The freeholder candidates
Thirty-two candidates are competing for 15 freeholder seats in the May 20 election. If voters approve the commission, those freeholders will draft a new charter governing the structure of Bellevue government.
Here are brief profiles of the candidates for all 15 positions, along with a summary of their priorities and their position on whether a charter commission should be formed.
Position 1
Don MacKenzie, 73, Lake Hills resident, retired Boeing engineer.
Experience: 41 years in engineering profession; Bellevue city councilman, 1984-1991.
Priorities: work with other freeholders to explore all varieties of governance to find the best for Bellevue's future.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Bellevue Charter Now.
Ron Smith, 37, Enatai resident, owner of real-estate investment and management company.
Experience: Bellevue city councilman, 1994-2000; Bellevue mayor, 1996-1997.
Priorities: fiscal accountability and maintaining public safety.
Position: will vote "no" on charter commission.
Position 2
Wayne D. Tanaka, 53, Forest Glen resident, attorney specializing in municipal law.
Experience: member, Bellevue School Board, 1989-2001; attorney to Snohomish County Freeholders drafting county charter; board member, Washington State Association of Municipal Attorneys.
Priorities: objectively study current form of government to determine what changes could be beneficial.
Position: undecided about charter commission.
Position 3
Joshua Schaer, 24, Eastgate resident, criminal-defense appellate attorney.
Experience: precinct captain, Democratic Party, 1996 to present; member of King County Metro Transit Eastside Sounding Board, 2000.
Priorities: research efficient, cost-effective improvements to government, ensure public involvement in process. Supports directly elected mayor, wants to study geographic districts for council members.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Bellevue Charter Now.
Ken Seal, 74, Lake Hills resident, retired Boeing engineer.
Experience: former naval aviator; active in Lake Hills Community Club; member, East Bellevue Community Council, 1993 to present.
Priorities: council members elected by geographic districts, part-time mayor directly elected, right of initiative and recall, and mayoral assistant and department heads answering directly to council.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission.
Position 4
Claudia Balducci, 35, Lake Hills resident, human-resources manager for King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention (King County jail system).
Experience: attorney; co-chairwoman of 2001 campaign to abolish community councils in Bellevue.
Priorities: propose a form of government that provides fair representation to all, preserves high quality of life and public services, accountability to voters, efficiency and cost control.
Position: will vote "no" on charter commission.
Stacie LeBlanc Anderson, 43, Surrey Downs resident, retail-sales associate.
Experience: vice president of Surrey Downs Community Club, 2002 to present; active in local arts community.
Priorities: mayor elected directly by residents, City Council members elected by geographic districts.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission.
Position 5
Bill Guenzler, 57, south Bellevue resident, manager of East King County transportation projects for Sound Transit.
Experience: head of Bellevue's Transportation Department, 1986-1997.
Priorities: City Council positions should be part time, council elections should be nonpartisan, a professional city manager should run day-to-day operations. Opposed to City Council elections by geographic district.
Position: will vote "no" on charter commission.
Jim Radcliffe, 71, Northtowne resident, retired Boeing commercial-airplane manager for sales operations.
Experience: Mercer Island City Council 1972-1975; past member, Mercer Island School District Fiscal Committee; past member, Mercer Island Roads and Trails Board.
Priorities: City Council elections by geographic district are essential. Open to any structure for city government.
Position: will vote "yes" for charter commission; affiliated with Bellevue Charter Now.
Position 6
Bruce William Young: withdrew candidacy.
Bill Linton, 45, Northtowne resident, lawyer.
Experience: Interstate 405 Citizen Advisory Committee, 2001-2002; member, King County Bar Association's judicial-evaluation committee, 1997-1998; board member, Downtown Bellevue YMCA, 2002-present.
Priorities: promote responsive, inclusive leadership and maintain city's quality of government. Keep an open mind to different possibilities. Opposes City Council elections by district. Supports city-manager system with largely symbolic mayoral position.
Position: will vote "no" on charter commission.
Position 7
David W. Marks, 43, West Lake Sammamish resident, business lawyer.
Experience: president, West Lake Sammamish Association, 1994-1998; co-chairman of Neighborhood Network North, 1998-2000.
Priorities: create a charter to increase voter participation, make City Council and other high-ranking officials more accountable, and strengthen Bellevue's voice in state and regional affairs. Supports a combination of geographic districts and at-large seats for City Council.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission.
Kim B. Richards, 54, Woodridge resident, teaches fourth grade at private Eton School in Bellevue.
Experience: served on Washington Education Association's political-action committee board; campaign activist in Republican Rod Chandler's campaign for Congress, 1983; and worked on various Bellevue School District levy campaigns.
Priorities: examine means of voting for City Council and look for ways to better represent people. Investigate possible changes to mayoral position to foster better government.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement's "Options Yes" campaign.
Steve Brown, 48, Lake Hills resident, owner of Pacific Outdoor Marketing, selling marine and boating-related products.
Experience: PTA co-president at Phantom Lake Elementary, 2002-current; past president of national trade organization for marine-goods sales contractors, 2000-2002.
Priorities: listen and learn from the voters; work to maintain effective, efficient, responsible city government.
Position: undecided about a charter commission.
Position 8
Bob Steed, 47, Somerset resident, Boeing project manager/engineer.
Experience: Bellevue Planning Commission, 1994-current; chairman and vice chairman of Bellevue Public Schools fiscal committee, 1993 to present; Somerset Community Association former president and vice president, 1997-2000.
Priorities: create a charter that widens citizen participation, limit alienation felt by residents, specify the city's services and organization.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission.
Jeannie M. Vahlsing, 55, Spiritridge resident, physical-education teacher, grades K-8.
Experience: president of Spiritridge Homeowners Association, 2002-present.
Priorities: wants to explore forms of nonpartisan elections that give the best representation for residents. Supports City Council elections by geographic district and direct election of mayor.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Bellevue Charter Now.
Lael Braymer, 72, Woodridge resident, retired teacher's aide in Bellevue School District.
Experience: board member, League of Women Voters of Washington, 1980s; secretary, League of Women Voters of Washington Education Fund, 1997 to present.
Priorities: city needs a conversation about all aspects of city-government organization and election systems to encourage greater citizen participation and representation. Supports direct election of mayor.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement's "Options Yes" campaign.
Zee Straight-Weiss, 60, Wilburton resident, retired management consultant for Boeing.
Experience: Bellevue city transportation commission, 1996-current; past president of Newport Hills Community Club, 1993-2000; served on city citizen advisory committees for downtown development and several major transportation projects.
Priorities: charter commission must draft "problem statement" defining its work and develop work plan. Focus on improving government, not making change for its own sake.
Position: undecided about a charter commission.
Position 9
Jane Archer, 58, Northeast Bellevue resident, executive assistant at Pro Sports Club.
Experience: president of school PTAs in Alaska, 1980s; Issaquah Parks Board, 1998-2001; Bellevue Parks and Community Services Board, 2001 to present; West Lake Hills Citizens Advisory Committee, 2002.
Priorities: be impartial and open-minded. Work to merge best of current system with ideas that emerge to improve it. Supports citywide election of City Council members, current method of choosing mayor from among City Council.
Position: will vote "no" on charter commission.
Joseph H. Rosmann, 58, Surrey Downs resident; chief privacy officer for PrivaComp, a health-information-services company.
Experience: campaign organizer for late Sen. Adlai Stevenson, 1972; director of Ronald Reagan presidential campaign in region of Illinois, 1980; ran Evanston, Ill., City Council member campaign, 1996; board member, Surrey Downs Community Club; consultant on service and regulatory issues for health-care industry nationwide.
Priorities: Create a government where City Council members actively communicate with neighborhood constituencies. Supports City Council members elected by geographic districts, and directly elected mayor.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; member of Bellevue Charter Now.
Paula Fraser, 59, Northeast Bellevue resident, fifth-grade teacher at Stevenson Elementary School in Crossroads.
Experience: community representative, King County Journal editorial board, 2000-2001; educational representative, Public Legal Education Committee of Washington State Bar Association, 2000 to present; community representative, Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee for Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, 2002 to present; participant, two conferences on democratic citizenship education sponsored by Communitarian Network and the White House, 1995-1996.
Priorities: enhance citizen participation and further efficient, accountable government.
Position: will vote "yes" on charter commission; affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement's "Options Yes" campaign.
Scott Wallace: withdrew candidacy.
Position 10
Jan Benson, 67, Lake Hills neighborhood, retired accountant.
Experience: co-chairwoman of Neighborhood Network North, 2000-present; active on issues surrounding redevelopment of Lake Hills Shopping Center Priorities: to work respectfully with other freeholders to establish a government suited to the needs of a diversified city. Supports election of City Council members by geographic district, direct election of mayor.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission; affiliated with Bellevue Charter Now Sheldon Arakaki, 41, Overlake resident, e-commerce analyst for Univar USAExperience: board member, Lake Washington Chapter of the Japanese American Citizens League, 2002-present; board member, Washington Literacy, 1992 to present.
Priorities: make sure the commission considers all reasonable options for structure of city government and the voting system used to elect people. Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission; affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement’s “Options Yes” campaign.
Position 11
John Chelminiak, 50, Vuecrest resident, chief of staff for Snohomish County Council Experience: chief of staff for two county councils (King and Snohomish), member of Bellevue Planning Commission, 2002 to present; board of directors, O’Dea High School, 2000 to present; former reporter and manager at the KIRO-AM (710) radio station.
Priorities: ensure new form of government is the most efficient and effective, responsive to all citizens, accountable to all neighborhoods, and committed to low taxes and low overhead. Supports citywide election of City Council members.
Position: will vote “no” on charter commission.
John Van Duzor, 53, Lake Hills resident, sales representative for small sporting-goods manufacturers Experience: negotiating skills (based on job experience).
Priorities: take a close look at how the city works, elect City Council members by geographic district, direct election of mayor.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission.
Sarah Chandler, 57, Bridle Trails resident, former public-information officer for government and nonprofit agencies.
Experience: national board member, Common Cause, 1984-1990, 1992-1995; member, Governor’s Committee on Ethics and Campaign Practices, 1993-1994; member, Bellevue Planning Commission, 1985-1993; member, Bellevue Critical Areas Citizen Advisory Committee, 2002-2003.
Priorities: voter confidence in an electoral process that reflects the will of the majority and voices of all constituents, a system attracting good candidates to public service, creating an effective, responsive government.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission, affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement’s “Options Yes” campaign.
Position 12
Gary Weber, 48, Eastgate/Cougar Ridge resident, leasing manager for Simon Property Group Experience: government-relations director, Washington chapter of International Council of Shopping Centers.
Priorities: learn what voters like and dislike, pick government structure reflecting city’s goals, finish charter for review before November. Supports citywide election of City Council members. Supports current council/manager structure, rather than directly elected mayor.
Position: will vote “no” on charter commission
John Meredith, 60, Bridle Trails resident, Boeing industrial engineer
Experience: Republican precinct committeeman, Chelan County, 1976; council representative, Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, 1999-2003; church council member, University Congregational Church of Christ, 2002 to present.
Priorities: create government responsive to citizens and election process open to diverse population. Supports voters directly electing mayor.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission.
Position 13
Harvey Z. Kriloff, 61, Wilburton/Kelsey Creek resident, Boeing systems architect and technologist.
Experience: candidate for Bellevue School Board, 1980; Democratic candidate for 48th District State House of Representatives, 1996; participated in political campaigns, including three Democratic governors: Gary Locke, Mike Lowry and Booth Gardner.
Priorities: make process as open and diverse as possible. Create government framework that encourages participation and reduces the level of fear.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission; affiliated with Institute for Community Involvement’s “Options Yes” campaign.
James Haskin, 69, Wilburton resident, sales consultant for Olympic Office Supply.
Experience: chairman, Madison Heights Zoning Board of Appeals in Michigan, 1961-1962; president, Wilburton Community Association, 2000-current.
Priorities: fiscal responsibility. Supports citywide election of City Council members. Supports current council/manager form of government, rather than directly elected mayor.
Position: will vote “no” on charter commission.
Position 14
Gwen D. Warren, 76, Spring Hills resident, homemaker and retired computer-database manager.
Experience: member, various parent-faculty clubs at local public schools; past member, Neighborhood Network North; member, Access Downtown advisory committee, 2000 to present; polling-site inspector, King County Elections Division.
Priorities: have council members chosen from seven geographic districts in the city. Mayor chosen from City Council by council members, and use city manager to run day-to-day operations.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission, member of Bellevue Charter Now.
Vicki Orrico, 41, Forest Hill resident, business attorney.
Experience: staff member, Washington state Senate Law and Justice Committee, 1990; member, board of directors, Women Business Owners; vice chairwoman, federal Citizen Advocacy Panel to Improve the IRS, 1999-2001; mandatory continuing legal education board, Washington State Bar Association, 1997-2003.
Priorities: have an open mind, study options used by similar cities, and figure out which would best suit Bellevue. Supports current council/mayor structure, rather than directly elected mayor.
Position: undecided about charter commission.
Position 15
Manuel Yglesias, 77, Lake Hills neighborhood, retired from sales in computer-software industry.
Experience: board member, Telos (senior learning program at Bellevue Community College), 2001 to present; board member, Eastside Latino Leadership Forum, 2002 to present; King County delegate, 48th District Democrats
Priorities: supports direct election of mayor, and election of City Council members by geographic district.
Position: will vote “yes” on charter commission.
Warren Cornwall: 206-464-2311 or wcornwall@seattletimes.com