City council candidate Dian Ferguson, a former NARAL board chair and head of Seattle's public access network who's running against well-financed incumbent Sally Clark, announced on Twitter today that she will not attend tonight's endorsement meeting of the 43rd District Democrats, calling the "current political endorsement process" an "insider's club." Last week, Clark received the endorsement of the 34th District Democrats (West Seattle) with 69 percent, and last night she won the 37th District's endorsement (Southeast Seattle) with 65 percent.

Asked why she had decided to bow out of the 43rd tonight, Ferguson responded:

It does appear that being a good Democrat, giving years of service to your District and the King County Democrats Central Committee (KCDCC) is really not enough in the current political environment to garner me any endorsements in what now appears to be an 'insider' club. It is a closed shop when it comes to challenging incumbents.  Thus I will choose to skip the 43rd this evening and catch up on other things. It is a stronghold for Sally and my time can be better spent.

I am not writing off the importance or necessarily challenging the merits of the Legislative District process.  My goal is to connect with voters. ...  I am also finding some districts are not representative of the rich diversity that exist in their own districts, yet ask me questions about diversity.  ... I want to work with those who want to reclaim the virtue of inclusion and understand the relationship between not being represented and not being at the table in any meaningful way. ...  My plans will continue to include attending and participating in meaningful campaign activities reflective of diverse constituency groups and voters.

In her speech at the 37th, where she once served as district chair, last night, Ferguson accused Clark—who had just touted her work on improving land use in the city, preserving the social safety net, and promoting "smart transportation"—of talking a good game while being addicted to process. "I'm tired of the Seattle process," Ferguson said. "I don't think we can get enough stuff done." Ferguson, like Clark, supports the deep-bore tunnel.