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?
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I have lived in King County for 58 years. |
6. Is the office sought partisan or nonpartisan? Partisan Nonpartisan
CAMPAIGN CONTACTS
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Campaign Name: |
Gossett for County Council |
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Address: |
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Campaign Phone: |
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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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Chair, Law, Justice & Human Services Committee, Chair, Budget Committee
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2. If you ran for public office but were not elected, please list those races below:
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In this section, we are seeking responses that reflect the four ratings criteria: involvement, effectiveness, character, and knowledge. These are defined as follows:
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 am running for re-election to the King County Council because I have made good progress in leading the governmental effort to reform the Criminal Justice System in our County. I have also made considerable inroads in getting the County Council to more effectively consider the impact all the public policies we develop has had on the poor, minorities and the disadvantaged throughout Martin Luther King County. I want to be re-elected so that I can continue the advance of a reform agenda that will continue to improve the quality of life for all citizens who reside in our County.
I feel that my current position is a culmination of a life of political involvement that first began when I was a junior at the University of Washington, nearly 35 years agao. At that time I was one of the fjounders of the Black Student Union (BSU), and our political organizing efforts and pressure lead to the University setting up the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP). The EOP became the first affirmative action program, it lead to thousands of students of color being admitted, who would not have otherwise been allowed to matriculate to the University of Washington. I felt good at the 25th anniversary of the EOP to learn that 29,000 African-American, Native American, Latino and Asian and Pacific Islander students had graduated between 1970 and 1995 as a result of the program (EOP) we had pushed the University of Washington to establish.
I also count as a major political accomplishment, the leadership role I played at helping to advance the social, economic and political condition of the African-American, and other inner-city poor, as the Executive Director of the Central Area Motivation Program (CAMP), from 1979-93. A position from which I was able to set up numerous employment, housing and community uplift programs which helped thousands of inner-city residents climb out of poverty during my 14 year reign as Executive Director of CAMP.
This background and experience prepared me to successfully run for the King County Council in the Spring of 1993. I have,during my first four terms, become the conscience of the Metropolitan King County Council as it relates to articulating the interest of sectors of the population (poor, minorities, homeles, mentally ill and youth) traditionally left out of policy debates-- whether it related to the Public Health Department, protection of natural resources, public transit (Metro, Sound Transit), criminal justice, utility pricing and so forth. |
2. Describe your most important personal characteristics or traits as they relate to the office you seek.
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I believe I am a very mature politician, one who has been able to make the political compromises that are the life blood of government functioning. My temperament is very easy going, so I do not get raddled or upset easily. My skin is also very thick. I can take the criticism endemic to the political arena. These are qualities necessary to weather the political storms that often surround the development of public policies within the King County Council.
I also get along and work well with colleagues across party and philosophical lines. An asset definitely required for political success within the legislative branch of County government.
I stay true to core principas that guide me in my political decision making. |
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.
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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a) I was the Chair of the Seattle Alliance of Black Student Unions (BSU) in the late 1960's. In that capacity I learned my basic community organizing and outreach skills. I taught students how to write their own by-laws, develop their own political platforms, solve internal conflicts in a democratic fashion and be unified and peristent in their efforts to bring about educational reforms aimed at reducing the level of racism in our public education institutions.
b) From 1984-88 I served as President of the Washington State Rainbow Coalition. In this capacity, I learned how to build a multi-racial coalition around a common political agenda, in an environmnt that brought disparate groups of people together from rural suburban and hardcore, inner-city communities all over the State of Washington. The aim of these efforts was to get Jesse Louis Jackson the highest number of Democratic Party votes and delegates as possible in the fall 1988 elections. I found that I was effective enough, at organizing a grassroots political machine strong enough to garner 39% of the Democratic vote for Jesse Jackson in 1988.
c) As Executive Director of the Central Area Motivation Program (CAMP), 1979-1993, I honed my ability to advocate effectively on behalf of the poor and working class neighborhoods that now constitute such a large part of the legislative district I represent. This is why I am able to consistently pose policy reforms and strategies that help inform my colleagues about the impact our political decisions will have on the poor and marginalized sectors of the citizens who reside in King County. Oftentimes, my advocacy and examples have made a wide variety of public policies more accountable to the class concerns of the truly disadvantaged than they ordinarily would have been during the period I have been on the Council, 1994-2003.
d) I have been able to polish my organizing skills as the nine year chair of the Martin Luther King Celebration Committee. Over the nine years, 3000 to 10,000 residents of all walks of life have participated in this celebration.
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The basic duties of a Metropolitan King County Councilmember are to make laws and appropriateall the public funds which come to the County on an annual basis. As the legislative branch of King County governmnt the Council sets policies, jenactrs laws and adopts the yearly budget necessary to fund regional and local services beneficial to the 1.7 million residents of our County. The most important duties of our government are:
a) Set the Annual Budget-- The current budget of King County, for calendar year 2005, is $3.5 billion. Prioritizing how this money is spent is the biggest job of the County Council. Deciding how the "peoples" tax dollars are spent determines which services get funded and who benefits from these expenditures.
b) Oversee the Delivery of Regional Services-- This is very important because 71% of our general revenue funds goes to criminal justice expenditures and if we, as legislators, are not able to stem the tide of its growth, by 2008, we won't have any money left to operate other vital functions of the government.
c) Make sure the 380,000 people who live in unincorporated King County, whether it be in rural or urban areas, have a level of services-- particularly police and health-- that minimally serves their needs. This is important because the only local governmnt services going to these folks are provided by the County. |
EDUCATION BACKGROUND SUMMARY
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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Bachelor of Arts Degree, History, University of Washington, 1971 Frankling High School, 1963-- |
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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President, Minority Community Advisory Committee, University of Washington, Current Member, The Breakfast Group, Current Chair, Pan African Coalition, Current Past President, Board of Directors, Central Area Motivation Program (CAMP), 1998 Past President, United Way Executive Directors Coalition, 1989 A Founder of The Minority Executive Directors Coalition, 1982 |
Finished!
If at all possible, send your response to the Municipal League electronically as an attachment, or insert it into an e-mail message (rebecca@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 newsletters and other materials. Please use the check-off list on the cover sheet of this packet to indicate which items you have sent.
Candidate Evaluation Coordinator: Rebecca Cooper
Seattle, WA 98104-1614 Fax: 425-671-0506 Website: www.munileague.org