In an age where civic engagement isn’t always taught in schools or encouraged every day, a state group with ties to Whatcom County is trying to get more people involved in civic life.
Future 42 and its parent organization, Project 42, are dedicated to getting more adults across Whatcom County and the state involved in civic duty. That can range from being educated on upcoming issues being debated at county council to encouraging people to run for local office, especially centrist candidates.
The group states it targets independent voters, but on the Project 42 website, the group lays out that it wants to build “durable conservative infrastructure” and when making the plea for donations, “your investment in Project 42 will enable the center-right forces in our state to be on offense.”
Project 42’s name is derived from Washington’s status as the 42nd state.
“Even though it fits perfectly with Whatcom County being the 42nd District,” co-founder Dann Meade Smith said.
While Project 42 started three years ago, Future 42 started in 2022 and is the group’s first county project. Project 42 also added another county project in Snohomish County.
Since Future 42 started, the group has been dedicated to getting people to take action at the county level, Meade Smith said. That includes sending out action alerts through email asking people to weigh in on a topic in front of Whatcom County Council or hosting candidate and informational forums. The group has about 18,000 people subscribed to its emails.
“Most people don’t know who their Whatcom County Council member is,” he said. “Some people know who their congressman is and maybe their legislator, but when it comes to county council or city council, they may not be aware of their meetings or what they’re debating every week on issues.”
Now Future 42 is having some leadership changes. As former state Sen. Simon Sefzik leaves to attend law school at the University of Virginia, Hannah Ordos, who unsuccessfully ran for Whatcom County Council in 2023, is taking over his role as project director.
Ordos has been involved with Future 42 since last year when she attended the group’s kickoff event.
“Civic engagement is important but not everyone has the time or ability to navigate through the vast amount of information available,” she said, noting she’s dedicated a significant portion of her time over the past few years to learning about local politics and attending events. “I feel that my investment of personal time in issues important to everyday people would be beneficial.”
On top of her role at Future 42, Ordos also volunteers as a support officer for Community Care, is a Be the One mentor and is a North Sound Behavioral Health Advisory Board member. She’s also running for a spot on the Whatcom County Charter Review Commission.
She’s hoping she can grow the group by building relationships with the community.
“This community is full of amazing people and I want to amplify good ideas and help build bridges so those good ideas can get in front of people who can make a change,” she said.
Meade Smith said that while Project 42 and Future 42’s focus is getting more independent voters aware of issues, the group is also trying to get more people to run for local office. That can include more centrist candidates.
The group isn’t focused on getting one party in particular elected to office, Meade Smith said, noting that most of the candidates they’ve supported in the past have been in nonpartisan races. The group has also focused on getting more women to run and are now trying an initiative to get people to run for judgeships.
“We see Whatcom as a very swing district; it traditionally was more Republican as far as the state legislative delegation and now I think it’s swinging a little bit more to the left,” he said. “There’s a reason why we’re working in Whatcom and Snohomish County because those are both very swing districts that have a large group of independent voters and goes back and forth between being more conservative and more liberal.”
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
