Katie Blinn, Richard McEntee or Jan Shabro will be the next Pierce County Auditor when the County Council appoints a successor to Pat McCarthy at its Tues., Jan. 13 council meeting, according to Pierce County officials.

An ad-hoc committee appointed by the council named the three finalists at a special meeting this afternoon. County Councilmember Roger Bush chaired the committee, which also included Councilmember Barbara Gelman, Steilacoom Mayor Ron Lucas, Lakewood City Councilmember Claudia Thomas, and University Place City Councilmember Lorna Smith.

The eventual appointee will fill a portion of the unexpired term of McCarthy, who was sworn is as Pierce County Executive on Jan. 2. A special election in November will determine who serves the remainder of McCarthy’s term, which ends Dec. 31, 2010.

Blinn is director of elections for the Secretary of State’s Office, McEntee is a financial services executive from University Place, and Shabro is a former state representative and County Council member from Lake Tapps.

The county Auditor conducts elections for all Pierce County taxing districts and performs recording, licensing, and animal services for the county.

The Pierce County Council meets Tuesdays at 3 p.m. at the County-City Building (930 Tacoma Ave. S., Room 1045) in Tacoma.