Rob McKenna (R)
John Ladenburg (D)
OLYMPIA, Wash. (Legal Newsline)-Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna has notched a bevy of newspaper endorsements as he seeks a second term as the Evergreen State's chief legal officer.
McKenna, a Republican, is being challenged by Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg. The two men won the state's top-two primary in August.
In its endorsement Sunday, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer said McKenna "deserves enthusiastic re-election."
The newspaper said McKenna has "exhibited passion for justice, dedication to the protection of the public's interests and calm, balanced leadership."
The Post-Intelligencer called Ladenburg "a worthy, overly combative Democratic challenger."
The Olympian said Wednesday that McKenna deserves to be re-elected, despite Landenburg's claims his opponent has used the office to boost his profile.
"What the race boils down to is a candidate who says he'll do a good job, versus an incumbent who has done a good job. If the Attorney General's Office was poorly represented or poorly managed, Ladenburg would be a good choice. But it's not, and he's not," the Olympian's endorsement said.
"McKenna has a solid record of accomplishments and has a clear vision of where he wants to take the office in the next legislative session and beyond," the newspaper said.
The Everett (Wash.) Herald said on its editorial page that Ladenburg has made the case he would be a good attorney general and the newspaper agrees.
"Trouble is, we already have an excellent one in Rob McKenna. Voters would be smart to elect him to a second term," the Herald said.
Landenburg's hometown paper, the Tacoma (Wash.) News-Tribune said in a duel endorsement that both candidates are worthy of the office.
The newspaper said both men "are superbly qualified, but in such different ways that it is difficult to compare them directly against each other."
From Legal Newsline: Reach reporter Chris Rizo at chrisrizo@legalnewsline.com.