Three additional candidates have tossed their hats into the ring for appointment to the Snohomish County Council District 3 seat left vacant after Councilmember Stephanie Wright resigned to take a job with the county executive’s office.
They include former Edmonds City Councilmember Adrienne Fraley-Monillas, Snohomish County Planning Commissioner Chris Eck and attorney Colin McMahon.
Three others who have already signaled their intention to seek the job include 21st District State Rep. Strom Peterson, Edmonds School Board Director Carin Chase and Lynnwood City Councilmember Julieta Altamirano-Crosby.
The county council’s 3rd District represents the cities of Edmonds and Lynnwood, the Town of Woodway, and some unincorporated areas.
“Councilmember Wright’s 12-plus years of service has served Snohomish County well,” said Fraley-Monillas, a three-term Edmonds City Councilmember who lost her seat to Neil Tibbott in 2021. “I’m proud to have served with her on the Snohomish County Health Board, including when we worked together as chair and vice-chair for many years. We also worked together on the Meadowdale Beach salmon recovery project, funding for civic fields, Edmonds spray park, senior center and the drug takeback program.”
If appointed, Fraley-Monillas said she will champion working families, environmental protection, housing and homelessness.
“Working families have been getting squeezed and need an advocate on the county council,” Fraley-Monillas said. “I will use my years of advocacy for working people to help build housing that working families can afford.
“I’m not seeking this appointment as a stepping stone for higher office,” she added. “If appointed, I will be a full-time county councilmember, without other commitments or distractions.”
Fraley-Monillas retired from a 33-year career at the Department of Social and Health Services. She was active in her union, the Washington Federation of State Employees, including being the longest-serving member of the union’s Executive Board. After retirement, she continued her activism, serving as a part-time union organizer.
Snohomish County Planning Commissioner Chris Eck currently serves as deputy chief operating officer at Volunteers of America Western Washington and served as the chair of the City of Lynnwood Planning Commission. She recently moved to Edmonds after being a longtime resident of Lynnwood.
“I have so much respect for how Councilmember Wright advocated for all community members here in District 3 and across the county,” Eck said. “I want to carry forward her effectiveness at working with others from diverse perspectives to the benefit of our entire community.”
Eck said she would bring to the council “my experience in operations management, on the planning commissions, and as well as in nonprofit leadership to look at the issues from all sides. These skills and experience will be important as our district and county continues to experience rapid growth and works on solutions for issues that are priorities for our community, like housing and responsible development, strengthening our economic position and protecting jobs.
“At the same time, we need to do everything we can to preserve our community spaces and our environment,” Eck added.
Eck said her years of experience in the nonprofit sector working with organizations that serve the county’s most vulnerable residents has given her a firsthand understanding of what many in the community face daily. This includes the need for hunger prevention, quality early childhood education, community resource centers, personal support services, housing navigation and rental assistance. In addition to serving on the county planning commission, Eck is a member of the Edmonds Tree Board, has served as the president of the Human Service Executives Council and on the United Way of Snohomish County Board. Eck also currently serves on the Leadership Snohomish County Education Board and is an alumni of the Signature Class of 2018. She ran for the Lynnwood City Council in 2021.
McMahon, a Lynnwood resident, has been a public defender in Snohomish County since 2015 and notes that he is the only attorney seeking the position.
He has served on a number of councils and committees and now sits on the Mental Health Advisory Council for Disability Rights Washington; Snohomish County Bar Association Board of Trustees; and the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion subcommittee of the Snohomish County Democrats Central Committee (SCDCC). He is also the second vice chair for the SCDCC.
He previously served on the Washington State Bar Association’s young lawyers committee as the representative for Snohomish County and on the Downtown Everett Association‘s parking and transportation committee.
“Bringing accountability and responsible governance to Snohomish County is one of my most major concerns,” he said. When I was seeking appointment the council in 2020, my focus was related to mental health, behavioral health and criminal justice issues. As we’ve seen in the 2.5 years since, those issues, and public health generally of course, have dominated the news and the agendas of the county council. I feel that my education and experience are perfectly suited to address those concerns through the council,” he added.Under the county charter and the state Constitution, since Wright was a Democrat, Snohomish County Democrats will pick three nominees via a vote of its precinct committee officers. Those names will then be submitted to the county council for their consideration.
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