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The best way to fight the state GOP’s attempted power grab is the simplest: by voting.

National

Can hackers tamper with your vote? Researchers show it’s possible in nearly 30 states

Researchers demonstrate how to alter ballots sent via email. The hack will heighten pressure on election officials in 30 or so states where email voting is permitted but it may be too late to fix the problem for November elections.

Remote plane crash scene on Ketron Island difficult to access

Local

UPDATED: Horizon employee used tug to move plane before stealing it, stayed aloft for more than an hour

Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board, the FBI and Alaska Airlines were headed to Ketron Island on Saturday morning to gather evidence from the site where a Horizon employee crashed a stolen airplane.

Turboprop stolen from Sea-Tac Airport crashes on Ketron Island in Pierce County

Local

Turboprop stolen from Sea-Tac crashes on Ketron Island in Pierce County

A turboprop that was apparently stolen from Sea-Tac International Airport has crashed on Ketron Island.

Buses line up at Intercity Transit’s downtown Olympia Transit Center. The agency will ask voters to approve a sales and use tax increase in November.

Traffic

Intercity Transit will ask for a tax increase in November to fund ‘transformational’ changes

Intercity Transit will ask voters to approve a sales and use tax increase within its jurisdiction in November to maintain existing service and fund improvements.

Elections

Washington Democrats celebrate ‘an embarrassment of riches’ from primary election results

A muscular showing had Democrats leading Republicans in races for at least 20 seats currently held by the GOP — 16 in the House and four in the Senate

Local

Attempted arson, suspicious device left at Kingdom Hall in Yelm, Sheriff’s Office says

Authorities say someone left a device made to look like an explosive outside a Kingdom Hall in Yelm on Wednesday, the latest in a series of attacks on area Kingdom Halls of Jehovah’s Witnesses.

A man and woman attempting to sell a fake gold bar are pictured on Thursday, July 26, 2018.

Crime

Be wary of man, woman attempting to sell fake gold near Olympia, deputies say

A man and a woman were caught on surveillance film attempting to sell a fake gold bar near Olympia, the Thurston County Sheriff’s Office wrote in a news release Thursday.

Thurston Conservation District’s board members at a June meeting. From left: Paul Pickett, Eric Johnson, Linda Powell and Richard Mankamyer.

Local

State report on Thurston Conservation District recommends 2 board members be removed

The Washington State Conservation Commission began investigating complaints against Thurston Conservation District board members late last year. In a report released this week, state staff recommends the commission remove Eric Johnson, the board’s chairman, and Richard Mankamyer, its auditor.

Customers dine at the Costco food court in Issaquah. Costco is planning to tweak its food court menu so that it can add some healthier choices. While the Polish dog is expected to go away, the $1.50 hot dog-soda combo will remain.

Business

Costco food court is dumping the Polish dog, but here's what to expect on the menu

Costco is planning to tweak its food court menu so that it can add some healthier choices. While the Polish dog is expected to go away, the $1.50 hot dog-soda combo will remain.

Seahawks strong safety Kam Chancellor announced his retirement online Sunday, the end to a starring, hard-hitting career forced by his serious neck injury in November.

Sports

With threat of paralysis, Kam Chancellor writes he's not cleared to play for Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks four-time Pro Bowl safety Kam Chancellor writes his neck injury from November increased to an unacceptable level his risk of paralysis and thus doctors have not cleared him to play again. "P.S. Pray for your boy," Chancellor concluded. But there's a reason he didn't write "retired."

Opinion Columns & Blogs

I know the Annapolis shooter

The distance between Annapolis, Maryland, and Olympia, Washington is 2,778 miles. But with each shotgun blast that ripped through the newsroom of the Capital Gazette in Annapolis Thursday, the distance between the two capital cities shrank, then disappeared. Thursday’s horror marked the 154th mass shooting in the United States this year.

Local

Already under scrutiny, Thurston Conservation District board faces allegation by member

Thurston Conservation District faces complaints about its board members, a lawsuit by the board’s chairman, a state investigation and now an allegation of an unlawful meeting by the board’s newest member.

DSHS secretary: 'I know that you are all disappointed'

Latest News

Washington's largest psychiatric hospital loses $53 million in annual funding after failing survey

The loss of certification is the latest black eye for Western State Hospital, the struggling psychiatric hospital in Lakewood, which has been plagued by assaults on staff and patients, long wait times, patient escapes, aging facilities and staffing shortages for years, particularly in the wake of budget cuts during the Great Recession.

Noctiluca scintillans bloom at Saltwater State Park in Des Moines on June 4.

Local

Puget Sound waters are turning orange and Cascade snow is becoming pink. Neither are good signs

A live bat discovered by preschoolers this week has tested positive for rabies, according to Thurston County’s public health department.

Local

Bat found at preschool tests positive for rabies, Thurston County says

A live bat discovered by preschoolers this week has tested positive for rabies, according to Thurston County’s public health department.

The men's area of the Salvation Army's shelter in downtown Olympia, pictured in 2013. The shelter will close next month and reopen as a 24-hour facility in September.

Local

Salvation Army's overnight shelter will close for the summer, reopen as 24-hour option for homeless

The Salvation Army in Olympia plans to close its homeless shelter next month and reopen it as a 24-hour facility in September. Right now the shelter opens at 6 p.m. and closes at 7 a.m., meaning most people staying there are on the streets during the day.

Flanked by his defense attorneys, Larry Jefferson (left) and Kevin Griffin, James Stidd views a projected image of Gail Doyle Wednesday during opening statements in his second-degree murder trial.

Crime

James Stidd found guilty of murder in disappearance of Gail Doyle

James Stidd, accused of killing an Olympia woman whose body was never found, has been found guilty of all charges against him, including second-degree murder.

Crews have started removing the windows and exterior of the long-vacant Capitol Center Building on Fifth Avenue Southwest. A judge last week dismissed a legal challenge to the building project.

Local

Challenge to Views on Fifth development dismissed as project ramps up

A judge has dismissed a legal challenge to the controversial building project on the isthmus between Capitol Lake and West Bay in Olympia. The city’s hearing examiner signed off on the project, called Views on Fifth, in February.

Crime

Missing Bonney Lake girl found safe, police say

The missing Bonney Lake girl has been found safe, police reported Sunday. Lily Christopherson, 15, was found in Puyallup and reunited with her family, Bonney Lake police announced on Twitter.

Ed Galligan resigned Thursday as Port of Olympia's executive director as part of an agreement with the Port Commission.

Local

Galligan's time leading the Port of Olympia ends

Ed Galligan is officially out as executive director of the Port of Olympia. The Port Commission unanimously approved an agreement with Galligan that had him resign Thursday. Rudy Rudolph, director at the port’s Olympia Regional Airport, will serve as interim executive director.

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