An effort to launch a recall petition against three Clark County councilors proved to be little more than an embarrassment for fellow Councilor Tom Mielke.
On Friday, Stephen Warning, a visiting Cowlitz County Superior Court judge, dismissed the allegations filed against Marc Boldt, Jeanne Stewart and Julie Olson. Warning determined that Mielke’s assertions of malfeasance and misfeasance by his fellow councilors did not meet the legal or factual requirements for a recall petition to move forward.
That decision comes as no surprise for those who have closely watched the political wrangling in Clark County. Since Boldt and Olson joined the council in January, expanding it from three members to five as mandated by a county charter passed in 2014, Mielke and David Madore have found themselves on the short end of a series of 3-2 votes.
In the process, rather than engage in diplomacy and statesmanship, Mielke and Madore have deployed desperate measures in an attempt to remain relevant as policymakers. They have routinely besmirched Clark County government while poorly serving their constituents, clinging to demagoguery rather than thoughtful governance. The people of Clark County deserve better than the endless series of sandbox fights that have been instigated.