election campaign is underway in Washington. Barring a massive shift in late votes, Democrat Bob Ferguson and Republican Dave Reichert will be the finalists from which the state’s voters will pick a new governor this fall.
Ferguson immediately launched his sprint to the November vote, holding a press conference Wednesday to criticize Reichert and promote his own goals for public safety, housing, reproductive health care and education. Ferguson tried to tie the former congressman to Donald Trump and said Reichert would pull the state backward.
Reichert said his finish in the primary signals that Washington voters are ready for a change. He said people feel less safe and more burdened with cost of living. He called Ferguson “status quo” and said a different approach will be needed to get the state “on track.”
Semi Bird, the Republican candidate who secured the party’s endorsement over Reichert, said he does not plan to endorse Reichert this fall. Bird was eliminated in Tuesday’s primary, having collected about nine percent of the votes cast.
An update Wednesday evening showed Ferguson with 45 percent of primary votes. Reichert had 28 percent.
Bedford’s next stop: the classroom
Spokane school board member Melissa Bedford is stepping down to take on a new role in education.
When Bedford took office in 2021, she was teaching at Eastern Washington University. Most recently, she has served as executive director of the Spark Central creative organization.
Now, she’s moving to Seattle to become a fourth-grade teacher.
“I’m very excited to get back to my roots and kind of the full circle moment,” Bedford told SPR News. “I started as a classroom teacher, did my doctorate, moved to Spokane to be an assistant professor at Eastern Washington University, then became the executive director of a non-profit, elected to the school board and now I’m going back to the classroom.”
Bedford’s resignation takes effect August 14. The school board will have 90 days to name her replacement. That person will stand for election in 2025 for the right to remain on the board.
Insurance fraud ringleader pleads guilty
A man accused of leading a massive insurance fraud scheme in Spokane has pleaded guilty to several charges.
The U.S. Attorney’s office said William Mize staged a variety of vehicle and boat accidents so he could file phony claims with insurance companies and collect millions of dollars.
Mize was indicted and appeared in federal court in 2019. He was released until his trial, but fled and lived as a fugitive for four years. U.S. Marshals arrested him last November in Jacksonville, Florida. He’s been in custody in Spokane since then.
Authorities say Mize pleaded guilty to conspiracy, tax fraud and failing to appear at court hearings. His sentencing has been scheduled for November 6.
Several others who have been involved with Mize over the years have been in legal trouble. The most prominent was former developer, architect and historic preservationist Ron Wells, who passed away last February.
Spokane Parks manage water use during dry spell
Spokane is currently in a Level Two water conservation mode. At that level, water users – including city parks – should limit watering their lawns to no more than two days per week, between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 10:00 a.m.
Many city parks are on fully automated watering systems, so changing water use to meet seasonal restrictions is an easy matter.
But a dozen manual watering systems are still in place. Parks communications manager Fianna Dickson says completing the watering by 10:00 a.m. with the staff available is a challenge.
“And when we’re at Level Two, we just hone back or watering just a little bit more,” Dickson told SPR News. “We focus on some of those higher-use areas, to provide that community benefit that we know healthy green spaces provide, and we reduce watering in areas that don't see as much of that high use.”
In some cases, such as lesser-used areas of Manito Park, some turf has been removed, and native plants and grass that require less water have been put in.
The parks department manages 4,000 acres of land, accounting for about 3.5 percent of the city's water usage.
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Reporting was contributed by Brandon Hollingsworth, Doug Nadvornick and Steve Jackson.