The Push for Commission Government
As municipal elections approach, the Labor Journal urges Everett voters to weigh the pros and cons of shifting to a commission-style city management.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Citizens of Everett should carefully study the plan of commission government, as it is not unlikely that at the next city election the voters will be called upon to give the plan their approval or disapproval. The recent address of Mr. John White has undoubtedly set the people thinking along that line, and they should investigate everything bearing upon that question. It seems at first thought a tremendous centralization of power in the hands of a few men, even though the people have the right of recall and the initiative and referendum into the bargain. The recall feature is democratic in theory, but we have had a demonstration of how hard it is to put into practical execution. And yet the fact remains that in nearly every case where the commission plan of government has been tried, it has given very good satisfaction. We would again urge that the voters of Everett give the matter much thought and investigation to the end that we may all vote intelligently upon the matter whenever it shall be made an issue in a municipal election.
“It seems at first thought a tremendous centralization of power in the hands of a few men, even though the people have the right of recall and the initiative and referendum into the bargain.”
Everett’s early 20th-century flirtation with commission government reflects the era’s progressive belief that business-like efficiency could cure political corruption. Today, cities like Everett rely on the Council-Manager form, echoing the same perennial tension between professional expertise and direct democratic accountability.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.