ISLAND COUNTY: School board member, CADA executive director running for auditor
Kira Erickson reports Island County for the Whidbey News-Times. Read the whole story.
Summary by Perplexity AI
South Whidbey School Board member and Citizens Against Domestic and Sexual Abuse executive director Andrea Downs has filed as a Democratic candidate for Island County auditor. She announced early to give CADA time to plan for a possible transition and cites her background in systemic program support and nonprofit leadership. Downs, a Freeland resident on the school board since 2017, wants to expand her public service and raise awareness of the auditor’s broad responsibilities. Her priorities include smooth, free and fair elections and timely spending of grant funds, drawing on experience managing budgets up to $35 million.
They Said It
“The auditor position has always stood out to me as kind of an underrepresented position in the community,” she said. “I don’t think people understand all the pieces of what the auditor does.”
If elected, she hopes to ensure Island County elections run smoothly in a free and fair way. In the context of the county’s budget, ensuring grant funds are spent in a timely manner is one of her priorities, something she has done in her position with CADA.
“Ensuring that those funds are spent before they expire is a really critical piece of that so that we’re not leaving money on the table,” Downs said.
Downs is hesitant to name any big changes she wants to address if elected as auditor.
“I’m sure that there are things that I will eventually identify and want to shift or change,” she said, “but I really think it’s important to come in, listen and learn, and learn what’s working, what’s not working and why, before coming out saying I’m going to make all these changes.”
