| Snohomish County Council | |
| Legislature: | Snohomish County, Washington |
| Term Length: | 4 years |
| House Type: | County council |
| Leader1 Type: | Chairperson |
| Leader1: | Megan Dunn |
| Party1: | (D) |
| Leader2 Type: | Vice Chair |
| Leader2: | Jared Mead |
| Party2: | (D) |
| Members: | 5 |
| Structure1: | Snohomish County Council 2019.svg |
| Structure1 Res: | 250px |
| Political Groups1: | Democratic Party (3) Republican Party (2) |
| Last Election1: | November 7, 2023 |
| Meeting Place: | Henry M. Jackson Boardroom Robert J. Drewel Building Everett, Washington |
| Website: | Snohomish County Council |
The Snohomish County Council is the legislative body of Snohomish County, Washington. The county council was created in 1979 and consists of five members serving four-year terms.
| District | Councilmember[1] | Party | Took office | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nate Nehring | Republican | |||
| 2 | Megan Dunn (Council Chair) | Democratic | |||
| 3 | Strom Peterson | Democratic | |||
| 4 | Jared Mead (Council Vice Chair) | Democratic | [2] | ||
| 5 | Sam Low | Republican | [3] | ||
The county council was created on November 6, 1979, by Snohomish County voters as part of a home rule charter, which replaced the traditional three-member county commission with a five-member council and county executive.[4] [5] The first two new councilmembers was elected on March 11, 1980, joining the three existing commissioners who would continue to serve until 1983, when all seats were up for re-election.[6] [7]
In 2016, the county's Charter Review Commission explored expanding the council to seven members after the next redistricting.[8] The expansion, along with requirements to hold some meetings outside of Everett and include evening meetings for public hearings, were rejected by the commission.[9] The meetings proposal was placed on the November 2016, where it was approved by voters and came into effect the following year, requiring the county council to host at least one evening meeting in each district per year.[10]
The council consists of five members representing five geographic districts of equal population. Each member serves a four-year term during a regular election held during November on odd-numbered years. No member can serve more than three total terms.[11] [12]
Candidates for a council seat must be 21 years old at the time of the election, have lived in Snohomish County for 3 years prior to filing, and be a registered voter in their district.[13]
Districts are redrawn every ten years by an independent Districting Committee using United States Census data.[14]