SHERIFFS DEFEND VOTERS FROM VOTERS

Four Washington sheriffs, fresh from the sacred tradition of elected officials suing to protect the people’s right to elect them, want a judge to block a new law that lets a state-appointed board kick sheriffs out if they lose certification or miss the eligibility mark. The whole thing has the elegant aroma of modern government: lawmakers call it “modernization,” critics call it a power grab, and voters are once again invited to admire democracy from behind the rope line while an unelected commission does the heavy lifting. The sheriffs say the bill turns county elections into a suggestion box for Olympia, which is a compelling argument if you enjoy the quaint notion that voters should be the ones choosing their sheriffs rather than a board appointed by the governor tidying up the results after the fact. In Washington, the machinery of democracy apparently now comes with an emergency override, because nothing says “free elections” quite like a bureaucratic off switch.