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Resident asks council to restore election for county clerk after records dispute
Summary
A resident told the council the Pierce County Clerk has been appointed rather than elected and urged the council to urge the executive to replace the clerk following a personal records dispute.
A resident raised concerns at the council’s Jan. 7 community forum about the method of selecting the Pierce County Clerk and asked the council to press the executive to remove and replace the current clerk.
The speaker said the Pierce County Clerk’s office has been an appointed post since 2021 and argued that—under the Washington State Constitution—a county clerk should be elected to a four-year term. The commenter alleged the current clerk refused to file a probate decree and that attempts to secure an explanation or remedy through the clerk’s office had failed. The speaker said that, in her view, the appointment process denies voters a voice and requested that the council consider a resolution or urge the new executive to replace the clerk and restore a publicly accountable process.
Council staff noted the comment for follow-up; no council action or code change was taken at the meeting. The comment highlighted differences between appointment and election processes and asked for transparency and responsiveness in public-records handling.
