Municipal and county elections are held on odd years in Washington State, but some lawmakers want to change that. Rep. Mia Gregerson (D-SeaTac) introduced House Bill 1727, which would move local races to even years. The bill has eight co-sponsors and has already passed out of local government committee on
Apartment-heavy areas continue to see lower turnout rates, but enough voted to eke out a win for Sawant. Earlier this month, Councilmember Kshama Sawant survived a recall election by 310 votes. Like her previous elections, Sawant’s strength was overwhelmingly in Capitol Hill and the Central District — formerly redlined areas
Business leaders just can’t get rid of Kshama Sawant no matter how hard they try. Seattle’s firebrand socialist city councilmember prevailed in her fourth election in eight years, this one a first: a recall election and a close one at that. The margin is 310 votes or about
We’ve covered how the 2021 election didn’t go progressives’ way in three key Seattle races, despite a late surge in progressive ballots. But new turnout maps from Jason Weill show that the old pattern of higher turnout in single family areas than in apartment-heavy areas was on steroids
Councilmember Kshama Sawant is ahead by 232 votes after Thursday’s ballot drop. With late votes trending strongly her way, that lead is likely to grow with remaining ballots. King County Elections said recalls are exempt from recounts, and the present margin would exceed the recount threshold anyway. It appears
Polls closed last night in the recall election of socialist Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant. Initial counts show Sawant trailing by almost 2,000 votes in the first ballot drop. Update: Sawant is down just 246 votes as of Wednesday’s drop. On election night, King County Elections initially estimated
Single family zones overwhelmingly swung for Mayor-Elect Bruce Harrell, Councilmember-Elect Sara Nelson, and Seattle City Attorney-Elect Ann Davison, as new precinct-level final results map verify. Harrell’s 17-point victory over Council President Lorena González was the most resounding, while Davison (the first Republican elected in Seattle in decades) won by
Anyone who’s been paying close attention to Seattle politics the last few years (and even some who haven’t) has an opinion about Kshama Sawant. The Urbanist Elections Committee has endorsed her time and again (mostly against weaksauce opponents) because of the unrelenting truth-telling she does and the critical
Homelessness was the dominant campaign issue, but housing looms as an issue progressives can win on. On election night, Lorena González was down 29.6 points in the Seattle Mayor’s race, City Attorney candidate Nicole Thomas-Kennedy was down 17.3 points, City Council candidate Nikkita Oliver was down 20.
Council President Lorena González’s resounding loss to former Council President Bruce Harrell marks the third straight Seattle mayoral election in which the progressive fell to the corporate-friendly centrist. González conceded the race Thursday. To make matters worse, progressives also lost a Seattle City Council seat and the City Attorney’
As of 8pm this evening, the early returns for the 2021 November General Election have been posted. Counting will continue over the coming weeks, usually with daily counts being released after 4pm. The Urbanist Elections Committee made endorsements in several city and county races in September; some are leading, some
With one day left before polls close on the 2021 election, campaigns are in a mad dash to the finish line. Voters have some of the starkest candidate choices in recent memory, and activists on both sides have emphasized how much is at stake. “Don’t wanna sound hyperbolic but
Three Bellevue City Council seats are up for election this year and voters face a stark choice. Electing progressive challengers Ruth Lipscomb and Dexter Borbe over conservative incumbents would shift the Bellevue Council in a progressive direction after years of cautious conservatism. Technically these races are nonpartisan but incumbents Jared
Recently, I got called out in a discussion where I labeled something a “bad faith” argument. We were talking about the last Seattle City Council election between Dan Strauss and Heidi Wills for District 6. I said one reason it was wholly appropriate Wills lost because she made a bad
The Seattle Mayoral race is shaping up to be a tight one. Just two points separated Bruce Harrell and Lorena González in the primary, and a few polls dropped in the past week, most of which indicated a close race. The outlier was a Crosscut/Elway poll that showed Bruce
This election, Seattle can do much to advance progressive causes and elevate visionary leaders. The flip side of the coin is a possible retreat to the comfortable conservatism of decades past. Blaming the poor for being poor, catering to the rich so they can consolidate even more wealth and power,
Seattle City Council candidate Nikkita Oliver joined The Urbanist for the September monthly meetup. During the meeting, Oliver discussed wide-ranging priorities that they would pursue if they win Position No. 9 on the city council — a seat that M. Lorena González is vacating for her mayoral run. Oliver is the
Yesterday, the Seattle Community Police Commission (CPC) announced that Bruce Harrell had declined their invitation to a mayoral candidate forum on police accountability and public safety, leading them to cancel the event. Both leading candidates are promising to increase police accountability and reduce incidents of racial bias and excessive force,
King County Elections finalized Primary Election results on Tuesday and Seattle’s data wizards quickly went to work conjuring maps showing precinct-level results. What emerged was a familiar pattern: left-wing candidates dominated in Seattle’s urban villages, the densest neighborhoods where much of the city’s growth has been funneled
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge James Robart summoned City Attorney Pete Holmes and Court Monitor Anthony Oftelie to his courtroom to get an update on where Seattle stands in the consent decree. It turned out to be more of a retirement party for Holmes, who has been in office
Primary results have been a Rorschach test for pundits, with moderates divining a moderate resurgence and lefties seeing progressives well-positioned. Late returns have strongly favored progressives. The Seattle City Attorney’s race showed the centrist incumbent to be in a weak position and could be a bellwether of the city’
As of 8pm this evening, the early returns for the 2021 August Primary have been posted. Counting will continue over the coming weeks, usually with daily counts being released after 4pm. The Urbanist Elections Committee made endorsements in several city and county races last month, but three of our preferred
The progressive wing of Seattle politics is having a vigorous debate about the future of the city with plenty of new policy ideas bouncing around. So, what’s going on in the center and right-wing politics? It’s hard to find anything new, but certainly the age-old issue of crime
Ryan Calkins is running for his second term on the Port of Seattle Commission. He won his Position 1 seat in 2017, earning The Urbanist’s endorsement in that election. Calkins works as a consultant and coach at Ventures, a charitable organization that helps low-income start and grow their businesses
Stephanie Bowman is seeking a third term on the Seattle Port Commission. Bowman is executive director of Washington ABC, a nonprofit focused on asset building through investments in education, homeownership, savings, and small business development. Before joining the Seattle Port Commission, she worked at the Port of Tacoma in Federal
Hamdi Mohamed is running for the Seattle Port Commission Position 3 against incumbent Stephanie Bowman. Mohamed served as Deputy District Director for Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal before taking a position as a policy advisor to the King County Office of Equity and Social Justice. Her website notes some results she’s
Peter Steinbrueck is seeking his second term on the Seattle Port Commission Position 4. Steinbrueck was a Seattle City Council member from 1997 to 2007. An architect by training, he founded a consulting firm in 2008 and has worked on some high-profile appeals of housing projects. Steinbrueck’s father Victor
Toshiko Grace Hasegawa is running for Seattle Port Commission Position 4 against incumbent Peter Steinbrueck. Governor Jay Inslee appointed Hasegawa as Executive Director of the Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, in 2018. “Part of that work has involved coordinating with our Port on contract opportunities for women and minority
Don’t say we didn’t warn you. The Urbanist has been highlighting the blunders of the Durkan administration from the campaign to year one to her recent fall from grace over violating public records law while botching the City’s response to police brutality protests. Recent polling suggests Seattle
In partnership with the Mt. Baker Hub Alliance, Mt. Baker Mutual Aid, Disability Rights WA, and Mercy Housing, The Urbanist is sponsoring a mayoral forum on Tuesday, July 20th, from 6 to 7:30pm at the amphitheater of Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park. The event will also be broadcast
Dave Upthegrove is running for a third term representing the 5th District in the King County Council. Before his County Council career, Upthegrove served in the Washington State House of Representatives from 2001 to 2013. He was a co-sponsor of recent legislation to expand tenant rights and require just cause
Shukri Olow is running for King County Council District 5 against longtime incumbent Dave Upthegrove. She is a community organizer and doctoral scholar. “As an immigrant, refugee, and product of the Kent public housing system, Dr. Olow has seen and lived the challenges that so many members of our community
Ubax Gardheere is running for King County Council in District 9 against incumbent Reagan Dunn. Until resigning in protest this April, Gardheere led the Equitable Development Initiative for the City of Seattle; in her resignation letter she noted mistreatment and referred to Jenny Durkan as “a dictator posturing as a
Pete Holmes is running for his fourth term as Seattle City Attorney. He has been closely involved in issues like gun control, decriminalizing marijuana, and attempts to reform the Seattle Police Department via federal Consent Decree negotiations and related accountability measures. Before first being elected in 2009, Holmes worked in
Nicole Thomas-Kennedy is running for Seattle City Attorney against long-time incumbent Pete Holmes. She was a late entrant to the race but quickly collected $100,000 in Democracy Vouchers and picked up some campaign buzz. As an abolitionist public defender, she is proposing some big changes to how the City
Dow Constantine is seeking his fourth term as King County Executive. Born and raised in West Seattle, Constantine first won elected office in 1996 as a State Representative. In early 2002, Constantine was appointed to the King County Council to the seat vacated after Greg Nickels was elected Seattle Mayor.
State Senator Joe Nguyen is running for King County Executive against three-term incumbent Dow Constantine. Nguyen’s parents emigrated from Vietnam as war refugees and settled in White Center. Nguyen stepped up as a caretaker and breadwinner after his dad was seriously injured in a car crash and said transit
From a rooftop in “Uptown” (née Lower Queen Anne, and ever thus in our hearts), this year’s endorsement process culminated in what felt like a quintessential Seattle experience — evening light on the space needle, multimillion dollar homes visible on a nearby slope, an errant dog loping about, and a
Teresa Mosqueda is seeking a second term on Seattle City Council. She burst onto the scene in 2017, earning The Urbanist’s Primary endorsement (as well as many others) on the way to a decisive 60% win in the General. She was a key vote and champion for Mandatory Housing
Brianna Thomas’s impressive resume includes leading the successful campaign for a $15 wage in SeaTac, which kicked off the broader “Fight for 15” movement, and the Honest Election Initiative that won Seattle’s Democracy Voucher program. The Urbanist endorsed Thomas in the 2015 primary for Council District 1, but
Nikkita Oliver ran for mayor in 2017 on the Seattle People’s Party platform and finished a close third behind Cary Moon in the primary. This cycle, Oliver opted to run for Seattle City Council instead of running for mayor again, targeting Position 9 citywide seat vacated by Council President
Seattle Subway and co-sponsor Seattle Transit Blog, both members of the MASS Coalition alongside The Urbanist, held a mayoral forum focused on the topic of mass transit in the Seattle area. It was the rare 2021 political discussion in which the word Covid never made an appearance, although references to
When State Senator Joe Nguyen was student body president of his class at Seattle University, he organized a meeting around the subject of providing free public transit passes for students. “Just no” is how he described the reaction from the King County Metro representative who attended that meeting. Nguyen, who
Casey Sixkiller is vying to replace outgoing Mayor Jenny Durkan, his former boss. Sixkiller has a long career in politics and lobbying that included stints in the offices of former U.S. Representative Joe McDermott, Senator Patty Murray, and King County Executive Dow Constantine. His consulting firm’s lobbying clients
Seattle Mayoral candidate Colleen Echohawk joined The Urbanist for the March monthly meetup. During the meeting, she discussed wide-ranging priorities that she would pursue if she becomes the city’s next mayor.
Former Seattle City Council President Bruce Harrell is vying to replace outgoing Mayor Jenny Durkan. Harrell’s campaign bio notes he grew up in the redlined Central District the son of a Black father and Japanese mother. From star linebacker at Garfield High School and the University of Washington to
Lance Randall was the first to jump in the Seattle Mayoral race back in September — even before Mayor Jenny Durkan announced she wasn’t running for reelection. He brings a wealth of experience in community economic development. Born and raised in Georgia, Randall moved to Seattle in 2007 to take
On Wednesday, five Seattle Mayor candidates squared off in a forum that we co-hosted alongside our allies at the Move All Seattle Sustainability (MASS) coalition and elsewhere. We learned a great deal about the candidates in 90 minutes, so we encourage you to watch the video and check out the
Jessyn Farrell is vying to replace outgoing Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, and she brings a variety of experience. Farrell was elected to the State House in 2012, representing the 46th District until she ran for Seattle Mayor in 2017. She finished fourth in that primary with 12.5% of the
Andrew Grant Houston was one of the first candidates to jump into race to replace outgoing Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan. Well known in urbanist circles as Ace of @TheUrbanAce handle on Twitter, Houston is a queer Black and Latino architect, environmental advocate, housing activist, and a high-risk individual who lives
Council President M. Lorena González is among the crowded field to replace outgoing Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan. González was elected in 2015 as the first Latinx City Councilmember in Seattle history and would also be Seattle’s first Latinx Mayor if elected. She grew up in Central Washington as the
In December, Jenny Durkan announced she wouldn’t seek a second term as Mayor of Seattle, which opened up the floodgates of candidates looking to replace her. The leading candidate based on campaign cash on hand is Colleen Echohawk, who was one of the first to max out Democracy Vouchers
Seattle City Council President M. Lorena González was first elected to her citywide seat in 2015. This year, she is running for Mayor. In this meetup video, González talks about transportation, affordable housing, zoning, climate action, policing, and more. You can also read our recent interview wit
This month, The Urbanist is excited to be joined by Seattle City Council President and Mayoral Candidate M. Lorena González for our June meetup from 6:15 to 7:30pm on Thursday, June 3rd. The daughter of farmworkers, Lorena worked her way through community college, earned a business degree at
King County Executive Dow Constantine is seeking a fourth term. His campaign war chest is vast and slate of endorsements is impressive, but for the first time he faces a credible progressive challenger in State Senator Joe Nguyen (D-White Center). Constantine is touting his record and pointing to his leadership
State Senator Joe Nguyen (D-White Center) announced his bid for King County Executive last week, promising a “New Deal for King County.” The move added immediate excitement to a sleepy race that had looked like a coronation for the incumbent. Executive Dow Constantine is seeking a fourth term and didn’
At this month’s meetup, Seattle mayoral candidate Andrew Grant Houston (“Ace” for short) stopped by to talk about his policy platform. Ace is a certified architect, a housing advocate, and interim policy manager with Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda’s office.
In January, the Shoreline City Council voted to place a park improvement and park land acquisition bond measure on the April 27, 2021 special election ballot. If approved, Proposition 1 would replace the expiring $18,795,000 15-year park improvement bond. The new bonding measure would specifically allow the issuance
Nikkita Oliver entered the race for Seattle City Council with instant name recognition, having finished a close third four years ago in a run for mayor. Oliver’s profile rose even farther last year during the months of protests against police brutality. Perhaps the most iconic moment of the summer
Colleen Echohawk thought long and hard about running for mayor. The executive director of the Chief Seattle Club — a services organization in Pioneer Square that supports the disproportionately large population of Native people experiencing homelessness — spoke to elders in her community before deciding to take the plunge. One was her
Former City Councilmember Bruce Harrell announced his bid for Mayor of Seattle today. While light on policy specifics, the themes Harrell stressed included decreasing homelessness through a philanthropic push, police accountability, and fostering a pro-business environment. While portraying himself as a reformer, Harrell criticized the defund movement. “We need to
Brianna Thomas is running for Seattle City Council Position 9, a citywide seat that her boss, Council President M. Lorena González, now holds but is vacating to run for mayor. During her years as a legislative aide, Thomas has worked on a myriad of policies including shoring up workers’ rights