About the initiative

Change the system. Improve the odds.

A community proposal prepared by Karl Ohlemann to begin a fact-based conversation about how Cle Elum should be managed.

Purpose

Put a durable question before voters.

This initiative asks whether the city’s chief executive should continue to be chosen through a political election or through a professional recruitment process overseen by the elected council.

It is not a recall, not a candidate campaign, and not a claim that one officeholder caused every city problem. Mayor Matthew Lundh is named only where needed to distinguish the current officeholder from the structure of the office.

The objective is a lawful, transparent, evidence-based voter decision.

Working principles

What this project commits to

Structure over personality

Evaluate the office and its statutory authority, not personal grievances or campaign rhetoric.

Evidence over promises

Use official sources, label preliminary numbers, disclose unknowns, and correct the record when new evidence appears.

Voters over insiders

Neither a petition nor a council resolution decides the outcome. Cle Elum voters do.

Sponsor

Who pays for this site

Karl Ohlemann prepared this community proposal. The Washington PDC restored disclosure requirements in Cle Elum in June 2026. This project does not rely on the small-jurisdiction exemption.

Existing campaign expenses, including website or domain costs, could trigger PDC obligations even though no donations are accepted. Sponsor identification does not by itself establish registration or reporting compliance. Applicable committee registration, reporting, and contributor-disclosure requirements must be confirmed with the Washington PDC.

What is not enabled

No signatures or donations collected.

No petition signatures or voter information are collected.
No donations, payment links, or in-kind contributions are solicited.
No advertising pixels, analytics, or campaign tracking are installed.
No paid promotion is authorized.
This site makes no representation that committee registration has been independently verified.

Questions and answers

Common questions

Is this an effort to recall Mayor Lundh?

No. A recall seeks to remove an official for specified charges under a different legal process. This proposal asks voters to choose a different form of government.

Would Cle Elum still have a mayor?

Yes, but the mayor would be a councilmember serving as council chair and ceremonial head rather than the chief executive.

Would voters lose control?

Voters would no longer directly elect the chief executive. They would continue electing the council, which would appoint and oversee the manager. Whether that is a better accountability model is the central tradeoff voters must decide.

Does a manager guarantee better government?

No. The model creates a professional hiring and evaluation structure, but results would still depend on recruitment, council oversight, public engagement, and the manager’s performance.

Would this save money?

Unknown. A complete fiscal comparison is required before any savings claim. A manager may cost more than current executive compensation while potentially improving capacity and execution.

Is 42 the final signature requirement?

No. It is a preliminary calculation based on the county’s 2025 participation report. The Kittitas County Auditor must confirm the statutory denominator and requirements in writing before circulation.

What is changeourmayor.cleelum?

It is an experimental Freename Web3 address reserved for this project. It will eventually forward to ChangeOurMayor.com, but ordinary browsers require Freename-compatible DNS or a browser extension.