City elections in Seattle, Washington (August 6, 2019 primary election)

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2020
2018
2019 Seattle elections
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Election dates
Filing deadline: May 17, 2019
Primary election: August 6, 2019
General election: November 5, 2019
Election stats
Offices up: City council
Total seats up: 7
Election type: Nonpartisan
Other municipal elections
U.S. municipal elections, 2019

The city of Seattle, Washington, held elections for city council Districts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 on November 5, 2019. A primary election was held on August 6, 2019. The top two candidates advanced from the August 6 primary election to the Nov. 5 general election.[1] This page covers the primary election. Click here for coverage of the general election.

Incumbents in districts 2, 4, 6, and 7 did not seek re-election. Between seven and 14 candidates filed to run for each of the four open seats. Three incumbents ran for re-election, and all three advanced from the primary election. Lisa Herbold (District 1) faced two challengers in the primary. Kshama Sawant (District 3) and Debora Juarez (District 5) each faced five.

The elections occurred a year after the repeal of the 2018 head tax proposal, which would have required businesses grossing at least $20 million to pay $275 per employee in order to fund affordable housing programs for the homeless. The city council voted to pass the head tax 9-0 in May 2018 but then repealed it by a 7-2 vote in June 2018 after running into opposition from the city’s business community, including online retailer Amazon. Sawant and Position 8 At-large Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda cast the two votes against repealing the tax. Juarez and Herbold voted with five others to repeal it.[2]

The Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce opposed the head tax.[3] The Chamber's political action committee, Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy (CASE), endorsed nine candidates across the seven races and raised more than $1 million as of July 31, 2019 (including $250,000 from Amazon). It had spent $477,000 supporting endorsed candidates and opposing Herbold and Sawant through the primaries. One CASE-endorsed candidate advanced from each of the seven primary elections.

Through the primary elections, the races had seen $976,000 in total satellite spending, which was more than in the 2015 primary and general elections combined for the seven district seats.[4][5]

Positions 8 and 9 on the council, at-large seats held by Mosqueda and M. Lorena González, respectively, were not up for election until 2021.[6]

Across all seven elections, 56 candidates filed to run.[7] In 2015, 37 candidates filed for the same seven seats. This was the second election in which a voter voucher program was being used to provide public funding to campaigns. It was also the second election in recent history in which councilmembers were elected by district; from 1910 to 2013, all Seattle councilmembers were elected at large.

Seattle voter? Dates you need to know.
Candidate Filing DeadlineMay 17, 2019
Online/Mail Primary Election Registration DeadlineJuly 29, 2019
Online/Mail General Election Registration DeadlineOctober 28, 2019
Primary ElectionAugust 6, 2019
General ElectionNovember 5, 2019
Voting information
Voting methodVoting is conducted by mail
Go to this page to find your county voting center.

Recapping Seattle's City Council Primary - Ballotpedia's "Beyond the Headlines" series

This election was a battleground race. Other 2019 battlegrounds included:

Candidates and results[edit]

Click the tabs below to see results for each district.

District 1[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 1

Incumbent Lisa Herbold defeated Phil Tavel in the general election for Seattle City Council District 1 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Lisa_Herbold.jpg

Lisa Herbold (Nonpartisan)
 
55.7
 
20,033

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Phil_Tavel.jpg

Phil Tavel (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
43.9
 
15,787
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4
 
139

Total votes: 35,959
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 1

Incumbent Lisa Herbold and Phil Tavel defeated Brendan Kolding in the primary for Seattle City Council District 1 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Lisa_Herbold.jpg

Lisa Herbold (Nonpartisan)
 
50.6
 
13,405

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Phil_Tavel.jpg

Phil Tavel (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
32.3
 
8,558

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/BrendanKolding.jpg

Brendan Kolding (Nonpartisan)
 
16.7
 
4,435
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
85

Total votes: 26,483
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 2[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 2

Tammy Morales defeated Mark Solomon in the general election for Seattle City Council District 2 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Tammy_Morales.png

Tammy Morales (Nonpartisan)
 
60.5
 
16,379

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Solomon.jpg

Mark Solomon (Nonpartisan)
 
39.1
 
10,586
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4
 
121

Total votes: 27,086

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 2

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 2 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Tammy_Morales.png

Tammy Morales (Nonpartisan)
 
50.1
 
10,630

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Solomon.jpg

Mark Solomon (Nonpartisan)
 
23.2
 
4,923

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Ari Hoffman (Nonpartisan)
 
11.5
 
2,451

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Phyllis Porter (Nonpartisan)
 
5.9
 
1,254

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/FC672454-2E50-407E-8BE8-B5E191D8FC44.jpeg

Chris Peguero (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
4.7
 
1,000

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Omari Tahir-Garrett (Nonpartisan)
 
2.9
 
607

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Henry Dennison (Nonpartisan)
 
1.4
 
304
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
61

Total votes: 21,230
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 3[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 3

Incumbent Kshama Sawant defeated Egan Orion in the general election for Seattle City Council District 3 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/KshamaSawant12.jpeg

Kshama Sawant (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
51.8
 
22,263

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Screen_Shot_2019-10-28_at_2.32.49_PM-min.png

Egan Orion (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
47.7
 
20,488
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.5
 
205

Total votes: 42,956
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 3

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 3 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/KshamaSawant12.jpeg

Kshama Sawant (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
36.7
 
12,088

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Screen_Shot_2019-10-28_at_2.32.49_PM-min.png

Egan Orion (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
21.5
 
7,078

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Pat_Murakami.jpg

Pat Murakami (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
13.0
 
4,279

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Zachary_DeWolf.jpg

Zachary DeWolf (Nonpartisan)
 
12.6
 
4,147

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Ami Nguyen (Nonpartisan)
 
9.2
 
3,028

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Logan_Head.jpg

Logan Bowers (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
6.8
 
2,250
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
59

Total votes: 32,929
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 4[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 4

Alex Pedersen defeated Shaun Scott in the general election for Seattle City Council District 4 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Alex_Pedersen.jpg

Alex Pedersen (Nonpartisan)
 
51.9
 
16,954

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Shaun_Scott_.jpg

Shaun Scott (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
47.7
 
15,568
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4
 
119

Total votes: 32,641
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 4

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 4 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Alex_Pedersen.jpg

Alex Pedersen (Nonpartisan)
 
40.4
 
10,447

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Shaun_Scott_.jpg

Shaun Scott (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
23.3
 
6,020

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Emily Myers (Nonpartisan)
 
12.8
 
3,326

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Cathy Tuttle (Nonpartisan)
 
12.8
 
3,322

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Voters_Pamphlet_Headshot_2.jpg

Heidi Stuber (Nonpartisan)
 
3.8
 
981

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Beth Mountsier (Nonpartisan)
 
2.8
 
718

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Sasha Anderson (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
1.3
 
328

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Joshua Newman (Nonpartisan)
 
1.2
 
317

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Frank Krueger (Nonpartisan)
 
0.9
 
237

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Ethan_Headshot_Photo.jpg

Ethan Hunter (Nonpartisan)
 
0.5
 
119
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
71

Total votes: 25,886
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 5[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 5

Incumbent Debora Juarez defeated Ann Davison in the general election for Seattle City Council District 5 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/DeboraJuarez.jpg

Debora Juarez (Nonpartisan)
 
60.6
 
19,532

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/ann-davison-sattler-headshot.jpg

Ann Davison (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
39.1
 
12,588
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4
 
114

Total votes: 32,234
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 5

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 5 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/DeboraJuarez.jpg

Debora Juarez (Nonpartisan)
 
45.1
 
11,085

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/ann-davison-sattler-headshot.jpg

Ann Davison (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
26.7
 
6,564

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Headshot_John_Lombard.jpg

John Lombard (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
13.0
 
3,201

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/TaylaMahoney-1.jpg

Tayla Mahoney (Nonpartisan)
 
7.1
 
1,742

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Mark Mendez (Nonpartisan)
 
6.3
 
1,558

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Alex-Tsimerman.jpg

Alex Tsimerman (Nonpartisan)
 
1.5
 
376
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
50

Total votes: 24,576
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 6[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 6

Dan Strauss defeated Heidi Wills in the general election for Seattle City Council District 6 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/unnamed-41.jpg

Dan Strauss (Nonpartisan)
 
55.7
 
23,868

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Wills.jpg

Heidi Wills (Nonpartisan)
 
43.8
 
18,799
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.5
 
221

Total votes: 42,888

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 6

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 6 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/unnamed-41.jpg

Dan Strauss (Nonpartisan)
 
34.1
 
11,328

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Wills.jpg

Heidi Wills (Nonpartisan)
 
21.2
 
7,048

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Sergio García (Nonpartisan)
 
14.3
 
4,730

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Jay Fathi (Nonpartisan)
 
13.2
 
4,367

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Kate Martin (Nonpartisan)
 
3.4
 
1,137

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Jon-Lisbin.png

Jon Lisbin (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
3.2
 
1,063

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Jeremy Cook (Nonpartisan)
 
2.5
 
829

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Melissa Hall (Nonpartisan)
 
2.5
 
820

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Ed_Campaign_Photo-min.jpeg

Ed Pottharst (Nonpartisan)
 
1.8
 
599

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

John Peeples (Nonpartisan)
 
1.4
 
452

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Joey Massa (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
0.9
 
299

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Terry Rice (Nonpartisan)
 
0.9
 
287

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Kara Ceriello (Nonpartisan)
 
0.4
 
146

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Bobby Miller (Nonpartisan)
 
 
0
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.2
 
67

Total votes: 33,172
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

District 7[edit]

General election
General election for Seattle City Council District 7

Andrew Lewis defeated Jim Pugel in the general election for Seattle City Council District 7 on November 5, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/80182230_andrew_fishermans_terminal_headshot.jpeg

Andrew Lewis (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
53.0
 
18,336

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Pugel.jpg

Jim Pugel (Nonpartisan)
 
46.6
 
16,122
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.4
 
152

Total votes: 34,610
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Seattle City Council District 7

The following candidates ran in the primary for Seattle City Council District 7 on August 6, 2019.

Candidate
%
Votes

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/80182230_andrew_fishermans_terminal_headshot.jpeg

Andrew Lewis (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
31.7
 
8,409

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Pugel.jpg

Jim Pugel (Nonpartisan)
 
24.8
 
6,566

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Daniela Lipscomb-Eng (Nonpartisan)
 
9.8
 
2,591

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Michael George (Nonpartisan)
 
9.3
 
2,460

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Gene Burrus (Nonpartisan)
 
5.7
 
1,501

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Jason Williams (Nonpartisan)
 
5.1
 
1,347

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Don Harper (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
4.8
 
1,265

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

James Donaldson (Nonpartisan)
 
3.1
 
824

Silhouette Placeholder Image.png

Naveed Jamali (Nonpartisan)
 
3.0
 
788

Image of https://s3.amazonaws.com/ballotpedia-api4/files/thumbs/100/100/Isabelle_J._Kerner.png

Isabelle Kerner (Nonpartisan) Candidate Connection
 
2.6
 
691
  Other/Write-in votes
 
0.3
 
80

Total votes: 26,522
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Races with incumbents seeking re-election[edit]

District 1[edit]

Incumbent Lisa Herbold was first elected in 2015, defeating Shannon Braddock by a margin of 0.2 percentage points. She faced former police lieutenant Brendan Kolding and attorney Phil Tavel in the August 6, 2019, primary election.[8]

Campaign finance[edit]

Endorsements[edit]

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at elections@ballotpedia.org.

For endorsement lists on campaign websites, click the following links:


Endorsements
Endorsement Herbold Kolding Tavel
Elected officials
U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D)
Seattle City Councilmember M. Lorena González
State Sen. Joe Nguyen
State Sen. Bob Hasegawa
State Rep. Zack Hudgins
State Rep. Steve Bergquist
State Rep. Mia Gregerson
State Rep. Nicole Macri
State Rep. Javier Valdez
King County Councilmember Joe McDermott
King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski
King County Councilmember Larry Gossett
Port Commissioner Peter Steinbrueck
Tukwila Councilmember De’Sean Quinn
Seattle School Board President Leslie Harris
Sewer District Commissioner Bill Tracy
Newspapers and editorials
The Stranger editorial board[9]
The Seattle Times editorial board
Unions
Martin Luther King County Labor Council
Ironworkers Local 86
UNITE HERE Local 8
Service Employees International Union Local 6
Service Employees International Union Local 1199
Laborers Local 242
International Union of Painters & Allied Trades District Council 5
Pier Truckers Association
Organizations
King County Democrats
National Women’s Political Caucus
King County Young Democrats
11th District Democrats
Fuse Washington[10]
West Seattle Health Club
Seattle King County Realtors
Washington Technology Industry Association
PACs
Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy
Seattle Hospitality For Progress

District 3[edit]

Incumbent Kshama Sawant was first elected in 2013, when she defeated incumbent Richard Conlin by a margin of 1.8 percentage points. She faced cannabis store owner Logan Bowers, Seattle School Board member Zachary DeWolf, public defender Ami Nguyen, Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce director Egan Orion, and IT company owner Pat Murakami in the August 6, 2019, primary election.[8]

Campaign finance[edit]

Endorsements[edit]

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at elections@ballotpedia.org.

For endorsement lists on campaign websites, click the following links:


Endorsements
Endorsement Bowers DeWolf Murakami Nguyen Orion Sawant
Elected officials
State Rep. Gerry Pollet
State Rep. Cindy Ryu
State Rep. Gael Tarleton
Seattle City Councilwoman M. Lorena González
Seattle City Councilwoman Teresa Mosqueda
Seattle City Councilwoman Debora Juarez
Seattle Port Commissioner Ryan Calkins
Seattle School Board President Leslie Harris
Seattle School Board Vice President Rick Burke
Seattle School Board Director Jill Geary
Seattle School Board director Scott Pinkham
Seattle School Board director Eden Mack
Seattle School Board director Betty Patu
King County Councilmember Larry Gossett
Individuals
Philosopher and activist Noam Chomsky[11]
Former Seattle Mayor and City Councilmember Tim Burgess
Unions
Martin Luther King County Labor Council
Teamsters 117
Teamsters 174
Teamsters 763
Ironworkers Local 86
Seattle Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 32
Service Employees International Union Local 775
HOD Carriers and Laborers Union Local 242
Seattle Education Association
Service Employees International Union Local 925
UNITE HERE Local 8
Washington Federation of State Employees Local 3488
Washington Federation of State Employees Local 304
Washington Federation of State Employees Local 1488
International Union of Operating Engineers Local 809
American Postal Workers Union - Greater Seattle Local
Laborers Local 1239
Amalgamated Transit Union Local 587
United Academic Workers 4121
United Academic Workers 1981
Service Employees International Union Local 6
Newspapers and editorials
The Seattle Times editorial board
The Stranger editorial board[9]
Organizations
King County Young Democrats
Washington High School Democrats
Women of Color in Politics
Seattle Subway
Downtown Seattle Association
King County Democrats
Fuse Washington[10]
Speak Out Seattle
Washington Technology Industry Association
Seattle Democratic Socialists of America
National Women's Political Caucus of Washington
Socialist Alternative
PACs
Moms for Seattle
Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy

District 5[edit]

Incumbent Debora Juarez was first elected in 2015, receiving 64 percent of the vote. She faced environmental policy consultant John Lombard, electrical administrator Tayla Mahoney, community organizer Mark Mendez, attorney Ann Davison Sattler, and former U.S. Senate and mayoral candidate Alex Tsimerman in the August 6, 2019, primary election.[8]

Campaign finance[edit]

Campaign finance data was available for the following candidates.

Endorsements[edit]

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at elections@ballotpedia.org.

Click the links below for endorsement lists from candidates' websites, where available:


Endorsements
Endorsement Juarez Lombard Davison Sattler
Elected officials
State Rep. Cindy Ryu
Mayor of Shoreline Will Hall
Newspapers and editorials
The Stranger editorial board[9]
The Seattle Times editorial board[12]
Organizations
Sierra Club[13]
National Women's Political Caucus of Washington[14]
Washington Technology Industry Association[15]
King County Democrats[16]
Fuse Washington[10]
32nd District Democrats
The Duwamish Tribe
PACs
Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]

Open-seat races[edit]

Incumbents Bruce Harrell (District 2), Abel Pacheco (District 4), Mike O'Brien (District 6), and Sally Bagshaw (District 7) did not seek re-election in 2019, leaving four seats open.

  • Seven candidates filed for District 2
  • Ten candidates filed for District 4
  • Fourteen candidates filed for District 6
  • Ten candidates filed for District 7

Endorsements[edit]

Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in one of the following races? Let Ballotpedia know by email at elections@ballotpedia.org.

District 2[edit]

Tammy Morales

Mark Solomon

  • Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]
  • Washington Technology Industry Association[15]
  • The Seattle Times editorial board[18]
  • Mayor Jenny Durkan[19]

District 4[edit]

Emily Myers

Alex Pedersen

  • Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]
  • Washington Technology Industry Association[15]
  • The Seattle Times editorial board[12]

Shaun Scott

District 6[edit]

Jay Fathi

  • Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]
  • Washington Technology Industry Association[15]
  • Fuse Washington[10]

Dan Strauss

  • King County Democrats[16]
  • Fuse Washington[10]
  • The Stranger editorial board[9]

Heidi Wills

  • Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]
  • Sierra Club[13]
  • Washington Technology Industry Association[15]
  • The Seattle Times editorial board[12]

District 7[edit]

Michael George

Andrew Lewis

  • King County Democrats[16]
  • UNITE HERE Local 8[21]
  • The Stranger editorial board[9]
  • Fuse Washington[10]

Jim Pugel

  • Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy[17]
  • The Seattle Times editorial board[12]

Campaign finance[edit]

Campaign finance data is provided where available for candidates in each race.

District 2[edit]

District 4[edit]

District 6[edit]

District 7[edit]

Voucher program data[edit]

Eligible Seattle residents received four $25 vouchers in February. Vouchers could go to any council candidates of a voter's choosing, including those outside the voter's district. Under the program, participating candidates had a $75,000 spending limit during the primary election and a $150,000 cumulative spending limit if they went on on to the general election.[22] Candidates participating in the program could apply to be released from the spending limit if a candidate in their race exceeded $75,000 in spending or contributions or if independent expenditures on a candidate's behalf exceeded that limit.[23]

During the primary election, there were 42 active city council candidates participating in the Democracy Voucher Program, including incumbents Herbold and Juarez.[24] Sawant did not participate in the program, saying, "The Democracy Voucher program is a progressive step forward, but unfortunately it’s not designed for a race like ours where Amazon and the whole big business establishment is united against us. It does not prevent corporate PACs from overnight dumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into the race to try to buy the election."[23] The five candidates challenging Sawant participated in the program and were released from the spending limit.[25]

As of August 6, 2019, spending caps had been lifted in all races except District 5.[26][24]

The following shows funds candidates received from the program through July 25, 2019. Click "Position" in the table to sort by race, and click "Total" to sort by amount of money received by each candidate.

Satellite spending[edit]

Satellite spending, commonly referred to as outside spending, describes political spending not controlled by candidates or their campaigns; that is, any political expenditures made by groups or individuals that are not directly affiliated with a candidate. This includes spending by political party committees, super PACs, trade associations, and 501(c)(4) nonprofit groups.[27][28][29]

This section lists satellite spending in this race reported by news outlets in alphabetical order. If you are aware of spending that should be included, please email us.

Through the primary elections on August 6, 2019, there had been a total of $976,432 in satellite spending toward the Seattle City Council elections.

  • CAPE (Civic Alliance for a Progressive Economy) had spent the following as of August 6:[30]
  • CASE (Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy) had spent $477,000 in support of endorsed Seattle City Council candidates and opposing others as of August 6, 2019:[26][31]
    • District 1: $129,062 in support of Phil Tavel (distributing campaign literature, making calls and texts, canvassing, and mailers)
    • District 1: $7,555 opposing Lisa Herbold (mailers)
    • District 2: $121,729 in support of Mark Solomon (distributing campaign literature, making calls and texts, canvassing, and mailers)
    • District 3: $156,247 in support of Egan Orion (distributing campaign literature, making calls and texts, canvassing, and mailers)
    • District 3: $11,692 opposing Kshama Sawant (mailers)
    • District 4: $13,017 in support of Alex Pedersen (mailers)
    • District 5: $6,878 in support of Debora Juarez (mailers)
    • District 6: $6,648 in support of Jay Fathi (mailers)
    • District 6: $6,648 in support of Heidi Wills (mailers)
    • District 7: $5,947 in support of Jim Pugel (mailers)
    • District 7: $11,612 in support of Michael George (mailers)
  • Moms for Seattle had spent the following on Facebook ads, digital campaign consulting, and mailers for four races as of August 6:[32]
  • People for Seattle spent the following sums for and against candidates as of August 6:[33]
  • UNITE HERE Local 8 PAC had spent $148,629 on ads in support of Andrew Lewis for the District 7 seat through August 6.[34]

Candidate survey[edit]

Candidate survey[edit]

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Ballotpedia invites candidates to participate in its annual survey.
Click here to fill out the survey.

Noteworthy events[edit]

Changes in election governance[edit]

The elections featured recent changes to the city's campaign finance system and district system.

In February 2019, eligible voters received four $25 vouchers to give to the candidate or candidates of their choosing, provided the candidate agreed to certain campaign spending limits. As of July 25, 2019, candidates had received $1.4 million from more than 56,000 returned vouchers.[35][36]

The voucher program, which was established by Measure No. 122 in 2015 and first used in 2017, was under review by the Washington Supreme Court for alleged infringements on free speech protections until July 11, 2019, when the court affirmed an earlier superior court decision dismissing the case.[37][38]

This was the second year where Seattle elected candidates to single-member districts instead of at-large districts. For the first time in 2015, the city elected seven members to single-member districts for four-year terms and two members to at-large positions for two-year terms (four-year terms for the at-large positions began after the 2017 elections). All nine seats had previously been elected at large since 1910.

The nine at-large seat structure changed to seven single-member seats/two at-large positions after city voters approved Charter Amendment 19 in 2013.

Other elections on the ballot[edit]

Ballot measures[edit]

See also: August 6, 2019 ballot measures in Washington

City measure[edit]

Proposition 1: Seattle Library Property Tax Approveda

A yes vote was a vote in favor of authorizing the city to levy for seven years a property tax of $0.122 per $1,000 of assessed value with annual increases of up to 1% to fund library operations, materials, and maintenance and capital improvements.
A no vote was a vote against authorizing the city to levy a seven-year property tax to fund library services, thereby allowing the existing library property tax to expire without a replacement.

County measure[edit]

Proposition 1: King County Parks and Recreation Property Tax Approveda

A yes vote was a vote in favor of authorizing the county to levy for six years a property tax of $0.1832 per $1,000 in assessed property value to replace an expiring tax, with annual increases and with revenue for parks, recreation, open space, public pools, zoo operations, and aquarium capital improvements.
A no vote was a vote against authorizing the county to levy a property tax of $0.1832 per $1,000 in assessed property value for parks and recreation, thereby allowing an existing property tax levy of up to $0.1877 per $1,000 in assessed property value to expire without a replacement.

Additional elections on the ballot[edit]

See also: Washington elections, 2019

What's on your ballot?
Click here to find out using My Vote

Past elections[edit]

2017[edit]

See also: Municipal elections in Seattle, Washington (2017)

City council, Position 8[edit]

Incumbent Tim Burgess did not file for re-election.

General election[edit]
Teresa Mosqueda
Jon Grant Candidate Connection Logo - stacked.png
Primary election[edit]
Hisam Goueli
Jon Grant
Mac McGregor
Teresa Mosqueda
Sara Nelson
Rudy Pantoja
Sheley Secrest
Charlene Strong

City council, Position 9[edit]

General election[edit]
M. Lorena González (i)
Pat Murakami
Primary election[edit]
M. Lorena González (i)
Ian Affleck-Asch
Pauly Giuglianotti
Pat Murakami
Ty Pethe
David Preston
Eric Smiley

2015[edit]

See also: Seattle, Washington municipal elections, 2015

About the city[edit]

See also: Seattle, Washington

Seattle is a city in King County, Washington. As of 2013, its population was 652,405.[39]

City government[edit]

See also: Mayor-council government

The city of Seattle uses a strong mayor and city council system. In this form of municipal government, the city council serves as the city's primary legislative body and the mayor serves as the city's chief executive.[40]

Demographics[edit]

The following table displays demographic data provided by the United States Census Bureau.

Demographic data for Seattle, Washington (2015)
 SeattleWashington
Total population:653,0177,160,290
Land area (square miles):8466,456
Race and ethnicity[41]
White:69.5%77.8%
Black/African American:7.2%3.6%
Asian:14.2%7.7%
Native American:0.7%1.3%
Pacific Islander:0.4%0.6%
Two or more:6.1%5.2%
Hispanic/Latino:6.5%12%
Education
High school graduation rate:93.4%90.4%
College graduation rate:58.9%32.9%
Income
Median household income:$70,594$61,062
Persons below poverty level:13.5%14.4%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)

State profile[edit]

See also: Washington and Washington elections, 2019
U.S. Washington location map.svg

Partisan data[edit]

The information in this section was current as of May 7, 2019

Presidential voting pattern

  • Washington voted for the Democratic candidate in all five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016.

Congressional delegation

State executives

  • Democrats held six and Republicans held two of Washington's 14 state executive offices. Elections for the other offices are nonpartisan.
  • Washington's governor was Democrat Jay Inslee.

State legislature

Washington Party Control: 1992-2021
Fifteen years of Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21
Governor D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
Senate R D D D D R R D D D D R R D D D D D D D D R R R R R[42] D D D D
House D D D R R R R S S S D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D

Washington quick stats

More Washington coverage on Ballotpedia:


Demographic data for Washington
 WashingtonU.S.
Total population:7,160,290316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):66,4563,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:77.8%73.6%
Black/African American:3.6%12.6%
Asian:7.7%5.1%
Native American:1.3%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0.6%0.2%
Two or more:5.2%3%
Hispanic/Latino:12%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:90.4%86.7%
College graduation rate:32.9%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$61,062$53,889
Persons below poverty level:14.4%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Washington.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


See also[edit]

Seattle, Washington Washington Municipal government Other local coverage
Official Seal of Seattle.jpg
Seal of Washington.png
Municipal Government Final.png
Local Politics Image.jpg


External links[edit]

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Suggest a link

Footnotes[edit]

  1. King County Elections, "Who has filed: 2019 candidate filing," accessed May 20, 2019
  2. Geek Wire, "Seattle repeals head tax 7-2 in dramatic reversal that leaves city divided over homeless crisis," June 12, 2018
  3. Seattle Times, "Seattle’s business lobby sees opportunity to unseat the City Council’s progressive majority," May 12, 2019
  4. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "Contributions to Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy Sponsored by the Seattle Chamber 2019 Election Cycle," July 31, 2019
  5. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "2015 Independent Expenditure Committees," accessed August 5, 2019
  6. Seattle.gov, "Find Your Council District," accessed May 20, 2019
  7. The Stranger, "Here’s Who’s Officially Running for Seattle City Council, Let's Place Bets on Who the Chamber Will Try to Buy with Their Amazon Gold, and More City Council Election News," May 17, 2019
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 The Seattle Times, "Meet the candidates running for City Council in 2019," accessed June 28, 2019
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 The Stranger, "The Stranger's Endorsements for the August 6, 2019, Primary Election," July 17, 2019
  10. 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5 10.6 10.7 10.8 Progressive Voters Guide, "Seattle City Council," accessed July 23, 2019
  11. The Stranger, "Ballots Are in the Mail, Noam Chomsky Endorses Sawant, Rich Moms Love Michael George, And More City Council Election News," July 19, 2019
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 The Seattle Times, "The Seattle Times editorial board’s 2019 primary election endorsements," updated July 19, 2019
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 Twitter, "Sierra Club on June 19, 2019," accessed June 26, 2019
  14. NWPCWA, "Our 2019 Endorsements," accessed June 28, 2019
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 Washington Technology, "2019 Seattle City Council Primary Election Endorsements," accessed July 11, 2019
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 King County Democrats, "2019 Endorsements," accessed July 15, 2019
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 King 5 News, "Seattle Chamber's political arm endorses one city council incumbent," June 19, 2019
  18. The Seattle Times, "The Times recommends: Mark Solomon for Seattle City Council, District 2," July 7, 2019
  19. The Hill, "Seattle fights preview battle between Democrats, democratic socialists," July 28, 2019
  20. The Stranger, "Jayapal Endorses Myers, Amazon-Backed Chamber Drops $300,000, and More City Council Election News," July 5, 2019
  21. Lewis for Seattle, "Endorsements," accessed July 17, 2019
  22. Seattle.gov, "Democracy Voucher Program, About the Program," accessed June 28, 2019
  23. 23.0 23.1 The Stranger, "Kshama Sawant Says She Won't Use Democracy Vouchers. Why Not?" January 24, 2019
  24. 24.0 24.1 Seattle.gov, "Democracy Voucher Program, 2019 Participating Candidates," accessed July 30, 2019
  25. Seattle.gov, "Democracy Voucher Program 2019 Participating Candidates," accessed June 28, 2019
  26. 26.0 26.1 The Stranger, "Amazon-Funded PAC Begins Dishing Out Cash to Tilt Seattle City Council Races," July 2, 2019
  27. OpenSecrets.org, "Outside Spending," accessed September 22, 2015
  28. OpenSecrets.org, "Total Outside Spending by Election Cycle, All Groups," accessed September 22, 2015
  29. National Review.com, "Why the Media Hate Super PACs," November 6, 2015
  30. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "2019 Independent Expenditure Committees: CivicAlliance4Prog Economy," August 20, 2019
  31. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "2019 Independent Expenditure Committees: Civ Alliance (CASE)," August 20, 2019
  32. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "Disclosure Reports: Moms for Seattle," accessed August 20, 2019
  33. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "2019 Independent Expenditure Committees: People for Seattle," August 20, 2019
  34. Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission, "UNITE HERE Local 8 PAC," accessed August 20, 2019
  35. Seattle Times, "In Seattle, the socialists are giving big business a run for their money — literally," May 15, 2019
  36. Seattle.gov, "Democracy Voucher Program Data, accessed July 5, 2019
  37. Seattle Times, "Washington’s Supreme Court agrees to review case against Seattle’s ‘democracy vouchers,’" December 21, 2018
  38. Washington Supreme Court, "Mark Fester and Sarah Pynchon v. The City of Seattle," July 11, 2019
  39. U.S. Census, "State and County Quick Facts," accessed September 15, 2014
  40. City of Seattle, "Elected Officials," accessed September 15, 2014
  41. Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
  42. Democrats gained full control of the state Senate after a special election on November 7, 2017.


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