The Washington County Democratic Party (WCDP) strongly condemns the Washington County Commission’s decision to break the tied District 13 election by voting to return incumbent Commissioner Kenny Huffine to office. Rather than allowing District 13 voters to choose their representative in a runoff, the Commission made that choice for them.
The August 6 County General Election ended with incumbent County Commissioner Kenny Huffine and challenger Cindy Humphrey receiving exactly 507 votes each in District 13. Neither candidate received more votes than the other. Neither candidate earned an electoral mandate to represent the district. The County Commission had another option: place the race before District 13 voters again in the November 3 election and let them break the tie themselves.
Instead, by a vote of 14 for (Tucker, Johnson, Fitzgerald, Edens, Davenport, Matherly, England, Malone, Stout, Tomita, Wexler, Huffine, Wheeler, and Carder) and 1 abstention (Jones), the Commission selected Huffine to serve another term. Commissioner Huffine, who remains a member of the outgoing County Commission, participated in the vote and cast a vote for himself.
“Tonight’s decision may be permitted by law, but that does not make it the right thing to do,” said Sylvain Bruni, Chair of the Washington County Democratic Party. “Five hundred and seven voters chose Kenny Huffine. Five hundred and seven chose Cindy Humphrey. When the voters themselves reach a tie, politicians should not substitute their judgment for the judgment of the people they represent. District 13 deserved a runoff, and its voters deserved the final say. And while we understand that Commissioner Huffine was legally permitted to participate, allowing an incumbent to cast a deciding vote in an election in which he is a candidate only underscores why this decision should have been returned to the voters.”
The principle at stake is bigger than either candidate: District 13 voters should choose who represents District 13. WCDP asked for a runoff because public confidence in elections and local government depends on voters knowing that their voices matter. With a November election already scheduled, the Commission had a clear opportunity to let District 13 voters resolve an election that they themselves had left tied. Tonight, the Commission chose otherwise.
We encourage the people of District 13 and citizens across Washington County to make their voices heard. Contact your county commissioners. Ask how they voted and why. Attend Commission meetings. Pay attention to the decisions being made in your name. And above all, vote on November 3. Democracy does not end when elected officials make a decision we disagree with. That is when citizen participation matters most.
