Time to vote

Its that time again and its unusual we have a primary ballot to complete. You have all received your ballots and they are due by Aug. 1.

Please take the time to be an educated voter, talk with your friends, read the voters pamphlet, listen to candidate forums and check the candidates out on their Facebook or website. Your job is to elect the person that best represents you and your interests.

The Sequim School Board has several candidates to choose from. My vote goes to Larry Jeffryes, Maren Halvorsen and Michael Rocha. Some huge decisions were made to improve our school district and these incumbents worked very hard to be sure their decisions were valid, fiscally responsible and good for the students.

I will also support Mark Ozias for Clallam County Commission, he has done some amazing work, reached out to all residents of the county and is thoughtful in all his decisions.

Most important is for all registered voters to cast their vote by Aug. 1. Let your voice be heard with your vote.

Eileen Cummings

Sequim

What is needed to preserve our democracy?

I believe there are many needs! Some say voters need patriotism, or national allegiance. Some say voters need common sense, wisdom, factual knowledge or good judgment.

What voters don’t need is disinformation, prejudice, dishonesty, or ignorance about any dishonest intent of their campaigning officials, whether in cities, states, or for the Congress.

All current government institutions should be respected by our elected leaders, who should abide by their oaths of office. Violations of an oath of office by any elected official should be prosecutable by penalties of perjury, not just censured for dereliction of duty! Our rules of law should include this provision!

Richard Hahn

Sequim

Unfulfilled responsibility

The responsibility of our school board is to create a community-wide shared vision for the school district. The board voted to realign the schools even under clear disapproval from parents and teachers, so I don’t believe they fulfilled this responsibility.

According to nsba.org article, “About School Board and Local Governance,” the school board members are “elected by people in their community to represent their values, views, and desires for the public schools in their district.” As stated previously, they did not fulfill this expectation.

And according to teachers of the Sequim School District, around 300 students were kept home in protest of the realignment.

I personally saw parents outside of the school district office protesting for weeks, and their devotion to the cause was inspiring to me. Based on my research, there are no studies in support of K-2/3-5 system.

Joshua Loucks

Sequim