Come November, the Vancouver City Council will once again have to fill a vacancy if Councilor Alishia Topper is elected as Clark County treasurer.
After receiving nearly 70 percent of the primary vote against challenger Robert Hinds, Topper would seem to have a good shot at winning. Longtime incumbent Treasurer Doug Lasher is retiring. Topper already works in the treasurer’s office as a tax manager. And although the office is partisan, neither she nor Hinds are running with a party preference.
Assuming she wins, what does that mean for her seat on the city council? Topper has already said she would resign if she wins in November, but she’s actually legally required to do so. Politicians cannot hold two elected offices simultaneously.
Topper said while she’s enjoyed her time serving the city, she feels like she’s only doing a satisfactory job.
“Being on city council and working full time, plus the things I’m passionate about (I’m really enjoying the Washington State Housing Finance Commission), having time to fit everything in and feel I’m doing justice to all of it has been really difficult,” Topper said.
The treasurer’s job would give Topper time to really focus on serving the citizens, serve on the commission and do what she hopes is an “exceptional job.”
“I just have high expectations of myself,” she added.
If elected, Topper said she would make her resignation effective Dec. 31, but send her resignation letter as soon as possible in order to give the council time to recruit candidates before the seat is vacated.
Perhaps fortuitously, the city council recently began an in-depth review of its policies, including how to fill a vacancy. The council had to make an appointment earlier this year after voters elected Scott Campbell posthumously in November 2017. The appointment process netted 56 applicants; the council’s selection, Laurie Lebowsky, is now seeking office to serve the remainder of the term. She’s running against fellow position finalist Sarah Fox in the nonpartisan race.
As the council noted in January when it embarked on the monthlong process, the appointment policy’s rules could be more resolute. The governing body wants the entire process outlined and each step accounted for, so it has drafted revised rules.
Essentially, the council formalized the process it used to appoint Lebowsky.
The details driving the application process were approved Sept. 24.
For example, applicants will need to submit a financial disclosure form known as an F-1 and their applications will be posted on the city’s website for the public to review before the interview process begins.
Councilors will review the applications for an unspecified amount of time. If there are more than 10 candidates, councilors will be required to make a list of preferred candidates to help narrow the field before formally selecting which candidates to interview.
Once candidates are selected for interviews, councilors will each submit a question they’d like to ask in advance of the interviews. The candidate interviews are held in council chambers and are open to the public. Candidates, however, will be sequestered without phones to ensure a fair interview process. The new policy outlines in more detail the interview process and how the voting will occur. While council can discuss candidates in a closed meeting, all decisions must take place in public view.
Replacing Topper as the county’s tax services manager — assuming it ends up being necessary — is much simpler. The county simply posts the job and undertakes a normal recruitment and hiring process.
