Summary

County Council approves addition of new seat for Vietnamese-speaking community

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Today, the Metropolitan King County Council approved bi-partisan legislation sponsored by Councilmembers Bob Ferguson and Jane Hague to add a new Vietnamese-speaking community representative to the King County Citizens’ Election Oversight Committee (CEOC). The new seat, together with an existing Chinese-speaking community seat, will represent these minority language communities. The King County Elections Department must produce election materials in Vietnamese and Chinese under federal law.

“Our region’s diversity makes King County a great place to live, and we must ensure that all citizens have the opportunity to participate in our democracy,” said Councilmember Bob Ferguson, prime sponsor of the legislation and Chair of the Government Accountability, Oversight, and Financial Performance Committee.

“The CEOC has been an effective reform agent for how we conduct elections here in King County,” said Council Vice Chair Jane Hague, who sponsored the original creation of the CEOC back in 2003. “The CEOC has also been a successful sounding board for the community as a whole and is a vital connection to King County’s minority communities.”

Originally created in 2003, the CEOC oversees King County Elections and makes recommendations for improving the electoral process in King County. Over the last nine years, the committee has made over 180 recommendations, the vast majority of which have been implemented by King County or addressed by changes to state or federal election laws.

The seats for the Vietnamese-speaking and Chinese-speaking communities reflect minority language requirements under federal law. Section 203 of the federal Voting Rights Act requires printing ballots and voting materials in alternative languages if more than ten thousand people or five percent of the total voting population are members of a single minority language group and have limited English proficiency.

Following the 2010 Census, King County is now required to print election materials in Vietnamese and Chinese.

Currently, the CEOC positions representing the Vietnamese-speaking and Chinese-speaking communities are vacant. Councilmembers Ferguson and Hague are actively seeking applications of interested individuals to fill these vacancies. Interested individuals are strongly encouraged to contact Councilmembers Ferguson and Hague for more information on the application process.