SOS: Kim Wyman has earned reelection

Re: “Wyman hasn’t earned reelection,” (TNT letter, 9/27).

This letter attacking Secretary of State Kim Wyman is preposterous. She has led Washington to its current status as a national leader in elections innovation and voting, and deserves re-election.

For years, Wyman has fought for the Voting Rights Act, automatic voter registration and other election innovations. Washington’s voter turnout, while lower than we’d like it, is still many points higher than the national average. Wyman kept Washington from falling into the voting slump that the rest of the nation fell victim to.

The attack levied against her on the online business portal is highly misleading. Wyman’s office has long been done with its end of the project, but other departments under different leadership have dragged their feet and failed to deliver on time. Wyman knows government needs collaboration, which is why she doesn’t publicly attack other officials — a lesson apparently lost on her partisan opponent.

Tina Podlodowski has never overseen an election, and is a highly partisan activist. Our elections office needs a steady and non-partisan hand.

This story was originally published September 28, 2016 at 11:11 AM with the headline "SOS: Kim Wyman has earned reelection."