King County Executive | |
---|---|
Appointer | Electorate Metropolitan King County Council (unexpired terms) |
Term length | 4 years |
Inaugural holder | John Spellman |
Formation | 5 November 1968 (charter approved) 1 May 1969 (charter took effect) |
Salary | $248,148 (2021) |
Website | King County Executive |
The King County executive is the elected county executive of King County, Washington. The office was established with the implementation of the Home Rule Charter for King County on November 5, 1968. [1] Previously the powers of the county executive were vested in a three-member county commission, which with the implementation of the Home Rule Charter in 1969 ceased to exist. The county executive is elected every four years and the office is nonpartisan.
The first county executive was John Spellman, from 1969 to 1981. The current executive is Dow Constantine, elected to replace Ron Sims since he resigned to become Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Obama administration on May 8, 2009.
Elections for the County Executive have historically taken place in odd-numbered years. However, in 2022, an amendment to the County Charter was passed which would move elections for several county elected offices to even-numbered years. To do so, the 2025 King County Executive election will be for a three year term, instead of the normal four years.
In November of 2024, Constantine announced that he would not seek re-election in 2025, and King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci of Bellevue launched a campaign. [2]
Order | King County Executive | Party [a] | Took office | Left office | Terms | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | John Spellman | Republican | May 1, 1969 | January 14, 1981 | 3+ | Resigned to serve as Governor of Washington | |
2 | Ron Dunlap | Republican | January 14, 1981 [b] | November 18, 1981 | <1 | ||
3 | Randy Revelle | Democratic | November 18, 1981 | January 1, 1986 | 1 | ||
4 | Tim Hill | Republican | January 1, 1986 | January 4, 1994 | 2 | ||
5 | Gary Locke | Democratic | January 4, 1994 | January 15, 1997 | <1 | Resigned to serve as Governor of Washington | |
6 | Ron Sims | Democratic | January 15, 1997 [b] [c] | May 8, 2009 | 2+ | Resigned to serve as Deputy Secretary of Housing and Urban Development | |
7 | Kurt Triplett | Democratic | May 8, 2009 [b] | November 24, 2009 | <1 | ||
8 | Dow Constantine | Democratic | November 24, 2009 | Incumbent | 4+ |
Notes
John Dennis Spellman was an American politician who served as the 18th governor of Washington U.S. state from 1981 to 1985 and as the first King County executive from 1969 to 1981.
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