Rep. Eric Robertson To Resign

OLYMPIA - Eric Robertson, the House Republican caucus chairman who had been touted as a future speaker of the House, submitted his resignation from the Legislature yesterday .

His departure is effective May 31 and will touch off a scramble for his leadership post and for his 31st District seat in King and Pierce counties.

Robertson, 34, is leaving to take a promotion to captain in the State Patrol. The 15-year Patrol veteran will be the agency's chief spokesman and the Patrol's lobbyist.

Robertson was a rising star in his party, winning his top leadership post after a single two-year term. Admirers were promoting him as a possible successor to Speaker Clyde Ballard, R-East Wenatchee, when Ballard retires.

Robertson's legislative seat will be filled by the King and Pierce county councils, choosing from a list submitted by Republican precinct officers. The district includes Buckley, Auburn, Enumclaw, Bonney Lake, Lake Tapps, Carbonado and the east hill of

Kent.