As has long been expected, Secretary of State Sam Reed announced that he would retire at the end of his current term, and not seek reelection in 2012. A Republican, Reed was first elected to the office in 2000, after serving 23 years as Thurston County Auditor.

I can't say I've agreed with Reed on every issue, for example his advocacy for our bullshit, top-two primary or his efforts to change the ballot deadline from postmarked by to received by election day. I've also had concerns over what I see as an almost nonexistent effort to root out signature fraud in the initiative industry. But if you're expecting me to pronounce "good riddance," simply because Reed is a Republican, don't hold your breath.

In many ways, Washington state was supremely fortunate to have a Republican like Reed running the Secretary of State's office during the turmoil of the 2004 gubernatorial election controversy. Again, I didn't agree with all of his decisions, and he deserves some blame for letting events get out from under him during the early weeks of the dispute. But there is little question that Reed attempted to execute his office as fairly and neutrally as one could possibly hope for from a partisan elected official. More than anything, Reed deserves credit for helping to preserve and restore confidence in our election systems, and for this he earned my respect.

So thanks, Sam, for your public service, and I wish you all the best in retirement. Except, you know, whenever you work to elect other Republicans. In those efforts I hope you fall flat on your face.