2006 Candidate Questionnaire
SECTION I
BASIC CANDIDATE INFORMATION
1. Name as it will appear on the ballot
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First Name |
Middle Initial or Nick Name |
Last Name |
2. Office sought (include office, jurisdiction, position/district number):
3. Are you the incumbent? Yes No
4. How long have you resided in this district/city?
5. How long have you resided in King County?
6. Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan? Partisan Nonpartisan
CAMPAIGN CONTACTS
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Campaign Name: |
Neighbors to Elect David Baker |
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Address: |
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City/State/Zip: |
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Campaign Phone: |
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Campaign Fax: |
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Campaign E-mail: |
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Campaign Website: |
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POLITICAL BACKGROUND
1. Beginning with the most recent position, please list public offices which you have held. Include positions on appointive Boards or Commissions.
Public Office |
Elective or Appointive? |
Dates Held |
Leadership Role (if any) |
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2. If you ran for public office but were not elected, please list those races below:
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Year of Run |
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SECTION III
In this section, we are seeking responses that reflect the four ratings criteria: involvement, effectiveness, character, and knowledge. These are defined as follows:
- Involvement: What has the candidate done previously in family, neighborhood, community, volunteer work, employment or public life to suggest readiness to accomplish challenging objectives? How do these activities demonstrate readiness for the challenges unique to the office sought?
- Effectiveness: Has the candidate demonstrated promise of being productive in the office sought? Has the candidate shown the ability to work with other people?
- Character: Do the candidate's personal traits show the ability to take on the responsibilities of campaigning for and holding the public office she or he is seeking? Is the candidate a leader, participant or observer? Is the candidate trustworthy, reliable and candid?
- Knowledge: Has the candidate demonstrated the willingness and ability to learn and adapt? Does the candidate understand the duties and challenges of the office sought? Does the candidate have a firm grasp of the issues important to his or her constituency and their potential effects?
1. In a page or less, why are you running for this office? (Note: the interview committee will be given a copy of this statement before your interview; at the beginning of your interview you will have the opportunity to expand on this statement in any way you wish.)
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I’m running for the State Senate because I want to see improvements on a number of issues, particularly transportation and affordable housing, and I believe I can be more effective working those issues on the state level. All of the communities in my district are impacted by those issues, but true solutions need regional or statewide cooperation to come to fruition.
I believe my life experiences; educational background and the experience I’ve gained serving on the Regional Transportation Committee, the Joint Resolution Committee and the Information Technology committee will enable me to represent the interests of my district and contribute to sound legislation.
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2. Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.
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Coming from the non-partisan climate of city government, I’ve developed the habit of seeking out advice and ideas from all sides of an issue. I don’t wear partisan blinders and I look for ways to meet the needs of all stakeholders, creating win-win solutions whenever possible.
I come prepared. I seek to do my homework and come to meetings or work sessions prepared to move the process forward. Government can easily become bogged down and all participants need to respect the time of all involved and the need to keep the process moving in a timely manner. |
3. Please describe in sufficient detail, one to three accomplishments or contributions of which you are most proud. These examples should illustrate effective skills and capabilities you think apply to the office you are seeking. These accomplishments may have occurred at any time in your personal, professional, or public life.
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I spearheaded the move within the Kenmore Council to reduce the utility tax on gas and electricity to assist our elderly population. That involved identifying a way to help our elderly and building support among other council members to reduce this tax and forgo the spending the additional tax would have allowed.
I built support within the council to turn over the use of an unused building in the Rhododendron Park to the Northshore Seniors to allow them to create a Senior center. It not only provided a much needed center for senior activities, but it enhanced the overall use of the park and the safety levels. Again, this drew upon my skills to build support for this effort within the council, the senior community and the community as a whole. In a legislative setting, no one accomplishes things all by themselves.
On a personal level, I’m proud of the fact that with diligent study I achieved “certified municipal leader” ranking thru the Association of Washington Cities in my first year, and “advanced certified municipal leader” before the end of two years. The process requires both community action and continuing education classes.
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4. Please list or describe your current and past activities in the community in which you have acquired skills that relate to the office you seek. Include your role in the activity and the year(s) in which you were involved. Involvement consists of many areas such as family, neighborhood, community, employment, or public life.
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Kenmore City Council, 2 ½ years starting January 2004-current Deputy Mayor for the City of Kenmore 2004 - King County Joint Resolutions Committee Member 2006 - King County Solid Waste Committee (awaiting confirmation) 2006 - Municipal Solid Waste Advisory Committee Member 2006 - SeaShore Transportation Forum Member 2004 - SeaShore Transportation Forum Legislative Committee Member 2004 -2005
Member, Assn of Wash. Cities Legislative Committee Member, September 2004-current
National League of Cities Information Committee Member 2006 -
Suburban Cities Public Issues Committee Member 2005 -
I was a Public Affairs Liaison (Volunteer) for National Disabled Sports, Learn to Ski program, 1989-1992
My Wife and I founded Neighborhood Watch group for our neighborhood in late 1990s.
Small business owner with international offices in London, Budapest and Sao Paulo. Usage of internet for business communications, marketing, program design and project management. 1982 to present.
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- Please describe the duties of the office you seek. Which are the most important duties and why?
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I summarize the duties of State Senator as an effective guardian of public interest. A Senator is there to represent the interests of the citizens of their district. To me that means extensively listening to those citizens and making continual outreach efforts to stay in touch with voters.
My one vote is no more or less important as the vote of any other senator. That means to be effective, a senator must be involved in extensive coalition building as legislators seek to find solutions that meet the needs of all citizens of our state. |
EDUCATION BACKGROUND SUMMARY
FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT
The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report is distributed to voters in print and/or on our website. It includes a summary of the candidate’s education. Please summarize your education in 120 characters (letters, punctuation, and space all combined). The League will delete material that exceeds the space limit by beginning with the last entry. Suggested order is (degree) (subject) (school) (year, if desired).
Note: If this question is left blank the League will not include education information in your candidate profile.
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Ph.D. – Anatomy Iowa State University , 1988. Major: Neuroanatomy MS University of Nebraska1978 BS University of Nebraska1978 |
CIVIC INVOLVEMENT SUMMARY
FOR PUBLICATION IN CANDIDATE EVALUATION REPORT
The Municipal League’s Candidate Evaluation Report also includes a summary of each candidate’s civic involvement. Please summarize your civic involvement in the space below. We will make every attempt to include the information in the Candidate Evaluation Report as submitted. Due to space restrictions in the Report, your response is limited to 500 characters (letters, punctuation, and spaces all combined). It is important that you list your involvement beginning with the most important and ending with the least important. If you exceed the length of response permitted, or if the League should find it necessary to shorten responses for publication purposes, deletions will be made beginning with the last item listed.
Note: This information will appear verbatim on the League’s Candidate Evaluation Report. If this question is left blank, the Municipal League will not include information on your civic involvement in the Report.
Check here if you would like the Municipal League to copy the first 500 characters from Question 4 to paste into this section.
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Finished!
If at all possible, send your response to the Municipal League electronically as an attachment, or insert it into an e-mail message (cec@munileague.org). Mail and fax numbers are listed below. If the League has not contacted you to schedule an interview, please call the League office at your earliest convenience.
Don’t forget to send the following to the Municipal League: a resume, a photo, campaign literature, and, if you are an incumbent, constituent newsletter and other materials. Please use the check-off list on the cover sheet of this packet to indicate which items you have sent.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION AND GOOD LUCK IN YOUR CAMPAIGN!
THE MUNICIPAL LEAGUE OF KING COUNTY
Candidate Evaluation Coordinator: Jennifer DiGiacomo
Seattle, WA 98104-1614 Fax: 425-671-0506 Website: www.munileague.org