King County Elections Update: Hague Draws Challengers For King County Council from Kirkland, Mercer Island

According to the King County Elections website, two challengers to Metropolitan King County Councilwoman Jane Hague have filed as candidates.

Hague, a Bellevue resident who has served on Metropolitcan King County Council since 1994, the same year it formed. She represents District 6. Hague kicked off her campaign in .

Richard E. Mitchell of Mercer Island and Port of Seattle Commissioner John Creighton of Kirkland were listed as her challengers on the King County Elections website.

Mitchell is a King County Housing Authority Commissioner, and is an attorney trained in architecture and urban planning, according to his website. Mitchell reported on his Facebook page that he is officially kicking off his campaign at an event from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Mercer Island Community Center.

Creighton was elected to the the Seattle Port Commission in 2005 and is a business lawyer who lives in Kirkland.

Former Bellevue city councilwoman Patsy Bonincontri also has expressed interest in running for Hague's seat, but she was not listed as having filed as of noon Tuesday.

Voters will narrow the candidates down to two in a primary election on August 16, 2011. The top two vote-getters will move on to the November general election.

This week is filing week. The deadline to file as a candidate for local offices is 4:30 p.m. Friday.

Bellevue City Council

Position 3

• John Chelminiak

Position 5

• Claudia Balducci

Position 7

• Jennifer Robertson

Bellevue School District

Director District 1

• Betsy Johnson

Director District 2

• Christine Chew

Director District 4

• Michael F. Murphy

Metropolitan King County Council

District 6

• John Creighton
• Jane Hague
• Richard E. Mitchell

Bellevue positions that are up for election this year are:

Bellevue City Council positions 1, 3, 5 and 7; Bellevue School Board director districts 1, 2 and 4; Metropolitan King, County Council District No. 6

Several candidates already have formally launched their campaigns, including , , and . Balducci and the other Bellevue City Council incumbent, Grant Degginger, have also started raising money, according to the Public Disclosure Commission.

Bellevue residents Aaron Laing and Patricia Mann also have launched campaigns for city council, though they have not declared which seats they will challenge.