Bob Drewel

Drewel worked as an assistant sales manager at the Rhodes Brothers department store in Seattle and later for a labor-relations firm before moving to Everett.[3][4] Drewel was hired by Everett Community College in 1974 to work in their personnel department and twice served as interim president in 1981 and 1984.[5][6] He was appointed permanently to the position in December 1984, and became interested in politics while involved in the college's lobbying efforts in the Washington State Legislature.[1] During his tenure at the college, Drewel led efforts to rebuild the campus library after it was destroyed in a fire, as well as paying back $1 million in debt to the state after a miscalculation in enrollment numbers, and the establishment of early-retirement and retraining programs for staff.[7]

Drewel was encouraged to run for the office of Snohomish County Executive by local Democrats, including outgoing executive Willis Tucker, and announced his candidacy in April 1991.[1][4] He received the early endorsement of the Snohomish County Labor Council over Republican candidate and state senator Cliff Bailey, who he narrowly defeated in the September primary; both candidates advanced to the general election in November, defeating two other candidates from their respective parties.[8][9] Drewel won 53 percent of votes in the general election, and pledged to "restore confidence in government".[10]

Drewel was re-elected to a second term in 1995,[11] and a third term in 1999.[2][12] He was term limited after his 1999 re-election, and was seen as a possible Democratic gubernatorial candidate for the 2004 election.[1]

Drewel was appointed the executive director of the Puget Sound Regional Council in December 2003, and served in that position until his retirement on January 2, 2014.[3][13] He later served as interim chancellor for the Everett satellite campus of Washington State University in 2014.[14]