Wash. Secretary of State criticized over DC meetings with lobbying groups

OLYMPIA, Wash. -- The Democratic challenger to Republican Secretary of State Kim Wyman is criticizing her for closed-door meetings earlier this year with lobbyist groups who wanted to weigh in on ballot measures in a handful of states, including Washington.

A May meeting in Washington, D.C. hosted by the Republican Secretaries of State Committee was detailed Friday in a story by The New York Times.

Public records obtained by the Times show a May 3 meeting between Wyman and the secretaries of state of Colorado and Ohio with and the National Restaurant Association, facilitated by the Republican Secretaries of State Committee.

The restaurant group wanted to discuss proposed minimum wage initiatives in the three states. Wyman says she met with them only to explain the initiative process in Washington state.