WSBA Board approves two DEI‑council nominees for at‑large governor ballot

The Washington State Bar Association Board of Governors approved placing two candidates forwarded by the association’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Council on the at‑large governor ballot, declining to add additional nominees.

Executive Director Navetta told the board that the bylaws require the executive director to notify the board when the DEI Council forwards fewer than three candidates: "The bylaws state that, should the DEI council forward less than 3 candidates, the executive director shall notify the board of governors, which may, at its option, select additional qualifying candidates on its own or place only those candidates forwarded by the council." Because the DEI Council forwarded only two nominees, Navetta said the board needed to decide whether to add candidates or proceed with the council’s two.

The board’s discussion centered on whether to reopen or expand the candidate pool, confidence in the council’s vetting, and practical concerns such as election cost and process timing. Governor Jordan Couch said he trusted the council’s work and moved to approve the two nominees: "I think we can trust the council to have done their work and done it well," and "So I would move to approve the candidates as proposed by the council." The motion was seconded (secondary speaker not specified in the record) and carried by roll call with one abstention; the recording identifies Chris Bang as the member who abstained.

Several governors urged deference to the volunteer council’s vetting. Governor Tom Ahern said he had dissented at the council level but accepted the committee’s recommendation after discussion about whether the candidate paperwork met expectations and whether aspects of an applicant’s marginalized-person status were appropriately documented. Governor Emily Arneson and others questioned the smaller applicant pool compared with prior cycles; Alex Stevens, a member of the DEI Council, explained the window for applications was short and an incumbent had recently been appointed, reducing resubmissions.

Governor Vang said he expected to recuse from any vote and welcomed broader member participation in the election: "I think I'm probably recused from any vote here, but I do wanna say that I welcome more participation if that is the will of the folks here." Brent Williams (section representative) urged the board not to appear to be "cherry‑picking" candidates and recommended letting members decide among those who applied. Past President Clark noted a practical consideration: moving forward with two candidates would avoid the additional expense of a runoff election.

No direction was given to reopen the application period; one board member suggested having a volunteer follow up after the election to ask prior applicants why they did not resubmit. The formal action recorded in the meeting minutes and by roll call was approval of the two candidates forwarded by the DEI Council for inclusion on the at‑large governor ballot. The board closed the item by offering the candidates well wishes.