Elections: We need her experience

Mary Margaret Haugen has represented the people of the 10th Legislative District in the Washington State Legislature for 22 years. This district includes all of Island County and parts of Skagit and Snohomish counties. In state government, Mary Margaret’s goal has been to represent the ordinary people in her district, regardless of their political affiliations. That explains why groups, as varied as the Washington State Farm Bureau and the Washington Council of Police and Sheriffs, endorse her.

One example of her responsiveness to the concerns of the people in her district involves the Keystone/Port Townsend ferry. The state ferry system wants to put identical ferryboats on all its runs. This would require greatly enlarging the Keystone Ferry Terminal or moving it to another location. It would also mean the larger boats would run only half as frequently as the smaller boats do on the current schedule. The people in the 10th District who would be affected by these changes were not consulted.

By virtue of her seniority in the legislature, Mary Margaret was able to force the state ferry system to delay their plans until they held public hearings to determine all the effects of the changes, and had heard from the citizens who will be directly affected. The result of this forced re-evaluation has not yet been determined. But because of Senator Haugen’s intervention she has enabled the citizens of her district to express their concerns and have their views heard by the state’s ferry bureaucracy.

I urge you to re-elect Senator Mary Margaret Haugen.

William Applegate

Oak Harbor

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read. Please see our FAQ if you have questions or concerns about using Facebook to comment.