Washington State Politics » Pierce County

Pierce County Council and Gay Pride

Wa State Pol — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 10:44:11 +0000

On Tuesday, July 8, the Pierce County Council split on what appears to be partisan Democrat/Republican lines on whether or not to issue a proclamation supporting "Out in the Park", a celebration of the South Sound’s GLBT (gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender) community Saturday, July 12 in Tacoma. The Republicans on the County Council, Chairman Terry Lee and Shawn Bunney, Dick Muri and Roger Bush all voted“no” on the proclamation. The Democrats on the council, Calvin Goings,Tim Farrell, and Barbara Gelman all voted "yes."

The fact that this is an election year, and both Shawn Bunney and Calvin Goings are running for the Pierce County Executive position, obviously plays a role in this vote, despite protestations from the Republicans that their "no" vote was on a procedural matter, and not related to the content of the proclamation. Democrats on the council expressed shock at the vote, with some citing election year politics.

Calvin Goings, though, in a quote from the Tacoma News Tribune said, "This should be a wake-up call to all progressive Pierce County residents. There is still a bastion of intolerance in Pierce County.” In other words, he is not saying that Shawn Bunney and company voted against this gay rights proclamation out of some strategy to gain conservative votes in November, but because they are bigoted against gays.

This is a serious charge, and if Goings is going to play the bigot card in his race against Shawn Bunney, then he should be prepared to show more evidence than this one vote. Politically, Bunney and his supporters cannot let this charge just sit out there. If he does not respond, he risks being labeled.

The race for Pierce County Executive just got more interesting. Stay tuned…

Councilman Calvin Goings (D)

Councilman Shawn Bunney (R)

http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/story/408995.html

Shawn Bunney

Wa State Pol — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 15:54:01 +0000

Councilman Shawn Bunney
R-1st District, Pierce County, Washington

Shawn Bunney is a Pierce County Councilmember representing Pierce County’s 1st Council District, which includes the cities of Buckley, Wilkeson, Carbonado, Bonney Lake, Sumner, Edgewood, Milton, South Prairie, Orting, and Graham, and the Lake Tapps/Dieringer area.

In 2002, he defeated four other candidates in the Repblican Primary, and then won the General Election over a Democrat and a Libertarian.

Prior to running for office, Shawn Bunney worked for over ten years as legal and policy counsel to the Pierce County Council. He also served as a coordinator of the Lake Tapps Task Force.

Councilman Bunney and his wife live in the Lake Tapps area.

Education:

–Evergreen State College

–University of Puget Sound School of Law (Tacoma, Washington)–1993

Accomplishments:

–Bunney served as a White House Intern with President Ronald Reagan, and as a Travel and Special Events Coordinator for U.S. Treasury Secretary.

–Shawn Bunney attained the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America

–Passed the Washington State Bar Exam in 1994

Pierce County Politicians

Wa State Pol — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 15:49:10 +0000

Pierce County Politicians and
Office-Holders

Executive Branch

John W. Ladenburg -County Executive- four year term

Ken Madsen- Assessor-Treasurer-four year term

County Council

Shawn Bunney– District 1– Shawn Bunney represents eastern and southern Pierce County including the areas of Buckley, Wilkeson, Carbonado, Bonney Lake, Sumner, Edgewood, Milton, South Prairie, Orting, and Graham. Pierce County Website Page on Shawn Bunney.

Calvin Goings-District 2–Councilmember Goings represents the communities of Browns Point-Dash Point, East Tacoma, Fife, Northeast Tacoma, Puyallup, Summit View, Summit-Waller, and the Tideflats. Pierce County Website Page on Calvin Goings.

Roger Bush -District 3–Councilmember Bush represents the communities of Ashford, Eatonville, Elbe, Elk Plain, Frederickson, Graham-west, Harts Lake, Lacamas, Roy-east, Spanaway-east, and South Hill. Pierce County Website Page on Roger Bush.

Timothy M. Farrell-District 4–Pierce County Website Page on Timothy Farrel.

Barbara Gelman -District 5–Councilmember Gelman represents the Parkland/Spanaway area. Pierce County Website Page on Barbara Gelman.

Dick Muri-District 6–Councilmember Muri represents Lakewood, Steilacoom, DuPont, Roy, McKenna, Fort Lewis, McChord AFB, and the island communities of Anderson, McNeil, and Ketron. Pierce County Website Page on Dick Muri.

Terry Lee-District 7–Terry Lee represents District 7, which includes the Gig Harbor and Key Peninsulas, Fircrest, University Place, W. Tacoma, and Fox Island. Pierce County Website Page on Terry Lee.