EVERETT — Gov. Chris Gregoire has decided not to appoint anyone to fill the seat left vacant by the recent retirement of Snohomish County Superior Court Judge James Allendoerfer.
The new judge will be selected by voters in the upcoming general election in November.
The appointment process likely would have stretched into late September or early October, said Mary Loesch, senior advisor and general counsel to Gregoire.
“That didn’t seem to be in anyone’s interest,” he said.
Allendoerfer’s resignation is effective today. The longtime judge decided to step down from the bench for health reasons. He was diagnosed with brain cancer in April.
Allendoerfer was appointed to the position by former Gov. Booth Gardner and began serving on the bench in 1991.
A special three-day filing period will be held after Aug. 18 for those interested in serving the remaining three years of Allendoerfer’s term.
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