SEQUIM — Sequim resident John Yeo no longer is running for the at-large position on the School Board, but he has been unsuccessful in getting his name taken off the Nov. 6 general election ballot.
It wasn’t for lack of trying.
Since the first week of July, Yeo has been in contact with state and county elections officials about withdrawing from the race for the at-large Sequim School Board position currently held by Beverly Horan.
A small portion of Sequim School District is in Jefferson County, in the Gardiner area, while the rest is located in Clallam County.
Yeo said he did remove himself from the state’s Public Disclosure Commission candidate listings.
But he had less luck with the Clallam and Jefferson county auditor’s offices.
After going to the Clallam County Auditor’s office July 8 with a letter that stated his intention to withdraw, Yeo said he was contacted by Clallam County Elections Coordinator Shoona Radon, who told him it was too late in the election cycle to withdraw his name.
Clallam County Auditor Patty Rosand said Yeo would have had to withdraw by May 20, the Monday after candidate filing week, to get off the November ballot.
Donna Eldridge, the Jefferson County auditor, also said Sunday that it was too late for Yeo to withdraw from Jefferson County ballots.
Up until 2011, auditor’s offices had the power to withdraw names closer to the general election, Rosand said.
But then the state Legislature passed a law setting the current deadline.
“It’s not something I recall that auditors felt one way or another on,” Rosand said, referring to the change in the law.
Not even Yeo’s death would keep his name off the November ballot, Rosand said, since the position has an incumbent.
“It’s a state law that keeps you on the ballot, whether you’re alive or dead,” Yeo said.
“To me, that is the utmost ridiculousness.”
Because his name would still be on the ballot, Rosand said Yeo still has the potential to be elected come November.
Yeo said he would resign if he elected, adding that he signed a statement with the state’s Public Disclosure Commission saying he would do so.
The 68-year-old, who spent 10 years as a substitute teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District before moving to Sequim with his wife in 2005, said he filed for the School Board position after enjoying serving on other nonprofit boards in Clallam County.
“I thought it would be a new challenge for me. However, I didn’t realize the amount of time it involved,” Yeo said.
Yeo said responsiblities to his ailing 98-year-old mother, who lives in an assisted living facility in Maryland, and providing maintenance for 33 apartments he owns in Port Angeles would be too much coupled with the demands of serving on the School Board.
Yeo also said he was disappointed with the way Sequim School Board members voted on some items with not much discussion at a meeting he attended after he filed his candidacy.
“I had never been to a School Board meeting before,” Yeo said.
Horan, who is running for her third term, said she had been looking forward to debating Yeo about educational issues.
Horan said she understands Yeo’s concerns about the demands of serving on the school board. She said she likely spends at least 20 hours a month on School Board business in addition to her job as a grant organizer for the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe.
“It’s not an easy job, and I think people seriously underestimate the amount of time it takes,” Horan said.
School Board President Virginia O’Neill, who has the only other board position up for election this year, decided not to seek another term.
Michael Howe of Sequim will run opposed for O’Neill’s spot in the general election.
Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.
