Bonney Lake council to consider giving up ward representation
By BRIAN BECKLEY
Bonney Lake-Sumner Courier-Herald Reporter
February 14, 2011 · 3:34 PM
The Bonney Lake City Council is considering a change in how councilmembers are elected.
Presently, five of the seven councilmembers are elected through a ward system, which divides the city into five geographical neighborhoods while two at-large representatives are elected by the city as a whole.
But that could soon change as the council this week was expected to discuss moving the entire city to an at-large system, allowing all city residents to vote for every seat on the council.
Deputy Mayor Dan Swatman, who himself has served in both ward and at-large council seats, is one of the leading voices in favor of the change.
“I think everybody should be able to vote for every councilmember,” he said Thursday.
Traditionally, the representative system is designed so that the elected officials most closely represents the people from his or her district, but
Contact Bonney Lake-Sumner Courier-Herald Reporter Brian Beckley at bbeckley@courierherald.com or 360-825-2555 ext. 5058.Comment on this story.
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