The Times recommends re-electing Reagan Dunn to the Metropolitan King County Council.

VOTERS should confidently re-elect Reagan Dunn to his seat on the Metropolitan King County Council.

Running for his second full term for the District 9 seat that stretches from south Bellevue to Enumclaw, he has proved himself an effective public servant who builds coalitions but is also willing to go his own way when conscience dictates.

Dunn was a key player in efforts to preserve about 7,000 acres along the Raging River. King County worked with the state Department of Natural Resources and environmentalists to preserve this part of the Mountains to Sound Greenway along Interstate 90. His Safe Neighborhoods Initiative helped create a partnership between the county sheriff's office and landlords to help law enforcement better track down illegal labs manufacturing methamphetamine.

Dunn also should be commended for standing up to the county's ill-conceived foot-ferry tax with a goal of putting ferries on Lake Washington. He was the only one of nine council members to vote against the proposal, which has fallen out of favor in the face of the county's severe budget crunch.

Dunn's challenger, Beverly Harison Tonda, a financial-services trainer from Maple Valley, is a promising candidate we hope stays involved. But she can't beat Dunn's record of effective public service.

Re-elect Reagan Dunn to the King County Council.