(The Center Square) – A group of sheriffs in eastern Washington filed a lawsuit on Friday challenging a new law allowing unelected bureaucrats appointed by the governor to oust elected sheriffs from office.
Senate Bill 5974 was one of the more contentious proposals to reach the governor’s desk following the 2026 legislative session. Democrats passed it along party lines, despite overwhelming opposition from the Republican minority and sheriffs across the state who argue the statute is largely unconstitutional.
Gov. Bob Ferguson signed it Wednesday, with some “reservations about the process for creating a vacancy.” He called SB 5974 a “great bill,” but noted that Rep. John Lovick, D-Mill Creek, might end up doing a “little work” to address his concerns with other sponsors ahead of the next legislative session.
The law will take effect on April 30, just before the candidate filing period opens for the 2026 election, unless the courts block it first. Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels, Pend Oreille County Sheriff Glenn Blankeslee, Stevens County Sheriff Brad Make and Ferry County Sheriff Ray Maycumber filed a lawsuit last Friday asking the Pend Oreille Superior Court to do just that: declare SB 5974 as unconstitutional.
“This case challenges a statute that reorders who governs the office of county sheriff in Washington and imposes [an] unconstitutional loyalty oath as a condition of filing as a candidate for the office of county sheriff,” according to the 13-page lawsuit the plaintiffs filed Friday. “The Governor and Legislature have ignored six decades of case law holding such legislation to be facially unconstitutional.”
Mike Faulk, deputy communications director of the Washington state Office of the Attorney General, told The Center Square in an email that AG Nick Brown and his team are still reviewing the lawsuit. Ferguson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment before publishing on Monday.
SB 5974 requires sheriff candidates to be at least 25 years old, have five years of law enforcement experience, pass a background investigation, have no felony or gross misdemeanor convictions and be certified by the state’s Criminal Justice Training Commission within nine months of becoming sheriff.
It also requires candidates to sign a statement swearing that they meet these criteria and have no history of conduct that would lead the CJTC to deny or revoke their peace officer certification.
The CJTC includes 21 members, 19 of whom are appointed by the governor, and most of the positions don’t require law enforcement experience. The plaintiffs argue that the new and existing criteria that the CJTC uses to determine whether to certify a peace officer include “broad, discretionary standards.”
“No candidate could possibly know what conduct the CJTC might deny or revoke certification for, making it impossible to know what a candidate is swearing — literally or as applied,” according to the lawsuit. “As a result, the oath required by SB 5974 for any potential candidate for the office … includes language that is both vague and facially unconstitutional under controlling federal and state case law.”
Pend Oreille Superior Court has set a hearing for April 16 to consider the plaintiffs’ motion for a declaratory judgment and a preliminary injunction.
