An election is a precious thing. Even better is an election with real choices and diverging paths forward. We might get somewhere we really want to go, instead of spinning our wheels or burying our heads in the sand. That’s just the kind of election Seattle and the greater Puget Sound region faces. The Urbanist’s slate of candidates can get us somewhere worth going.
Too often we’re sold a bill of goods. It’s an increasingly undemocratic time as the nation lurches toward the false allure of the strongman and authoritarianism. Charlatans promise what they cannot deliver. Despots undermine institutions, consolidate their power, and line their pockets. Refreshingly, real leaders who still believe in democracy and American progress are still stepping forward and fighting back to better the lives of the many instead of enriching the lucky few.
The candidates we have endorsed believe in getting the details right and making government work for everybody, not just the rich and well-connected. Achieving better results at the federal level starts with modeling excellence at the local level. It’s a way to fight back with a federal government that is shut down and careening toward self-destruction.
Urbanists are winning the housing debate and laying the groundwork for a policy shift that will bring about more abundant and affordable housing. In Seattle’s primary election, Urbanist-endorsed challenger Katie Wilson upset a heavily-favored incumbent with a message that was carefully focused on cost of living issues, including housing abundance. Urbanist-endorsed City Council candidates had a similar message and swept the primary.
Similar debates are playing out in cities all over the region, and momentum is building on the urbanist side. Burien is at a tipping point, with a progressive slate looking to increase housing opportunities and invest in affordable housing opening up leads in the primary. Eastside cities are seeing more urbanist contenders than ever.
Nothing is guaranteed, of course. Victory still depends on you voting and telling your friends not to sit this one out, either. Let’s take a stride as a region and make this a place with more access and opportunities for all.
Ballots will soon be arriving in your mail boxes. Washington voters have until 8pm Tuesday, November 4 to return a ballot at a drop box or get it postmarked. Visit the Vote WA portal to register or check your voter information.
The Urbanist Elections Committee consists of Forest Baum, Emma Biscocho Pelletier, Angela Compton, Caitlin Hepworth, Kacie Masten, Jason Merges, Oliver Moffat, Ryan Packer, Aparna Rae, Maya Ramakrishnan, Hannah Sabio-Howell, Jazmine Smith, Doug Trumm, and Kelsey Vanhee.
Endorsement Cheat Sheet
Seattle/King County
- King County Executive: Claudia Balducci
- Seattle Mayor: Katie Wilson
- Seattle City Attorney: Erika Evans
- Seattle City Council District 2: Eddie Lin
- Seattle City Council District 8: Alexis Mercedes Rinck
- Seattle City Council District 9: Dionne Foster
- Seattle Proposition 1: Vote Yes on FEPP Levy
- Seattle Proposition 2: Vote Yes on Seattle Shield Initiative
- King County Council, District 5: No Endorsement
South Sound
- Tacoma Mayor: Anders Ibsen
- Tacoma City Council, Position 4: Silong Chhun
- Tacoma City Council, Position 5: Zev Rose Cook
- Tacoma City Council, Position 6: Latasha Palmer
- Tukwila City Council, Position 1: Verna Seal
- Kent City Council, Position 6: Andy Song
- Renton City Council, Position 1: Mike Westgaard
- Renton City Council, Position 2: No Endorsement
- Burien City Council Position 1: Hugo Garcia
- Burien City Council Position 3: Sam Méndez
- Burien City Council Position 5: Sarah Moore
- Burien City Council Position 7: Rocco DeVito
Eastside
- Bellevue City Council Position 1: Vishal Bhargava
- Bellevue City Council, Position 5: Claire Sumadiwirya
- Bellevue City Council, Position 6: No endorsement
- Newcastle City Council, Position 6: Paul Charbonneau
- Issaquah Mayor: Lindsey Walsh
- Issaquah City Council, Position 1: Kelly Jiang
- Issaquah City Council, Position 3: Barbara de Michele
- Issaquah City Council, Position 6: Kevin Nichols
- Kirkland City Council, Position 1: Jay Arnold
- Kirkland City Council, Position 3: Shilpa Prem
- Kirkland City Council, Position 5: Neal Black
- Kirkland City Council, Position 7: Kurt Dresner
- Redmond City Council, Position 6: Menka Soni
- Bothell Proposition No. 1 – Vote Yes on Renewal of Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy Lid
- Bothell City Council, Position 3: Jenne Alderks
- Bothell City Council, Position 5: Brittany Miles
- Legislative District 5, Senate: Victoria Hunt
- Legislative District 33, Position No. 1: Edwin Obras
- Legislative District 41, Position No. 1: Janice Zahn
- Legislative District 48, State Senate: Vandana Slatter
North End
- Everett Mayor: Cassie Franklin
- Everett City Council, District 1: Sam Hem
- Shoreline City Council, Position 1: No Endorsement
- Shoreline City Council, Position 7: Christopher Roberts
- Edmonds City Council, Position 1: Chris Eck
- Kenmore City Council, Position 2: No endorsement.
- Kenmore City Council, Position 4: Nigel Herbig
- Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 1: Semra Riddle
- Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 3: Josh Rosenau
- Lynnwood City Council, Position 1: Derica Escamilla
- Lynnwood City Council, Position 2: Isabel Mata
- Lynnwood City Council, Position 3: Josh Binda
- Lynnwood City Council, Position 5: Mpiima M. Mugambe
- Woodinville Council Position 1: Michelle Evans
- Woodinville City Council, Position 5: Sarah Arndt
- North Shore (Kenmore, Bothell, and Woodinville) Proposition 1
King County Executive: Claudia Balducci
Help Wanted: Adept leader with the ability to manage Washington’s largest county. Must bring experience to handle structural budget issues, deal with impending federal cuts to public health, handle a countywide housing crisis, and avert a looming fiscal cliff at King County Metro. Another prerequisite: the ability to accelerate King County’s work to stand up and operate voter-approved crisis care centers in the face of community opposition. And then there’s a full-time side hustle: steering the entire Sound Transit board toward a stable ST3 delivery plan.
More than just about every other local elected official we can name, Claudia Balducci has been in the policy trenches, playing a long game and pushing for reforms that often don’t bear fruit until years down the line. Balducci has helped lead a wave of progressive urbanist leaders on the Eastside, helping the region break out of a suburban mindset and embrace rapid transit and urbanization.
When she was Bellevue’s Mayor, she committed to bringing more homelessness services to an area of the county that only had a single men’s shelter. She was able to fulfill that promise on the County Council, leading on a property sale that paved the way for the Porchlight shelter – a significant achievement on its own, but one that opened the door to more tools to help people exit homelessness on the Eastside.
From bringing the K Line rapid bus back from the dead, to bringing regional attention to the issue of traffic safety as president of the Puget Sound Regional Council, to championing arts funding via the Doors Open levy and ensuring those dollars actually reach arts organizations, Balducci has had a hand in so many regional wins over the past decade.
Of course, we’re also impressed with Balducci’s work on the Sound Transit board. She’s one of the main reasons that the agency is still considering ways to make a promised Jackson Street transit hub work as a part of Ballard Link right now. We’d love to see what Baducci can do with more staff and the ability to directly pick who she serves with on the board.
Baldduci has pledged to make housing her top priority as County Executive, and setting a tangible but ambitious goal of delivering 44,000 affordable homes in her first five years is refreshing and much needed to galvanize action.
We’ve been impressed with what Girmay Zahilay, Balducci’s primary challenger, has done during his time on the County Council. He’s brought renewed focus to improving road safety in the Rainier Valley by improving the most dangerous set of light rail tracks in the region. Zahilay is charismatic, and elevating the needs of disadvantaged, often overlooked residents of South King County has in turn elevated the political debate.
On the other hand, Zahilay plans for the office have remained high-level, and he hasn’t demonstrated the same knack for navigating the nitty gritty of advancing new policy, as Balducci has. Zahilay boldly pledged to use a billion dollars in county bonding capacity to fund badly needed workforce housing, only to quietly shelve the idea when the idea didn’t prove as viable and easy as he led on. Ahead of the County’s study, Balducci correctly predicted that solving the county’s housing woes would require a new dedicated revenue source to fund housing, not one simple bonding trick.
Zahilay’s similarly detail-light pledge to use performance metrics and ratchet up government efficiency doesn’t tell us much on its own, without more concretely defining the goals toward which they’d serve.
Zahilay is clearly a rising star in local politics, while Balducci is a steady hand who has quietly put her stamp on many of the county’s biggest urbanist wins of the last decade. Both have the makings of a deft and capable executive for the county and its 14,000 employees and 2.4 million constituents. Both candidates are inspiring leaders we are very thankful to have in public service.
When it comes down to it, we have more confidence in Balducci’s ability to execute ambitious plans and navigate the choppy waters of federal chaos on the horizon, sure to strain budgets and put many people at risk. Vote Balducci.
Seattle Mayor: Katie Wilson
Katie Wilson shocked Seattle’s political establishment when she finished the August primary with a large lead bordering on 10 points. We endorsed Wilson in the primary, and we’re thrilled to see that outcome. But the job isn’t done. We must turn out the vote in the general election to secure this victory and make progress toward a more affordable Seattle.
Wilson has been in the middle of numerous progressive victories over the last decade as head of the Transit Riders Union. It is precisely this kind of coalition building and vision that is needed at city hall after four years of ineffective leadership.
Seattle’s sitting mayor, Bruce Harrell, stands in sharp contrast with Wilson. While visionary coalition builders lay the groundwork, slick politicians like Harrell swoop in last-minute with the ceremonial shears to cut a ribbon to claim credit for a project.
Despite ample opportunity to work with centrist allies on Council, Harrell did not deliver on his big campaign promises from four years ago, which swept him into office. For example, Harrell promised 2,000 additional units of emergency housing for homeless people in his first year, but fell well short. Instead, the number of shelter beds have shrunk under his watch, even as destabilizing sweeps of homeless people have reached a new record high. Without beds for unhoused people to go, sweeps are largely spreading the problem around, rather than providing a durable solution, as Wilson has underscored.
The Harrell Administration has squandered opportunities, with its signature pettiness sometimes getting in the way. For example, Harrell signed a $2.7 million lease on Civic Hotel to provide shelter beds, but his administration refused to fill those beds because his office was feuding with CoLEAD director Lisa Daugaard, whose nonprofit was tasked with handling referrals. People slept on the street while beds sat empty for Harrell’s team to prove their point.
Since the primary, Harrell has been in attack mode, hoping to claw back into the race. He has desperately sought to portray Wilson as inexperienced and radical — not executive material. To spread his message, Harrell has ignored campaign finance laws and ethical scruples. Harrell’s Senior Deputy Mayor Tim Burgess, returned to his role as political action committee (PAC) leader, the same role he played in Harrell’s last election, and has raised $1.5 million for his boss, largely from big business and real estate moguls. In September, Harrell spoke at a PAC fundraiser, in a clear violation of campaign finance regulations.
But all the effort to deflect and tear down his opponent has failed to answer the key question of why Harrell deserves another four years, and why he could not get more done in his disappointing first mayoral term. If Harrell was as innovative solving Seattle’s problems as he is getting around campaign regulations, he would have much bigger accomplishments over the last four years.
Wilson’s top two campaign priorities are “affordable and abundant housing” and “a real reduction in homelessness.” Unlike Harrell, we would expect Wilson to make real headway in her first term, rather than waiting around and blaming others for not clearing hurdles, as Harrell has done.
Harrell campaigned to block a grassroots social housing ballot initiative, rather than simply endorsing it or getting out of the way. Seattle voters passed the social housing measure by a 26-point margin anyway, despite the mayor’s face being plastered on opposition mailers, which shows how out of step he was. In contrast, Wilson and the Transit Riders Union threw their weight behind the initiative.
While Harrell was part of a City Council that abandoned a corporate head tax before it ever went into effect out of fear of backlash from business leaders, Wilson shepherded a much larger “JumpStart” payroll tax into law. The payroll tax has survived numerous legal challenges and political assaults and become an indispensable part of the City budget, saving the city from massive cuts and providing a durable source of revenue to invest in Seattle’s future. Most payroll tax revenue was set aside to fund affordable housing before Harrell overrode the spending plan to fund his own budget priorities. In other words, without Wilson, Harrell’s mayoral term would have been even more lackluster — it may have crashed and burned from sheer lack of resources and ideas.
Harrell pledged to speed up light rail delivery, but instead has helped delay it with his indecisiveness about route decisions. His move to abandon a hub station in the Chinatown-International District planned as part of Ballard Link could be a generational mistake. We have much more faith in Wilson’s ability to improve outcomes for transit riders and communities as a Sound Transit board member.
Wilson has led successful campaigns to win reduced-fare programs for transit riders and expand services and protections for tenants. She’s proposed additional ideas to protect tenants, including the recently passed ban on rent-setting software that have allowed corporate landlords to collude to drive up rent. While the Harrell Administration ruled out key Route 8 bus lanes, Wilson participated in the grassroots Race the L8 event seeking to draw attention and support for them.
Wilson is stridently pro-housing and has pledged to cut red tape and barriers to homebuilding. She told us Harrell should have gone farther in his One Seattle housing plan. While Harrell watered down the growth plan that his city planners developed, Wilson has vowed to zone for more housing citywide and streamline permitting to help theoretical housing capacity to become reality. Harrell also pledged big permitting reforms but dragged his feet throughout his first term and ended up needing to use a temporary ordinance to meet the state deadline to curb design review process delays.
Harrell’s personnel decisions often leave much to be desired. While Harrell has sneered at debates about how few people his opponent has hired or fired, it’s hard to turn having to fire his own top hires into a positive for Harrell. Late in 2024, he belatedly ousted the police chief he selected amid multiple scandals; perhaps most damaging is what appears to be a pervasive pattern of sexual harassment and covering for abusers. The City will spend millions litigating the fallout.
Failing to take on the cultural problem at the Seattle Police Department (SPD) like Harrell promised in 2021 has kept the department far away from its stated “30 by 30” (30% by 2030) goal of recruiting more women and meeting recruitment and efficiency goals in general. So while Harrell is eager to throw money at SPD, police accountability has continued to suffer. Harrell’s disastrous pick to lead the department is a big reason why progress stalled out.
The career paths of the two leading mayoral candidates couldn’t be more different. Harrell earned millions in corporate law before serving 12 years on City Council and now another four years as mayor. Meanwhile, Wilson spent 15 years as an organizer fighting to improve transit service and tax the region’s wealthiest companies. Wilson rents her home and rides the bus to get around with her young daughter. Harrell owns a mansion just off Lake Washington and sees Seattle through a windshield perspective. His administration blocked safety improvements on Lake Washington Boulevard through a ridiculously drawn out and secretive process.
As Seattle grapples with an affordability crisis, we need a leader who has lived those issues and walked a mile in our shoes — not a corporate lawyer cosplaying as a progressive for campaign season. Katie Wilson is the leader for this moment. Vote Wilson.
Seattle City Attorney: Erika Evans
When it comes to the City Attorney race, we were thrilled to have three wonderful contenders in the primary that will be a marked upgrade from the incumbent city attorney, who we have no confidence will stand up to protect Seattle from the federal chaos and harm ensuing, nor prioritize truly important public safety issues like drunk driving and domestic violence. We are thrilled that Erika Evans, one of our endorsed candidates, has prevailed to the general with resounding support from voters.
Evans brings forth experience prosecuting cops to hold them accountable, and is making the switch from federal to local after the civil rights work started falling apart under the Trump Administration. She appears laser-focused on bringing evidence-based public safety and harm reduction strategies in the City Attorney’s Office, which has drifted from those moorings under Davison. As a former assistant US Attorney, she has a wide body of experience taking on big cases, ranging from prosecuting January 6 usurpers to wage-thieving companies.
Evans will take a tougher line with the Trump Administration than Davison, who was a Republican convert during Trump’s first term. Evans wants a more holistic approach to justice than Davison and pledges to bring back the community court that Davison unilaterally killed. She’s skeptical of Davison’s move to bring back banishment zones in a blunt and futile effort to target sex work and public drug use.
Evans expressed interest in ending cash bail for non-violent offenses since it makes it harder for folks to avoid a cycle of poverty and recidivism. In contrast, Davison has sought to supercharge the cycle of poverty with her moves to end community court and add banishment zones.
We like what Evans brings in terms of experience and tenacity. We look forward to her beating Davison to restore some sanity and compassion to the City Attorney’s Office. Vote Evans.
- Erika Evans questionnaire
- Ann Davision did not return a questionnaire
Seattle City Council District 2: Eddie Lin
Eddie Lin stands out for District 2 as an urbanist wonk ready to hop right in as soon as ballots are certified. Both Lin and his opponent, Adonis Ducksworth, bring unique and valuable attributes to the table, but Lin is most ready to dive into the role.
With the D2 position up for grabs after Tammy Morales’ resignation in early 2025, the race was crowded with challengers looking to carry the progressive baton forward to represent one of Seattle’s most diverse — and under-resourced — districts. Eddie Lin’s candidacy has risen above the rest, with priorities around housing, transit, and public safety aligning nearly lock step with The Urbanist’s own views.
Lin enters the race with experience in Seattle’s housing sector, having worked in real estate law and, more recently, with nonprofit homebuilders as a city attorney supporting the City’s Office of Housing. He’s also been careful to lobby against provisions that would kneecap homebuilders.
Like his opponent, Lin is calling for a growth plan that goes far beyond the Mayor’s One Seattle plan, pushing to maximize housing density through zoning code updates, and reducing barriers like design review, parking requirements, and other restrictions. As the zoning gets pushed further and further down the timeline, it’s clear that this issue will go in front of new councilmembers. On homelessness, he supports housing first approaches and increasing services to unsheltered Seattleites.
On transit, Lin advocates for safety improvements by working in coalition with Amalgamated Transit Union 587 and the Transit Riders Union to make public transit safer for passengers and operators. Unlike Ducksworth, Lin supports finishing the long-delayed Center City Streetcar project, likely necessary to prevent Seattle’s entire streetcar program from being mothballed. He’s also called out the need for safety improvements along MLK Jr. Way S and Rainier Avenue S, proposing road diets to calm traffic and create safer space for pedestrians, cyclists, and transit.
Ducksworth is Mayor Bruce Harrell’s transportation policy manager, and the elections committee found aspects to like in his platform. With his unique background as a skateboarder and outreach specialist at the Seattle Department of Transportation, Ducksworth brings depth on mobility issues and road safety interventions. He was born and raised in Seattle’s South End and exhibited a passion for gun violence prevention and youth services.
Progressive tax reform is one area of distinction between the candidates. While Ducksworth has sought to distance himself from the mayor and other centrists by supporting a capital gains tax, Lin clearly has more ideas and convictions about rebalancing the tax code so it does not fall so hard on poor and working class residents. Lin not only supports defending and expanding progressive revenue sources like the JumpStart payroll tax, but also exploring a wealth tax and a vacancy tax on landlords.
Lin is not without his missteps. He voted for Proposition 1B in the February 2025 special election to fund Seattle’s new Social Housing Developer. Proposition 1A, which ultimately won with 63% of the vote, proposed a high earners tax on payroll expenses for employees compensated over $1 million. Prop 1B, backed by centrist councilmembers and Harrell, would have reallocated existing JumpStart funds and ultimately left social housing underfunded. As a councilmember, Lin said he would use his position to support the work of the Seattle Social Housing Developer, and we were impressed with how he owned his misstep.
Voting records show Ducksworth didn’t vote on the social housing measure, despite him implying he supported 1A on the campaign trail. Ducksworth’s spotty voting record goes beyond just that special election, and includes the last D2 election. When Ducksworth did vote, like in 2021, he backed Harrell, which hasn’t worked out particularly well for the city. Not following issues enough to vote consistently could make the challenges of being a full-time councilmember particularly steep.
In the end, we determined Lin was the stronger candidate across a broader set of issues, especially housing and homelessness. Eddie Lin is invested in the health, safety, and quality of life of South Seattle communities and will not shy away from ambitious goals and real plans to address the issues Seattle faces. Vote Eddie Lin.
Seattle City Council District 8: Alexis Mercedes Rinck
We’ve liked the leadership we’ve seen from Alexis Mercedes Rinck in her first year so much that we endorsed her early — a honor we bestow very seldom. She certainly deserves a full term after winning resoundingly last year to serve out the remainder of Tersea Mosqueda’s term. In the short time that she’s been in office, she’s already proven to be a massively impactful legislator. She shepherded the Seattle Shield Initiative to shift business tax burden away from small business and toward big business. She has saved bus lanes. She has proven to be the most positively effective councilmember of all of her colleagues over the less than a year since she’s been here.
Since we wrote our early endorsement this spring, Rinck has continued to impress. She was a strident voice for more housing and for parking reform during Comprehensive Plan deliberations. Rinck also took up a density-bonus program for affordable housing that her colleagues had stonewalled because it came from Tammy Morales, retooled it, and won unanimous passage.
Rinck faces Rachael Savage, an actual Republican. Vote Rinck.
Seattle City Council District 9: Dionne Foster
The Urbanist endorses Dionne Foster for Seattle City Council Position 9, because we need smart people who are also strong leaders to reset this council as one that will fight for the future of our people, and that’s who Foster is. She is a policy expert with experience working at the table with the region’s biggest power players and a deep history of working with the communities who are most impacted when the city fails to get policy right.
Foster has made it clear what her priorities are: improving traffic safety, stabilizing the city budget with progressive revenue, and expanding the city’s housing options. With Foster on the council, the city will have another voice in favor of expanding the size and scope of planned neighborhood centers, and creating more housing capacity around transit – not just in high-traffic, high-pollution areas.
Investing in Seattle and building community is a natural fit for Foster, someone who has spent years collaborating with some of the most impactful organizations shaping and defending the programs like Democracy Vouchers, housing strategies and investments, childcare, and so many more of the investments that support livability and equity in Seattle.
We appreciate that Sara Nelson vowed to improve the city’s housing growth plan and take the lead on improvements, using a market urbanism lens. Several critical amendments to the Comprehensive Plan introduced by Nelson will provide much needed added capacity and flexibility as adopted by the Select Committee, and we hope to see it adopted soon, however it has yet to be scheduled for a final vote. We wish the plan wasn’t mired in delays and under threat from backsliding councilmembers — several of whom Nelson endorsed and helped elect. Giving with one hand, while stalling with the other isn’t enough to earn our endorsement.
Nelson bowed to pressure from the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce to delay the grassroots measure to fund social housing and instead put a confusing alternative on the ballot that would not have raised new funds. Rather than throwing up obstacles, Foster backed the grassroots funding measured and is excited to implement social housing.
We’ve also been troubled by Nelson’s leadership style. She has called the cops on public commenters and oversaw what former colleagues Tammy Morales and Cathy Moore seem to agree is a toxic work environment. Morales left in January, saying she was unable to represent her district after being bullied and mistreated by her colleagues. Moore departed in early July, agreeing the job wasn’t what it was cracked up to be (despite being in the centrist majority), albeit citing generic reasons for leaving.
Nelson seems much more of an advocate for the powerful than for the little guy. She has proposed ideas that seem geared to coddle big business and reward big donors that poured millions into centrist campaigns. Workers rights, minimum wage standards, and tenant protections all appear under threat under her watch, as rollback proposals circulate.
Luckily, we have a wonderful leader in Dionne Foster looking to step up, protecting workers, renters, and working families rather than the elite few. Dionne’s experience in City Hall ensures that as a first-time candidate she will be ready on day one to take the lead. She’s helped pass and defend the capital gains tax, supported ranked choice voting, defended gig workers, and fought for rent stabilization. She fought to tackle issues that will alleviate the cost of living that so many Seattleites are feeling. Vote Dionne Foster.
Seattle Proposition 1: Vote Yes on the FEPP Levy
The inaccessibility of early childhood learning in Seattle is an outrage, but the Families, Education Preschool and Promise (FEPP) Levy is one of the critical tools we’ve had to invest in the critical need to close opportunity gaps, support kids, and provide post secondary education access. It’s imperative that we renew it.
The Seattle Promise Program is a landmark higher education access program that has served as a model for other cities and the state to ensure educational equity to Seattle students through universal access to two year college programs and expanded pathways to the trades.
The School Based Health Centers at Seattle Public Schools are funded through this levy and the 2025 renewal will add five more to the already well-used program, which provides physical and mental health care to K-12 students.
Early learning, which is quickly becoming more expensive than rent and college, sees the largest and most crucial investment from this levy, and we will see an expansion of affordable childcare slots to more than twice what’s already available and 600 more slots added to the Seattle Preschool Program.
Vote yes for our families, our futures and community. Vote Yes for Prop 1.
Seattle Proposition 2: Vote Yes on Seattle Shield Initiative
Now more than ever, we need to shore up our investments in the services that support our city and all the people in it. Our tax system is broken, and there are a lot of challenges and imbalances that can arise from relying on Business and Occupation (B&O) taxes, but Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck has brilliantly offered an adjustment to the city’s B&O tax that will provide real relief for small businesses, ask a little bit more of the biggest businesses that are invested in the wellbeing of our community, and shield us from an austerity budget under a turbulent, dangerous, and retaliatory federal environment. Rinck’s plan was so good, Mayor Bruce Harrell got on board.
With the Seattle Shield Initiative, we’ll see $80 million raised for investments by the city in social and human services and in emergency housing vouchers and food assistance put at risk by federal cuts. We’ll also establish dedicated funding for the city’s labor enforcement agency, the Office of Labor Standards, which puts millions of dollars back into working people’s pockets every year. The Seattle Shield Initiative does all this while giving our city a more just tax structure.
Vote Yes for a Seattle Shield. Vote Yes for Prop 2.
King County Council, District 5: No Endorsement
The race to become the next King County Councilmember in District 5 is undoubtedly this year’s sleeper race, and is getting significantly overshadowed by more high-profile contests around the region. But it’s a big deal. The person that voters pick to fill the seat vacated by Dave Upthegrove after he was elected to statewide office could end up serving a long time. They will play a key role in advancing transit and housing policy for the entire county, potentially for a generation.
Peter Kwon and Steffanie Fain advanced through the primary, providing voters with a narrow range of options due to their similar positions.
In the primary, The Urbanist endorsed Renton Councilmember Ryan McIrvin; he finished fourth. Kim-Khánh Van, McIrvin’s colleague on the Renton Council finished a close third behind Fain. With Van and McIrvin out, the race is left with no standard bearer for more progressive voters.
The Urbanist elections committee was not impressed with Fain, a Normandy Park lawyer, and her vague promise for a “new direction” for King County. We’re concerned with her long learning curve in elected office, and her close ties to business elites.
Both Kwon and Fain were very skeptical of increasing revenue options – an essential move given the county’s pressing budget issues.
Peter Kwon did not participate in our endorsement process, and we have major concerns about electing him as well. Kwon didn’t seem to have a full grasp on the systemic budget constraints that King County faces, as a jurisdiction locked out of the type of revenue options available to cities like SeaTac, where he’s currently a councilmember.
In the end, we can’t give either candidate our endorsement.
- Steffanie Fain questionnaire
- Peter Kwon did not return a questionnaire, but you can read his interview with our news team.
SOUTH SOUND
Tacoma Mayor: Anders Ibsen
In this mayoral race, Tacomans have two candidates who each bring strengths to the table. After our interviews, it became clear that Anders Ibsen is the candidate who best embodies the values and expertise to lead Tacoma toward a more sustainable, equitable future.
Anders Ibsen is no stranger to advancing livable density, 15-minute communities, and thoughtful urban design policies that prioritize people over cars. He supports expanding affordable, transit-oriented housing and is committed to streamlining development processes to ensure Tacoma families can access homes near where they live and work. His time on the Tacoma City Council demonstrated not only principled leadership during challenging times but also the courage and policy expertise needed to tackle Tacoma’s biggest urban challenges head-on.
Addressing Tacoma’s urgent public safety challenges, especially rising gun violence affecting youth, Ibsen promotes holistic solutions, supporting programs that engage students and community members through after-school and summer initiatives in partnership with schools, nonprofits, and businesses to create safer neighborhoods.
Ibsen also supports street designs that improve safety and mobility by calming traffic through narrower, more pedestrian-friendly corridors and encouraging future transit expansions. As Tacoma moves forward with these major transportation investments and leadership transitions, Anders Ibsen’s experience, vision, and collaborative approach position him as the urbanist leader who can deliver meaningful progress for all Tacomans.
Ibsen faces off with Tacoma Councilmember John Hines. We found Hines a thoughtful candidate on issues of housing production and traffic safety. Arguably, there are two urbanists in this race. However, some of Hines’ votes on Council have concerned us, particularly on homelessness and economic justice issues.
Hines spearheaded Tacoma’s camping ban, which targets people camping near homeless shelters, and recently proposed to greatly expand the ban to a 10-block radius of schools, parks, and libraries, a huge swath of the city. The move seems an election season gimmick, and it is not likely to address the root problem of homelessness — the need for more housing and services. Sweeping homeless people from public view is not a solution.
When the grassroots Tacoma For All campaign won enough signatures to run a tenant bill of rights ballot measure, Hines backed a watered-down City version that sought to siphon support. That effort failed when voters backed the stronger grassroots version.
Overall, Ibsen is the most complete package and earns our endorsement. Vote Ibsen.
Tacoma City Council, Position 4: Silong Chhun
The Urbanist endorses Silong Chhun for Tacoma City Council. Chhun came to the Eastside Tacoma with his family from Cambodia as a youth under the Refugee Resettlement Act. He grew up in the Salishan neighborhood and continues to call Eastside home. His communications work with both the Office of the Attorney General and former Governor Jay Inslee has helped him amplify voices and build community. Chhun worked along the Khmer Advocacy and Advancement Group, as well as founding the Red Scarf Revolution, an organization engaging the community through shared culture to advance needed policies.
We were impressed with Chhun’s commitment to protecting families within his community. He supports a Worker’s Bill of Rights, expanding tenant protections, and defending immigrant and refugee communities within the city. Chhun divulged a multi-step plan to expand affordable housing in Tacoma, including incentivizing mixed-income developments and fast-track accessory dwelling units (ADUs). Chhun also expressed the need for community engagement in this process, even naming “housing huddles” as an opportunity for neighborhoods to create plans for shelters, emergency housing, and other needs that best fit the communities people work and live in.
Chhun faces incumbent Sandesh Sadalge, who finished a few points ahead in the primary in a close race. We have some concerns about Sadalge’s voting record, and he did not complete a questionnaire or participate in our process to defend his record.
We do believe Chhun is a bit green, as this is his first time running for office and some of his questionnaire responses needed stronger detail. However, he is the candidate in the race that best aligns with The Urbanist, and we believe that his passion for Tacoma’s Eastside is what the district needs.
- Silong Chhun questionnaire
- Sandesh Sadalge did not submit a questionnaire.
Tacoma City Council, Position 5: Zev Rose Cook
The Urbanist endorses Zev Rose Cook for Tacoma City Council. With a successful career in community organizing, Cook has proven her urbanist mettle. She co-founded Tacoma For All, a grassroots organization working to fight for rights of working Tacomans. As a part of this work, Cook helped manage the successful tenant’s bill of rights campaign in 2023.
Cook helped organize her workplace, partnering with the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1199. A former member of the United Food and Commercial Workers union, she conducted organizer trainings as a volunteer. Her top priorities include raising the minimum wage, tax increases on the wealthy, and building permanent affordable social housing.
We were especially impressed by Cook’s tenacity and straightforward responses in her interview with the elections committee. A recurring theme in her answers was protecting working people. Cook believes in building trust between city leaders and its voters, including fully funding the city’s crisis response team and creating a road development plan that doesn’t increase the cost of living. Cook highlighted the missing organizer voice on the city council and is committed to being this advocate for working people in the city. She is endorsed by the Washington Education Association PAC, Fair Vote Washington, Indivisible Tacoma, and several Urbanist-endorsed elected officials.
If elected, Cook will take a more progressive approach to policy than her opponent, incumbent Joe Bushnell, who led in primary results. Bushnell, who was elected in 2021, sponsored the city’s camping ban which passed the city council in 2022. While we appreciated Bushnell’s interview, his framework for supporting working families is lackluster compared to Cook’s direct approach.
Based on primary results, Cook has ground to make up, but Tacoma organizers have pulled off upsets before. She clearly has the more far-reaching vision for the future.
We want to see more Tacoma officials willing to reach for progress rather than for excuses for why it’s not possible, and that is attainable with a vote for Zev Rose Cook.
Tacoma City Council, Position 6: Latasha Palmer
While The Urbanist elections committee initially endorsed Krista Perez in the August primary, Latasha Palmer is the clear choice for Tacoma’s open at-large council seat in November.
While both Palmer and her opponent, business leader Jessica Johnston, say they’ll work to implement the Home in Tacoma plan to increase housing availability and choice across the city, we trust Palmer to center the voices of working Tacomans in that conversation.
Johnston has been oppositional toward Measure 1, the Renter’s Bill of Rights passed by Tacoma voters in 2023. She also opposes social housing, another strong contrast with Palmer. We’re also skeptical that Johnston will actually support the progressive revenue sources that Tacoma will need to implement to maintain city services during the Trump administration, given her strong stance around protecting businesses.
Palmer, who co-founded the Aya Community Land Trust, seems miles ahead of Johnston in terms of trying to diversify Tacoma’s affordable housing options. We’re also impressed with Palmer’s positions around increasing multimodal transportation options in Tacoma, while Johnston’s answers on that topic seemed surface-level.
Vote Palmer.
Tukwila City Council, Position 1: Verna Seal
Verna Seal is the clear choice for Tukwila. With a strong emphasis on equity, she’s a champion for housing, progressive revenue, and safer, more walkable streets. Seal has experience, having served on the council from 2006 to 2021 and she was re-appointed to Position 7 in January after De’Sean Quinn was appointed to the King County Council.
Seal has a pragmatic approach to homelessness, supporting more shelters as well as safe parking and camping areas to address immediate needs while also supporting longer term solutions to increase housing supply. We appreciated her emphasis on community engagement and building trust with underserved groups.
Seal’s opponent is Peggy McCarthy, Tukwila’s former finance director, who did not participate in our process. Her campaign page does not include concrete policy proposals.
Seal has the right experience, a proven record, and shares our values. We’re proud to endorse Seal for re-election.
Kent City Council, Position 6: Andy Song
Andy Song is the best choice for Kent City Council Position 6. He faces off with Sharn Shoker, who led in primary results.
A former outreach worker and current director for Kent School Board, Song brought an emphasis on affordable housing, inclusionary zoning, and equity. Song’s Questionnaire responses were particularly strong, including support for a Vision Zero for Kent.
Song’s desire to improve traffic safety (a critical issue for Kent) and to treat traffic deaths as a public health crisis illustrated his desire to work on root causes while taking immediate steps to reduce harm. He likewise reflected this approach in his ideas for housing and public safety, emphasizing the interconnectedness of these issues and the need to engage communities who often feel left out of city decision-making. Song demonstrated a desire to explore progressive revenue options and to protect the people of Kent from ICE raids, both timely and critical needs in the current federal context.
Shoker did not participate in the Urbanist endorsement process. Of the candidates we spoke to, Song showed an enthusiasm for policies that will make Kent less car-dependent, with safer streets and an abundant supply of affordable housing. We encourage voters of Kent to pick Song.
- Andy Song questionnaire
- Sharn Shoker did not return a questionnaire.
Renton City Council, Position 1: Mike Westgaard
Michael Westgaard has a bold vision for the future of transit in Renton. His experience as an organizer with Raise the Wage Renton, his commitment to social options for affordable housing, and his desire to see transit access that works across the city make him our clear choice for Renton City Council.
In an era of broad slogans and buzzwords, Westgaard’s campaign page has refreshingly detailed and specific policy proposals. His public safety platform is rooted in evidence-based, holistic approaches including a crisis care center, re-imagined safety professionals within schools, and accountability for police. His housing proposal includes a variety of strategies to prevent homelessness and keep housing affordable as the city grows. In his response to our questionnaire, he outlines several specific ideas for traffic calming measures to improve pedestrian safety.
It’s clear he’s done the work to understand Renton and the interconnected issues faced by the community. We are impressed at how has translated that understanding into actionable proposals. If elected, we hope he’ll also have the political capital to make his proposals a reality.
Westgaard’s opponent is incumbent James Alberson, the current council President. Alberson did not participate in our endorsement process. His campaign messaging focuses on public safety without much in the way of specific policy proposals. More concerning are large donations from businesses and pro-business political action committees. But Alberson’s name recognition gave him a commanding lead in the August primary, where he finished with 56% of the vote. Westgaard has his work cut out for him to raise his profile with voters.
Westgaard is the clear Urbanist choice in this race. He’s made a compelling case and given voters plenty of details about what he’ll do if elected. We look forward to seeing what his bold vision for transit access, community safety, and affordability in Renton could bring to the city.
- Mike Westgaard questionnaire
- James Alberson did not return a questionnaire.
Renton City Council, Position 2: No Endorsement.
The elections committee could not make an endorsement for Renton’s Council Position 2. Both candidates participated in our process (Mary Clymer in the primary, the incumbent Carmen Rivera in the general.) While Rivera has been a champion for urbanist policies on council, allegations of abusive behavior have raised concerns. When asked about these allegations during our interview, Rivera deflected blame onto her accusers, suggesting they were motivated by racism or sexism.
In our primary interview, Clymer stressed the importance of working together across differences of opinion, access to green space and public art. She did not demonstrate enough of a commitment to urbanist values for us to endorse.
Renton voters will be faced with the choice between the experienced, if controversial Rivera or the untested possibilities from Clymer.
Renton City Council, Position 6: Paul Dutton
Paul Dutton will bring a fresh perspective and needed expertise to the Renton City Council, which is why we’re excited to endorse him. Dutton sees infrastructure and transit as the keys to public safety, inclusion, and accessibility, and connects every issue back to these core needs. Demonstrating a fluent understanding of the interconnectedness of policy, revenue resources, and community engagement, he made it clear that he will be ready to hit the ground running if elected to council.
As an engineer, he brought a direct communication style and fluency with data and evidence to our questionnaire and interview that will serve him well as a council member. But Dutton also approaches issues with an important equity lens, emphasizing the need to bring sidewalks to underserved neighborhoods, and to help communities feel engaged in the decision making process by council.
Dutton’s opponent, the incumbent Ruth Pérez, has served on Renton City Council since 2014. While Pérez also did well in our interview, we felt Dutton’s perspective would bring bolder thinking on transit, zoning, and public safety. As these two did not have a primary, it isn’t clear which way voters are leaning.
We think Dutton is bringing the right experience and the commitment to transit access that will serve Renton’s future. Vote Dutton.
Seatac City Council, Position 2: Caitlin Konya
The Urbanist is proud to endorse Caitlin Konya for SeaTac City Council. Konya, a social worker, union member, and Community Services Advisory Board member, brought these experiences to inform her emphasis on inclusive and effective human services, strong labor standards, and a connected community.
Konya articulated a deep understanding of the diverse needs of the SeaTac Community and emphasized the need to mitigate the impact of the airport on the health and wellbeing of vulnerable residents. We appreciated her clear familiarity with the Housing Action Plan, and her expressed goal of avoiding displacement while ensuring growth and maintaining affordability. Konya has a clear commitment to serving all of Seatac through more robust community engagement, and balancing the interests of an international airport with pedestrian safety and environmental stewardship.
Konya’s opponent, Takele Gobena, has historically been a champion for urbanist values. Elected in 2019, he resigned in 2023 and though he has filed for position 2, he did not choose to participate in our endorsement process and does not have a campaign page or any significant reported fundraising.
Konya deserves a chance to lead, and we’re excited to see what she does on the council. Vote Konya.
Seatac City Council, Position 4: Mohamed Egal
Mohamed Egal has been a reliable champion for housing, pedestrian safety, and preserving parks and greenspace in SeaTac. We enthusiastically endorse him for re-election to the SeaTac City Council. His first term has seen progress in transit-oriented development, the preservation of North SeaTac Park, and a sizable reserve fund, increasing the city’s resilience in the face of federal funding cuts and an economic downturn.
Egal proudly touts the 60 miles of sidewalks constructed in response to community outcry about road safety, an important step for walkability and safety. He also balances the economic benefits of the airport with an emphasis on protecting air quality and securing federal resources for noise mitigation.
Egal’s opponent (who did not participate in the Urbanist endorsement process) is self-described “media personality” Isabelle Kerner, who formerly ran for Seattle City Council, District 7. At the time, the 2023 Urbanist Elections committee called Kerner “beyond unserious”. Kerner has no current campaign presence to convince us that assessment was incorrect.
Egal’s reputation for bringing people together and putting people first, his proven record as Mayor, and his commitment to furthering urbanist values make him the obvious choice in this race. Vote Egal.
Burien City Council Position 1: Hugo Garcia
The Urbanist endorses Hugo Garcia for re-election to Burien City Council. One of two progressive voices on Burien’s current council, Garcia has been a consistent champion for protecting immigrant communities in Burien, re-invigorating the affordable housing demonstration program, and the recent Raise the Wage initiative to remove the tip penalty from the municipal minimum wage.
Garcia grounds his policy positions in his lived experience as an immigrant, which has also informed his council votes and his service on the planning commission. He credits affordable, multifamily housing options with his own ability to avoid displacement after his neighborhood was annexed into Burien. During his opposition to the tip penalty passed by the council majority, Garcia cited his own upbringing with a father who relied on tips to pay the bills. In this way, Garcia makes the link between abstract policy and the people impacted impossible to ignore.
Garcia (and the other progressive incumbent, Sarah Moore) were unsuccessful in their votes against Burien’s “camping ban” which makes unsheltered homelessness a misdemeanor. Garcia has said he’ll support repealing the ban if the progressive slate is able to re-take the majority.
His opponent is Jessica Ivey, who did not participate in our endorsement process. Ivey, a planning commissioner appointed by the council after the last commission resigned in protest, espouses broadly urbanist rhetoric but she’s stated her support for the camping ban and joined conservatives in demonizing the permanent supportive housing complex built by DESC.
With his solid voting record and commitment to reverse the current council’s regressive policies, Garcia is the obvious choice in this election. Re-elect Hugo Garcia for Position 1.
Burien City Council, Position 3: Sam Méndez
Sam Méndez is our clear choice in the race for the open Position 3 seat, created by Councilmember Jimmy Matta not seeking re-election. Méndez, a privacy attorney with the Washington State Health Care Authority, wants to see increased housing density, safer streets, and a more transparent city council.
Méndez calls Burien’s loss of $1 million in county funds over the council’s inability to agree on a site for a tiny home village “inexcusable”, particularly in the face of federal funding cuts and a public safety levy on this year’s ballot. He’s been an outspoken critic of Mayor Kevin Schilling’s vote to block that tiny home village from disrupting the lease of a car dealership owned by a major campaign donor. Like Garcia and Moore, Méndez also hopes to repeal the city’s camping ban, citing both the cruelty of the policy as well as the costly legal battles the city has taken on as a result.
His opponent, Marie Barbon, did not complete our process but per her campaign website, opposes taxes for affordable housing and wants zoning that “maintains the character of our neighborhoods.” Given recent anti-density campaigns in Burien, this suggests she does not hold urbanist values.
Méndez finished well ahead of his primary opponents, with 48% of the vote in a 3-way race. We hope to see his campaign proposals put to action if he’s elected in November, and are excited to see what a possible progressive majority could mean for Burien’s city council.
- Sam Méndez questionnaire
- Marie Barbon did not return a response.
Burien City Council, Position 5: Sarah Moore
Sarah Moore is the exact kind of smart and thoughtful individual we need more of when making important decisions. Moore strongly supports housing and transit, and obviously closely follows their progress and roadblocks, identifying clear steps that can be taken to move forward. Amidst a split council and in her first term on council, she has been chosen as Deputy Mayor of Burien, showing the council’s trust in her careful decision-making, and evenhanded approach.
Moore lives near a park, so her introduction to Burien politics was in joining the Parks Commission, though she took that as an opportunity to work on making parks across Burien more equitable. She also co-founded ACLU Burien People Power and the Burien White Center ICE Rapid Response Team, both of which have newfound importance. She also speaks with a solid understanding of larger budgets and choices to be made. If the Burien Public Safety Levy passes, it will continue funding desirable positions and initiatives that would be likely potential cuts if the levy were to fail.
During our interview, she methodically talked through a tough question about opposition to urbanization by residents who fear for the “character” of Burien as a small town, and really did a nice job of explaining the nuance in her approach to direct outreach and decision-making. Regarding Tiny Home Villages, Moore described “spending a lot of time speaking to folks who knew more about it than I did” in order to inform her decision. She also meets and listens to constituents, openly discussing her approach and position from the start. A self-described policy nerd, Moore confronts the nitty gritty and uncomfortable details, and that work pays off in her favor.
While now in the progressive minority, Moore sees the possibility of a progressive wave election buoying a new progressive majority into office so they can make more headway on issues such as road safety, walkability, and tenant protections in Burien. So far, she has only been able to push these forward with baby steps. Let’s see what happens when Burien progressives can get some momentum and can take big strides! Vote Sarah Moore.
Kelsey Vanhee recused in this race.
Burien City Council, Position 7: Rocco DeVito
Roco DeVito is the clear choice in the Burien City Council Position 7 race. The Urbanist elections committee doesn’t choose our endorsement based on lifestyle, but it’s hard to find a candidate who lives urbanist values more than DeVito. He doesn’t own a car, commuting entirely by e-bike and transit. He’s a King County Metro employee and a former vice chair of the Burien Planning Commission.
Rounding out the four-person progressive slate, DeVito shares the slate’s emphasis on affordable housing, pedestrian safety, and a more effective approach to address homelessness in Burien. As a former planning commissioner, DeVito understands the links between affordability and density, and has practical proposals to reduce obstacles to development and speed up badly needed new housing. He also considers the role city council members play in encouraging volunteerism and advocating for more participation by community and nonprofits in filling the gaps left by federal funding cuts.
DeVito’s opponent, incumbent city council member Stephanie Mora, led the recent charge to roll back modest upzones in wealthy neighborhoods near Burien’s shorelines. Mora, who did not participate in our endorsement process, is a regular guest on conservative talk radio and proud leader of the effort to ban sleeping outdoors, despite Burien having no year-round shelters that accept single men. She previously floated a proposal to cut Burien’s human service budget by 50%. Regressive policies like these should be disqualifying.
The contrast could not be more clear. While Mora would continue to lead the charge to slow Burien’s growth and cut critical services, DeVito will work to expand housing, eliminate parking mandates, and address homelessness with services and supportive housing. DeVito’s will take Burien in the right direction, while Mora would take the city backward. Vote Rocco DeVito.
EASTSIDE
Bellevue City Council, Position 1: Vishal Bhargava
After advancing through the primary Vishal Bhargava is challenging incumbent Paul Clark for his seat. The Urbanist endorsed Nicholas Ton in the primary, preferring his approach on traffic safety. We also find that Bhargava would be a significant improvement over the incumbent. We did not get a chance to interview Bhargava, but he submitted a compelling questionnaire. Bhargava is very well informed on Bellevue’s planning and urban development needs – he has served on the the City’s Planning Commission for seven years and has a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning
Bhargava started on the Bellevue Planning Commission in 2018 and was appointed to a vacated City Council seat in May 2025. Bhargava has been entrenched in work surrounding the Comprehensive Plan and is familiar with state mandated requirements in housing, multimodal transportation, climate resiliency, and accommodating growth. Bhargava left his mark on the planning commission as someone that actively supported a significant increase in housing capacity to 152,000 units. Bhargava sees the greater future for Bellevue – strength in an innovation-focused economy, diversity of neighborhoods, and wealth of resources can further transform Bellevue from tech-suburb of Seattle into a powerhouse city worthy of national recognition as a gold standard of sustainable living.
His work on the Comprehensive Plan has well informed his priority platforms in this City Council race which are housing affordability, sustainable growth, and community safety. Bhargava supports a plethora of policies meant to achieve these primary goals – zoning reform to increase density and housing options, supporting transit-oriented developments, reducing community reliance on cars through investments in multimodal transportation, preserving green space, expansion of mental health crisis centers, climate resiliency, and many more.
Bhargava is a candidate that the community needs and deserves: a councilmember that represents Bellevue’s modernity and diversity, and will champion access, opportunity, and sustainability. Bhargava is the most likely candidate to advocate for Bellevue’s residents, current and future.
Bhargava’s opponent, Paul Clark, did not participate in The Urbanist endorsement process and appears less aligned with our values. Clark believes in focusing new housing units only in areas of high volume transit which inspires only seeing more large-scale apartments near arterials rather than incorporating middle housing throughout Bellevue’s affluent single-family neighborhoods. He is a firm believer that existing single-family neighborhoods need to be preserved – which further locks out households and families that cannot afford the average single-family home price (which is $1.5 million according to Redfin).
Middle housing deserves space in Bellevue, and Clark is not someone who is willing to vouch for it. Clark is a candidate that is more appropriate for an economically segregated community like Medina or Clyde Hill when it comes to his housing perspective – continuing to protect single-family, affluent homeowners that fear change and scoff at the idea that growth is necessary for city-wide economic stability.
Bhargava’s platform supports a diversity of progressive policies that The Urbanist supports and is excited about. Ultimately, his priorities around housing are the most important to pay attention to. Housing affordability and diversity sets Bhargava miles apart from his primary opponent and if anything, should be the reason why he deserves Bellevue’s vote. Bellevue’s future relies on enough housing options to support a growing economy and the frontline jobs needed to support it.
Jazmine Smith recused in this race.
Bellevue City Council, Position 5: Claire Sumadiwirya
Claire Sumadiwirya was appointed to the Bellevue City Council in April to fill a vacancy created by Janice Zahn’s appointment to the Washington State House of Representatives. She is a small business owner and a single mom, active in several social causes. In her first months on council, it has not always been smooth sailing, with Sumadiwirya helping water down the city’s middle housing plan in June, and making some concerning comments about housing coded around neighborhood “unity” and property values in the process. Partially, we chalk that up to a learning curve. We see leadership potential and alignment to values to recommend voters give Sumadiwirya a chance in a full term.
When we asked Sumadiwirya about that June, she painted her incremental approach as coming from a desire to bring neighbors along and win them over, rather than refusing to ever open neighborhoods up to more housing. She said housing is the foundation of a strong community, and that adding more types of housing across Bellevue is the end goal.
On transportation, Sumadiwirya gets it. She serves on the advisory committee for Eastrail, the 42-mile rail-to-trail corridor connecting the entire Eastside. She experienced traffic violence firsthand and once almost died in a bike crash. We trust her to advocate for increasing road safety. Sumadiwirya disagreed with Council’s decision to walk away from the Bike Bellevue plan, which would have created a basic bike network in the core of the city. She said expanding bike lanes and increasing pedestrian safety would be a priority.
The other candidate in this race, Matthew Rish, is not running a serious campaign. He does not have a website, and has not reported any campaign fundraising activity. From what we can gather, his platform, such as it is, has focused on scare-mongering on public safety issues.
Luckily, we have a candidate who is ready to lead on road safety and mobility justice, recognizes that working people are being priced out of Bellevue and need more help, and is coming along on housing issues, despite a bad vote this summer. Vote Sumadiwirya.
Jazmine Smith recused in this race.
- Claire Sumadiwirya
- Matthew Rish did not return a questionnaire.
Bellevue City Council, Position 6: No endorsement
Bellevue Mayor Lynne Robinson wants to be the type of city leader that brings all sides together to a consensus everyone can agree on – it’s the Bellevue Way. But time and time again, Robinson has sided with the city’s conservative factions to keep Bellevue’s thinking small: from watering down the city’s middle housing ordinance to failing to stand up for the Bike Bellevue plan, we can’t trust Robinson to follow through.
Robinson has also become a vocal opponent of progressive revenue options at the state level, thinking myopically about the second most upside-down tax system in the country at a time of unprecedented need for increased state services.
Robinson’s opponent, Nicole Myers, would not be an upgrade. Myers has called the idea of allowing nine apartments or townhomes on lots even close to transit “too many for Bellevue” and suggested this month at a forum that the city should encourage the retention of surface parking lots near transit-oriented development to buffer pedestrians from noisy roads. When asked about creating more east-west bike connections in the city, Myers told cyclists they should just take their bike on a 2 Line train.
We do appreciate that Robinson has been a supporter of light rail and a defender of increasing shelter and permanent supportive housing in the city, in the face of considerable opposition. But with her fence-straddling, we simply can’t endorse her reelection bid.
Jazmine Smith recused in this race.
Newcastle City Council, Position 6: Paul Charbonneau
Paul Charbonneau, the youngest councilmember ever elected to the Newcastle City Council in the city’s history when he was first elected at 25 in 2021, is a housing affordability champion through and through. He led the work to introduce a suite of tenant protection proposals that would have placed limits on security deposits and late fees, and prohibited the requirement of social security numbers in the renter application process. He also supported legislation to lift restrictions on townhomes and accessory dwelling units along with comprehensive protections for fixed-income elders who rent. While these measures have narrowly failed to secure more than 3 of the 7 votes on this conservative-leaning council, Charbonneau continues to be a tireless voice in the fight for affordable housing.
On top of his demonstrable commitment to housing access, Charbonneau has been a committed leader in the work to expand public transit infrastructure, bikeability, and walkability on the Eastside. The bright, urbanist future we dream of and deserve is possible with people like Charbonneau at the decision-making table. Vote Charbonneau.
Issaquah Mayor: Lindsey Walsh
Lindsey Walsh is unequivocally the best candidate in the Issaquah Mayor race. Walsh is currently the Mayor Pro Tem and has been on the City Council 2019. During her time on the Council, Walsh has led on housing. She has been a member of the King County Affordable Housing Committee, as well as the Puget Sound Regional Council’s Growth Management Policy Board. Walsh is deeply entrenched in tackling the challenges facing Issaquah.
Walsh has been at the forefront of advocating for better housing policies in Issaquah. Walsh played a key role in the adoption of the 2024 Comprehensive Plan and overwhelmingly supports increasing housing options to meet more diverse income-level needs. Walsh supports diversifying the city’s housing stock with more middle housing and increasing multifamily housing, and also wants to address the “red tape” homebuilders experience in permitting and costs. Walsh has been working closely with city staff to help rewrite some portions of the zoning code that have been confusing or restrictive to the development of smaller housing units, and helping legalize middle housing.
Walsh recognized that bringing more affordable housing options to Issaquah has been a trial and error effort. The failure of the Central Issaquah Pioneer Program (a program adopted in 2024 intended to encourage more 60% and 80% median-income level multifamily housing within the Central Issaquah subarea) was called out in The Urbanist’s interview with Walsh, and she recognized that overly-restrictive design standards as well as expanding the eligibility area need to be addressed to bring greater access to more affordable housing opportunities. Walsh is willing to revisit Issaquah’s stringent zoning standards surrounding housing to find thoughtful concessions that will help bring more housing options at a greater affordability level.
Beyond her advocacy towards housing, Walsh is equally invested in seeing the long-term plan for Issaquah’s transportation struggles. Walsh wants to see complete streets incorporated into all new transportation projects, fighting for more sidewalks and separated bike pathways as well as seeing a greater investment into bus rapid transit and preparing Issaquah for its future light rail station. Walsh sees the value in investments towards complete streets — it addresses climate resiliency, improves community health and wellbeing, and helps make a community a more vibrant and exciting place to be. Rather than doubling down on car dependency like her opponent, Walsh will advocate for more multimodal investments as Mayor.
Do not be fooled by the friendly handwritten notes left on doors and the many signs scattered around town – Mark Mullet is not the right candidate for Issaquah. A business owner, Mullet previously served on the Issaquah City Council for a single term from 2009 to 2013 and as a member of the State Senate for 12 years, where he earned a conservative, anti-worker reputation for blocking progressive priorities like rent stabilization and the Climate Commitment Act. He ran for governor unsuccessfully in 2024. It could be that an Issaquah mayoral term would just a stepping stone to his further statewide political ambitions
Equally confusing in this race is the slate of endorsements Mullet has received ranging from the King County Republican Party to current Issaquah Mayor Mary Lou Pauly to former Seattle councilmember Sara Nelson to Governor Bob Ferguson. Mullet did not participate in The Urbanist’s endorsement process and Mullet’s website gives very brief descriptions on his priorities, let alone how he wants to address them.
This is a race in which corporate money and name recognition could carry Mullet over the finish line. While Mullet is running a details-light campaign buoyed by corporate backing, Republican support, and big-name endorsements, Walsh clearly has the better vision for Issaquah. She would stand up for all Issaquah residents, not just the rich and powerful. Walsh has done her homework and the legwork to truly earn the Mayoral position and rightfully earned endorsements from King County Democrats, Sarah Perry, Victoria Hunt, the late Bill Ramos, and numerous labor organizations. Vote Walsh.
- Lindsey Walsh questionnaire
- Mark Mullet did not return a questionnaire.
Issaquah City Council, Position 1:
The Urbanist endorses Kelly Jiang for Issaquah City Council Position 1. Jiang was appointed to the Council in February 2025 and is seeking to remain in the position. During her short tenure on the council, Jiang has voted in support of preserving 20-acres of open space, preserve affordable homes for individuals with intellectual and development disabilities, and supported density increases in residential neighborhoods. Jiang is a self-identified environmental advocate serving as Board President on Issaquah Alps Trail Club, a board member on the Mountains to Sound Greenway, and Board Chair on the Leafline Trails Coalition.
Jiang is entrenched in the challenges Issaquah faces when it comes to housing development and is prepared to offer grounded solutions to alleviate the challenges households face in affording to live in Issaquah as well as barriers developers face in choosing to build in town. One of Jiang’s top priorities to bring more housing affordability include streamlining the permit process and making it more predictable, pre-approved floor plans for specific types of housing, incentives for middle housing, and updating antiquated portions of the zoning code.
Jiang is unafraid to call out the failure of the 2011 Central Issaquah subarea plan – which anticipated adding 7,000 new housing units by 2035. As of today, there have only been 1,000 units developed as a result of the plan. She is someone who recognizes that historically performative actions the City has taken are not going to bring the real results that are and she is willing to do the work it will take to bring more units to Issaquah and it’s bustling downtown core.
Jiang wants to see Issaquah become a more walkable community and have greater multimodal accessibility. She supports more sidewalks and bike lanes for more complete streets and addressing last mile connections, and wants to see more local bus routes. The Urbanist is excited to see that she supports seeing corner stores and neighborhood businesses in residential areas to help curve the number of trips residents take out of their neighborhoods.
Jiang’s opponent in this race is Chris Reichley, who is a first-time candidate for the council. Reichley did not participate in The Urbanist’s endorsement process, but has been an active member of the community serving on the Issaquah Economic Vitality Commission and Strategic Plan Task Force, and was a Board Member of the Kiwanis Club of Issaquah. His website cites a number of policy priorities he has that do align with The Urbanist’s values, including promoting zoning updates that allow for diverse housing, expanding mental health and crisis centers, creating community neighborhood hubs, multimodal investments, and transit-oriented development. Reichley does not seem like a bad candidate for the position; however, since we did not have an opportunity to hear directly from him, we give the edge to Jiang.
The Urbanist recommends Jiang for her forward-thinking considerations on climate change and the environment, her stewardship towards trails and multimodal development, and her vocalized solutions on local housing affordability. Vote Jiang.
Issaquah City Council, Position 3: Barbara de Michele
The Urbanist endorses Barbara de Michele for Issaquah City Council Position 3. While de Michele is running unopposed for the position, The Urbanist still felt she was well worth an endorsement. She has been on the City Council since 2019 and is currently the Deputy President. De Michele has been a resident of Issaquah for more than 40 years and is very active in the community. She is board president of the Kiwanis Club, founding member of The Garage teen cafe, and vice chair of the King County Regional Transit Committee.
De Michele received the Elected Official of the Year award in 2020 from the Alliance of Eastside Agencies. Prior to serving on the City Council, she was a community relations planner for King County Department of Transportation, Director of Public Relations for the Issaquah School District, and executive director of Issaquah Community Network and Issaquah Schools Foundation Healthy Youth Initiative.
Beyond her wealth of experience and dedication to the community at large, Michele is a progressive candidate that embodies the values of The Urbanist. Her top priorities are affordable housing, transportation, and expansion of human services. With regards to housing, de Michele supports a Multifamily Tax Exemption to spur workforce housing creation, reducing parking requirements, middle housing, and also proposes an advisory committee to reduce zoning code barriers to develop housing. She also recognizes that the zoning code is not the only challenge for new development and that the city’s permit process needs reform. She wants to work with City Hall to better support the permit team, streamline the process, and ultimately reduce the currently unpredictable permit timelines.
De Michele also has unique ideas on addressing transportation in the city. In addition to supporting expanding sidewalks, bike lanes, and bus service, de Michele wants to improve signage to give further protections to nonmotorized transportation users, encourage greater enforcement of traffic laws, and upgrade the city’s traffic signals to an Intelligent Traffic Signal program. She additionally supports creating more community spaces that are walkable from homes and reduce the need for cars.
De Michele is a unique candidate in her continued advocacy to support human services. Issaquah is one of a small handful of cities with a Human Services element of the Comprehensive Plan, which she helped develop and advocate for. While the Issaquah budget remains strained, she seeks to continue to work with community partners and nonprofits to ensure consistent service and support during an unprecedented economic landscape.
De Michele is an all-star candidate worthy of The Urbanist’s endorsement. Throughout her career, she has been a dedicated public servant, a longtime resident who can recognize the city’s past and see its future, and a consistent advocate for marginalized community members. The Urbanist election committee is excited to see her continue her tenure with the Council and knows that she will be coming to the table with ideas and an open mind. Vote de Michele.
Issaquah City Council, Position 6: Kevin Nichols
The Urbanist proudly endorses Kevin Nichols for Issaquah City Council. While both candidates in this race would be first-time council members, Nichols’ vision and disposition represent what it means to be an urbanist. His platform is grounded in finding more creative and impactful solutions to housing affordability, transportation, and growing neighborhood centers. His unique background as a PHD scientist makes Nichols well-equipped to handle Issaquah’s unique challenges through a data-driven, problem-solving approach.
Nichols is a knowledgeable and prepared candidate who is entrenched in the details of Issaquah’s current key issues. Issaquah is at a pivotal point in time: the light rail expansion will dramatically change the community and there is significant lag in developing affordable housing units in the Central Issaquah subarea. Issaquah needs a progressive candidate who is prepared to lead the community from the moment they are sworn in.
A believer in the power of coalition-building, Nichols wants to use public-private partnerships to address the significant gap in homes affordable to households earning less than 60% of the area median income, leaning into the city’s partnership with A Regional Coalition for Housing (ARCH).
Nichols also wants to work in partnership with the Issaquah School District (ISD) to help re-site the anticipated new high school and elementary school. After the ISD school bond vote failed twice (November 2024 and February 2025) as a result of vocal homeowner opposition, the ISD must find a new location for the proposed schools. Nichols’ vision is to place the new schools in walkable, centrally located areas near parks, services, and homes that help generate greater vitality in existing neighborhoods.
His opponent, Katia Zacharoff, participated in The Urbanist’s endorsement process but did not garner an endorsement. Ultimately, the election committee felt that Zacharoff did have some urbanist qualities with regard to housing and progressive taxation but fell short on transportation policy.
Nichols aims to proactively prepare the community for the impacts the future Sound Transit light rail expansion will have on Issaquah. His vision includes further development of multimodal connections and developing dedicated transit-only lanes along arterials that would be used by either transit or emergency services: improving both transit reliability and emergency response wait times. The Urbanist is keenly interested in what Nichols will accomplish if elected to the City Council, especially in urbanizing and investing in central Issaquah. Vote Nichols.
- Kevin Nichols questionnaire
- Katia Zakharoff did not return a questionnaire.
Kirkland City Council, Position 1: Jay Arnold
Kirkland needs a leader who is ready to implement the city’s growth vision, rather than retreat from it. The Urbanist endorses Jay Arnold for Kirkland City Council Position 1 because Arnold is ready to deliver on the Kirkland 2044 comprehensive plan — focusing growth in transit-rich areas, transforming strip malls into mixed-use neighborhood hubs, and enabling middle housing where it makes sense.
Arnold understands that housing availability at all price points is how we make the region affordable. While others might cave to housing opponents, Arnold commits to meeting housing affordability targets while listening to community concerns. Thus far, he has refused to re-litigate the location of permanent supportive housing and instead focuses on making it successful when it opens, with 65% of residents coming from local referrals.
On transportation, Arnold is committed to the Vision Zero campaign to end traffic deaths and the Safe System Approach — not just in rhetoric, but backed with real infrastructure investments. Arnold wants to accelerate sidewalk completion, create a network of protected bike lanes, and build a paved trail on the Cross Kirkland Corridor. Arnold also recognizes that Kirkland should not have to wait until 2044 for light rail and is ready to advocate for transit expansion and acceleration.
He actively supports progressive revenue sources and isn’t afraid to think regionally, proposing coordination on utility costs and advocating for real estate taxes scaled to home values rather than flat fees. Arnold’s leadership on the Regional Crisis Response agency shows smart public safety investment—getting people in crisis the help they need while freeing police for appropriate calls.
He is the only candidate to reject sweeps and camping bans as solutions, instead focusing on actual housing alternatives and proactive outreach through Kirkland’s Homeless Action Response Team.
Kirkland has a solid comprehensive plan. What it needs now is someone with the backbone to implement it. We believe that’s Jay Arnold.
- Jay Arnold questionnaire
- Ken Oberman did not return a questionnaire.
Kirkland City Council, Position 3: Shilpa Prem
Shilpa Prem is a qualified candidate with emerging urbanist values for Kirkland City Council Position 3. As an attorney, Prem brings a different perspective to the table that could persuasively shift hesitant resident’s perspective on middle housing, affordable housing, and crisis centers, which have all received significant pushback in certain neighborhoods.
Prem supports building both higher density housing, middle housing, and inclusionary zoning by expanding allowed uses throughout Kirkland. During Prem’s endorsement interview, she emphasized that changing the conversation around high density residential developments through education, data, and studies is critical to bringing everyone to the table in support of bringing more affordable housing to Kirkland.
Prem stated her approach best in her questionnaire, “I will prioritize early outreach through town halls, pop-ups, and online forums to build trust and share clear, transparent information. Highlighting local success stories and partnering with experienced nonprofits will help show how supportive housing reduces homelessness and improves neighborhood stability. My approach balances empathy with action.”
Prem additionally supports 10-minute walkable neighborhoods with services and improvements to multi-modal transportation options. She is endorsed by long-time Councilmember Penny Sweet, who is vacating the seat.
Prem’s activism in gun safety and legal advising around technology is where Prem hits her stride. Prem sits on the board of WA Ceasefire and Emerge WA, which are organizations that aim to reduce gun violence through education programs, community engagement, and state policy advocacy. One of her top priorities is safety, and she recognizes that there is a significant image problem involving the police force. Her plan to address the police image problem is to advocate for greater data transparency and performance tracking to ensure public safety policies are equitable and effective, and that officers are held accountable. She additionally wants to work with the police force to have greater positive community interactions and engage proactively to rebuild trust.
Catie Malik is challenging Prem for the seat, but she chose to not participate in The Urbanist’s endorsement process. The reason seems obvious enough: Malik does not appear to be an urbanist and instead the choice for Kirkland’s housing opponents, who seek to preserve neighborhoods in amber. Malik couches her opposition in support for tree protections, preserving neighborhood character, and needing multimillion dollar infrastructure investments before the city can approve larger developments. It is clear that Malik does not understand the role developers play in creating those infrastructure investments – as developers pay impact fees and complete public improvements that help integrate high-density developments into the city.
While Prem’s interview and questionnaire indicate she shares our values, Prem is also a first-time candidate, and we are interested to see how she follows through on her aforementioned goals and policies. For example, Prem did not support using the term “NIMBY” (or “not in my backyard” activism) and believes education is the mechanism to eliminate community fears around density. While it may be idealistic to believe that education alone can shift conservative opinion, at least she is pushing in the right direction. Prem supports the state legislature’s requirements to provide for housing units affordable at all income levels, but many cities including Kirkland face pushback on the changing residential landscape to accommodate a diversity of income levels.
We are keenly interested in seeing how she navigates the challenge of public scrutiny surrounding density, affordable housing, and addressing homelessness. We are excited to see her take action on shifting community perspectives on addressing the housing crisis on a local level. Vote Prem.
Kirkland City Council, Position 5: Neal Black
Neal Black is an experienced City Council veteran who is ready to turn Kirkland’s ambitious 2044 Comprehensive Plan from vision into reality. In endorsing Black, we see a candidate who is aligned with progressive values and is ready to get to work developing ordinances promoting middle housing, creating the station area plan around 85th Street/I-405 bus rapid transit, and building the policy framework that is finally getting duplexes, triplexes, and backyard cottages, built in Kirkland.
Black understands housing as a complete system, having championed some of the Eastside’s deepest inclusionary zoning requirements while balancing them with smart incentive zoning and phased implementation. He gets that today’s new construction becomes tomorrow’s naturally occurring affordable housing, and he’s working to eliminate requirements that make affordable housing unnecessarily expensive to build.
On mobility, Black is focused on creating bicycle facilities where riders of all ages and abilities feel safe, including building trail networks, bicycle greenways, and protected intersections where collision risks are highest. He has actively pushed for walkable neighborhood centers where people can live, work, shop, and play without needing a car.
Black is a champion of progressive public safety reform. He helped launch the Regional Community Response Agency, hired Kirkland’s first Homeless Outreach Coordinator, and opened the region’s first 24/7 Crisis Care Clinic. Black’s sees a two-pronged approach that has earned community and officer trust; a) recruiting great behavioral health professionals, and b) retaining excellent officers while increasing the role of trained behavioral health professionals.
Black supports progressive revenue, advocating for property tax authority increases tied to inflation and population growth while protecting low-income seniors and families through Kirkland’s universal discount program he helped develop.
Unlike his opponent, Ken MacKenzie, Black rejects camping bans and sweeps, instead building a complete continuum of care from outreach to permanent supportive housing. He treats homelessness as a system requiring attention at every point to help vulnerable neighbors navigate to stability.
The Urbanist endorses Neal Black given his alignment with transformational comprehensive planning, transit-oriented development, and holistic public safety approaches in our agenda.
Kirkland City Council, Position 7: Kurt Dresner
The Urbanist endorses Kurt Dresner for Kirkland City Council. Dresner has a history of advocacy within the Kirkland community and has demonstrated both through his priorities and past actions that he is a vetted Urbanist worthy of our endorsement. Dresner is a long-time community advocate who co-founded Livable Kirkland in 2017, played a key role in starting up Kirkland’s volunteer bike valet program, helped lobby for the Kirkland tool library program, and has been an advocate on housing and transportation frequently at city council meetings.
Throughout the endorsement process, Dresner has emphasized his continued commitment to urbanist values in his proposed priorities and policy approaches. Dresner’s own words capture his perspective on multimodal transportation the best – “housing and transportation are two sides of the same coin and approaches for one that do not consider the other are unlikely to succeed”.
Like his primary opponent, Jon Pascal, Dresner has priorities on bringing greater housing equity and affordability to Kirkland, however what makes Dresner unique is his belief that the most vulnerable groups need to have the most immediate relief. Dresner seeks to work with the city on streamlining projects that meet the community’s unmet needs for young professionals, elders looking to age in place, and small families looking for starter homes. Dresner believes in the “Supply, Stability, and Subsidy” policy coined by Shane Phillips in his book The Affordable City.
Where Dresner hits his stride is on his transportation policies. Dresner has actionable ideas on improving transportation options by re-prioritizing how the city addresses transportation infrastructure improvements. He believes that a larger proportion of improvement funds need to be dedicated to bike and pedestrian projects. He also discourages road widening projects, and would prefer an emphasis on maintenance and repairs of existing roadways. Ultimately, Dresner wants to see a healthy community with more transportation options and lower household transportation costs by offering a wider variety of options throughout Kirkland.
Dresner has proven himself to be a true urbanist time and time again, and we look forward to seeing the impact he has on Kirkland’s future during his tenure, if elected.
- Kurt Dresner questionnaire
- Jon Pascal did not return a questionnaire.
Redmond City Council, Position 6: Menka Soni
Menka Soni for Redmond City Council offers grounded leadership and an inclusive vision to a rapidly changing city. With a background spanning corporate leadership, nonprofit service, real estate, and small business ownership, Soni embodies the kind of multidimensional perspective Redmond needs as it faces pressing challenges around housing, affordability, and growth.
Notably, Soni’s housing platform stands out for its compassion and practicality. She supports missing middle housing, zoning reforms, and a collaborative approach to working with developers, nonprofits, and faith-based groups to expand affordable options. As a board member of South King Housing and Homelessness Partners and a founder of AmPowering, she’s already doing this work on the ground — building trust with communities, helping vulnerable residents, and ensuring solutions are people-first.
An urbanist in both outlook and experience, Soni supports building complete communities with mixed-income housing, walkable neighborhoods, and better transit access. Her public safety vision is forward-looking: she advocates for crisis response teams, culturally competent policing, and youth engagement programs that address root causes and build long-term community trust. She’s also committed to safer streets, backing Vision Zero strategies like protected bike lanes, lower speed limits, and better lighting, especially near schools and transit.
The incumbent in this race, Jeralee Anderson, built her career on environmental work, as co-founder of Greenroads Foundation, which provides independent third-party sustainability certification of transportation projects. Some of that work appears to border on greenwashing highway projects, sprinkling in stormwater features and greener materials, rather than fundamentally shifting our transportation network away from car hegemony. Climate is clearly a priority for Anderson, but it’s less clear her priorities extend to housing growth and mode shift.
Soni’s vision is broader. A small business owner herself, Soni envisions an inclusive local economy that supports minority- and women-owned businesses and helps entrepreneurs thrive through education, visibility, and access to grants. Her economic platform also calls for progressive revenue sources like real estate excise taxes, employer head taxes, and vacancy fees to fund community priorities without deepening inequality.
Soni opposes criminalizing poverty and supports humane, housing-first approaches to homelessness. She also brings a unique regional lens to Redmond’s planning challenges, calling for bold, equity-driven updates to the city’s comprehensive plan — from climate resilience to anti-displacement protections to transit-oriented zoning near the incoming light rail.
Menka Soni isn’t just prepared to lead — she already is. Her track record across sectors, coupled with a fierce commitment to community well-being, makes her the strongest choice for Redmond’s future. Vote Soni.
- Menka Soni questionnaire
- Jeralee Anderson did not return a questionnaire.
Bothell Proposition No. 1 – Vote Yes on Renewal of Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy Lid
Bothell voters should approve Proposition No. 1, to renew the Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy.
The original levy was approved by voters in 2016 and expires at the end of 2025. If passed, the renewal would continue funding for street maintenance, pedestrian safety, and related infrastructure for another nine years (2026–2034).
This measure was placed on the ballot by the Bothell City Council. Although most of the revenue will be spent on Street Maintenance & Operations and Pavement Preservation, the city plans to spend some of the funds on Pedestrian & Bicycle Safety, Safe Routes to Schools, and other traffic safety projects.
The levy would renew a $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value property tax. For a median-valued home in Bothell, this is about $450–$500 annually. As with other property taxes, many seniors, veterans, and people with disabilities can qualify for an exemption.
Bothell City Council, Position 3: Jenne Alderks
The Urbanist endorses Bothell City Councilmember Jenne Alderks for reelection to Position No. 3 due to her strong track record and future priorities.
Alderks is an advocate for increased housing types that are appropriate for young adults (cottage housing, condominiums, small single-family homes). She voted for abolishing “outdated, unscientific… parking minimums” entirely from the Bothell land use code to reduce costs for homebuilding.
Alderks supports re-engineering roads for pedestrian safety through road diets, expanding the city’s sidewalk network, reducing speeds in neighborhoods and at intersections with roundabouts. In her next term, she told The Urbanist she will seek opportunities to fund the city’s Vision Zero traffic safety strategy.
She is a strong opponent of camping bans or sweeps, and instead supports housing first strategies in partnership with community organizations and case managers to secure stable housing. In her first term, she prioritized divesting social services from policing and advanced the crisis continuum of care, including mobile crisis responders, and helped establish Bothell’s therapeutic courts.
Alderks championed the activation of downtown Bothell with local markets and a walkable Main Street. She also worked to preserve the Shelton View Forest and supported salmon habitat restoration at the Wayne Golf Course.
Little is known about Alderks’ opponent, Shirley Mittelman, whose campaign lacks substance and offers no specific policies on affordable housing, zoning reform, climate action, transportation, or equity.
In contrast, Councilmember Jenne Alderks is a strong champion for urbanist policies in Bothell with a track record of delivering results. Vote Alderks.
- Jenne Alderks questionnaire
- Shirley Mittelman did not return a questionnaire.
Bothell City Council, Position 5: Brittany Miles
The Urbanist endorses Brittany Miles for Bothell City Council, Position 5.
Miles is a strong advocate for mental health, served on the board of the Regional Crisis Response (RCR) Agency, and contributed to the Washington State Legislature’s work on the 988 suicide prevention hotline. She supports the development of crisis care centers and wants to improve public safety by expanding mental health crisis response teams.
Miles supports more diverse housing options so young adults can afford to live in Bothell. In her questionnaire, she specifically named streamlining zoning regulations, offering incentives for developers to include affordable units in new projects, and utilizing state and federal funding for housing as strategies to achieve those goals.
Miles wants the city to increase public transit, improve walkability, and advocates for dedicated bike lanes to reduce car dependency. She does not support camping bans or sweeps because they fail to address the underlying causes of homelessness and advocates for increasing access to emergency shelters and affordable housing.
Miles is running unopposed and is going to be an excellent addition to the Bothell City Council.
Washington State Legislature
Legislative District 5, Senate – Victoria Hunt
There’s plenty The Urbanist elections committee doesn’t agree with Victoria Hunt on. We were annoyed when she amended this year’s major parking reform bill, adding long implementation timelines. We don’t love her support for the questionable widening of SR 18 through southeast King County.
Does that mean we’re going to endorse Republican Chad Magendanz, and give more power to Senate Republicans to block progressive legislation? Heck no. Hunt supported a raft of positive changes in Olympia this session, from rent stabilization to transit-oriented development. She’s the best choice to represent the 5th District for the next four years.
Vote Hunt.
- Victoria Hunt questionnaire
- Chad Magendanz did not return a questionnaire.
Legislative District 33, Position No. 1: Edwin Obras
Edwin Obras is running to retain his House seat to which he was appointed last year, and is facing off against Burien Mayor Kevin Schilling. The stakes of this election could not be higher for those who value fair wages, compassionate and solutions-oriented approaches to homelessness, and building affordable communities.
Schilling, who did not participate in our endorsement process, has made a name for himself as a fierce opponent to the voter-approved Burien minimum wage increase, and has been the leader of a protracted fight to establish a cruel camping ban that prohibits tents on public property (effectively criminalizing people experiencing homelessness). If Schilling were to become a state legislator, Washington should expect more of the same – rash, untested policies that harm poor and working class families.
Obras meanwhile spent his first legislative session as an appointed state rep fighting for (and winning) investments in behavioral health services, housing, and the development of new public parks and play areas for families. He has been a supportive part of the work to address Washington’s housing affordability crisis, and has been a champion of priorities led by workers and renters. After being a human services professional for over 25 years, Obras brings that professional lens to his work as a state lawmaker and should retain his seat. Vote Edwin Obras (and if you can, join him for a canvass!).
Legislative District 41, Position No. 1: Janice Zahn
The Urbanist endorses Janice Zahn for Washington State House of Representatives Legislative District 41 because of her advocacy for abundant housing, safe streets, ubiquitous rapid transit, and a just, decarbonized economy. Her professional experience as the Chief Engineer at the Port of Seattle, coupled with her seven years on the Bellevue City Council, makes her an exceptional advocate in Olympia.
In her first term as a state representative, her policy positions have been urbanist-aligned. She introduced a bill to improve data collection on homelessness to better allocate resources, and she introduced a bill to start a low-interest loan program for affordable homeownership. She supported funding for behavioral health co-responders and voted for the transit-oriented development (TOD) bill. Although she supported the parking reform bill, she introduced a disappointing amendment to placate local opposition by raising the ceiling for all commercial spaces from one stall per every 1,000 square feet to two.
Zahn told The Urbanist she supports increased accountability to ensure that cities’ comprehensive plans actually comply with state housing mandates such as those found in the 2023 middle housing law. She acknowledges that smaller cities struggle to comply with the number of bills coming from the state, and cited state-level pre-approved plans for accessory dwelling units as an example of how the state could make it easier for smaller cities to say “yes.”
Her background as the Chief Engineer at the Port of Seattle, overseeing major public works projects, makes her a valuable advocate for urbanist infrastructure and transportation goals. She says her background brings a “practical, equity-driven, solution-focused approach to infrastructure investments and capital budgets.” She told us, as a chief engineer, she will make sure the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is equipped with the best tools to deliver results. She introduced the safe systems approach bill, requiring WSDOT and local jurisdictions to make roads safer for vulnerable users, especially pedestrians and cyclists.
Zahn supports progressive revenue sources instead of Washington’s regressive system that disproportionately taxes the poor. She supported closing tax loopholes and voted yes on the B&O tax bill. She told us she would have supported the wealth tax proposal if it had come before her and supported the capital gains tax bill that added a higher tier tax for the wealthiest.
She supports a highway user fee and a surcharge on higher-cost vehicles and luxury boats to fund transportation for the benefit of all road users and speed the transition away from car-dependence. She believes our future depends on “investing in alternatives to driving—especially as we work to reduce emissions and create safer, healthier communities.”
The Urbanist previously endorsed Zahn for Bellevue City Council, where she served two terms before her appointment earlier this year to the legislature, and we are proud to endorse her again: vote Janice Zahn for Washington State House of Representatives Legislative District 41, Position No. 1.
Legislative District 48, State Senate: Vandana Slatter
Senator Vandana Slatter brings a rare and vital blend of experience to the Washington State Senate: healthcare professional, scientist, former state representative, and now a leading voice for equitable growth in the 48th Legislative District. Appointed to the Senate in 2024 after four impactful terms in the House, and having won the primary with nearly 60% of the vote, Slatter is proving herself as a principled, pragmatic leader who listens deeply and legislates with data, compassion, and courage.
As a self-described “baby urbanist,” Slatter is eager to grow her urbanist lens — and she already has the track record to back it up. She has fought for affordable housing near transit, rental protections, and wraparound services for those experiencing homelessness. Her work helped preserve housing in Highland Village and secured funding for permanent supportive housing. She also sponsored legislation (SB 5725) to turn underused college land into affordable workforce housing, reflecting her creative, community-rooted approach.
On transportation, Slatter is a strong advocate for multimodal infrastructure, bus rapid transit, finishing the Eastrail multi-use trail, and complete streets that prioritize safety. She understands that equitable mobility is central to climate action and livability — and she’s helped secure funding to make it real. Her defense of non-driver transportation budgets shows her commitment to equity over false bipartisanship.
Slatter also brings a nuanced and empathetic approach to community resistance, especially in wealthy cities hesitant to embrace the Growth Management Act. She emphasizes education, transparent engagement, and storytelling—including her own family’s housing journey — to shift the narrative toward shared responsibility and inclusive growth.
While some legislators avoid hard conversations about race, displacement, or progressive revenue, Slatter leans in. She supports a wealth tax, champions community roundtables, and works to ensure people of color and working families are included in policymaking — not just as stakeholders, but as co-creators of Washington’s future.
Senator Slatter is the thoughtful, equity-focused, urbanist-minded leader LD 48 needs.
NORTH END
Everett Mayor: Cassie Franklin
The Urbanist endorsed Everett Mayor Cassie Franklin in the primary and she finished a close second behind conservative Scott Murphy. Franklin’s administration has made strides on abundant housing, safe streets, and rapid transit. Our endorsement comes with caveats — especially over her position on Sound Transit 3 expansion and the Everett Link alignment. But clearly she is a better choice than Murphy.
Franklin supports increasing the overall housing supply at all price points and told The Urbanist her goal is to make the city a very development-friendly city. Increasing the housing supply, especially affordable and workforce housing, is the “most important strategy” to limit cost increases and make the region affordable, she said. Under Franklin’s administration, Everett increased residential densities in the downtown core, allowing high-rise development up to 25 stories, streamlined permitting, and reduced parking mandates to increase the overall housing supply. To encourage more affordable housing production, her administration implemented fee waivers and expanded tax breaks for affordable housing developments.
The homelessness crisis is especially acute in Everett. Mayor Franklin has supported adding pallet shelters in two locations with plans for a third — despite a lawsuit from not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) activists — and has supported permanent supportive housing projects like Claire’s Place. Drawing on her background as the former CEO of Cocoon House, a nonprofit serving homeless youth, Mayor Franklin distinguishes behavioral health conditions as separate from homelessness, requiring different solutions, even though they often coexist. The root cause of homelessness is ultimately caused by the housing supply crisis, but housing production is still lagging. To meet its planning target, Everett needs to add more than 1,500 new homes per year over the next 20 years, and Franklin has committed to building more homes.
However, The Urbanist elections committee strongly disagrees with Franklin’s work on the Sound Transit board, where she fought to detour the Everett Link extension off of the I-5 corridor to the Boeing factory and Paine Field Airport. That detour will not only increase the time and cost of the light rail expansion but also threaten to displace residents and businesses of the Casino Road neighborhood, a predominantly Latino community, home to a significant portion of Everett’s communities of color and low-income households. To address these concerns, Franklin’s administration has initiated an “Equitable Business Strategy” to preserve local businesses and address impacts from light rail takings.
Franklin has also played parochial politics, saying she’d gladly cut or delay Seattle light rail projects to speed up Everett Link timelines. It’s an easy way to score political points at home, but we are looking for Sound Transit Board members looking to collaborate, constructively problem solve, and think regionally, rather than tear down each other’s projects in a knee jerk fashion. Hopefully, she is ready to do that work outside of a tight election fight.
Scott Murphy is a retired corporate executive who is focused on sweeping homeless encampments and throwing money at the police department without a clear plan to improve outcomes. He’s running a campaign based on scare-mongering and hollow promises, like the idea that ramping up emphasis patrols and installing more cops in schools will end youth violence. It’s a standard conservative/centrist formula around the region, with little track record to commend it. Vote Franklin.
- Cassie Franklin questionnaire
- Scott Murphy did not return a questionnaire
Everett City Council, District 1: Sam Hem
The Urbanist endorses Sam Hem for the Everett City Council District 1 position. Hem’s support for zoning reform, public investment in housing, as well as his advocacy for public transportation and traffic safety for all road users, make him the standout candidate in the crowded primary.
A longtime labor leader with the Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 66 and an Executive Board member of the Washington State Building & Construction Trades Council, Hem will ensure workers’ voices are heard when decisions are made at City Hall.
When we asked about displacement and gentrification on Casino Road caused by Sound Transit’s detour to Paine Field, Hem said he’s not yet a subject matter expert, but he told us where his “feelings and heart” are. He supports zoning reforms and public investments to increase multi-family and missing-middle housing. Citing the recent legalization of housing in Seattle’s so-called Maker’s District as inspiration, he supports union-built affordable housing and mandatory inclusion of affordable units. He believes labor-backed developments can succeed with a “shared commitment to community and economic justice.”
He says his experience as a labor leader in the building and construction trades has shown him “firsthand how labor-backed developments can succeed when there’s a shared commitment to community and economic justice.” He believes housing development should “meet the needs of the people that are in the community and not just for the rich.” His labor-alignment and support for mandatory Project Labor Agreements (PLAs) could set him at odds with the developer-friendly policies of Mayor Cassie Franklin’s administration.
Hem told The Urbanist he supports increased investment in traffic safety, particularly in underserved neighborhoods. He will collaborate with transit, public works, and community groups to identify high-risk corridors to find solutions to protect pedestrians and cyclists. He supports the “Vision Zero” goal to make streets safer for all users; prioritizing walkable, transit-oriented development, expanding sidewalks, building ADA-compliant infrastructure, improving crosswalks, calming traffic, and adding protected bike lanes.
Hem says the Everett Link Extension “can’t get here soon enough” and backs investments in public transit to improve major bus route service frequency. When pushed for details on how to fund increased services, he said he will listen to Everett Transit workers. Their voices “need to be heard and… advocated for” because “they know the solutions” as “they’re in the trenches day in and day out,” he said.
- Sam Hem questionnaire
- Erica Weir did not return a questionnaire
Shoreline City Council, Position 1: No Endorsement
The Urbanist is not endorsing either candidate for City of Shoreline, Council Position No. 1. Both candidates, Valerie Snider and Jack Malek, completed our questionnaire and sat down for interviews, and both have their positive attributes. But neither is a complete candidate and we saw too many red flags to endorse either.
Malek is a local realtor who served on the Planning Commission and is a strong advocate for increasing housing production by removing regulatory burdens. But Malek lacks commitment and new ideas for improving transportation options for Shoreline’s non-drivers.
In contrast, Snider is backed by local not-in-my-backyard (NIMBY) activists from Save Shoreline Trees and the Shoreline Preservation Society who recruited her to run for city council. Snider has publicly criticized new homes near the light rail as “overpriced, ugly apartment buildings and townhomes” and “eyesores” that do nothing to help with housing. She says her top priority is the preservation of “old-growth” trees and says the city’s tree canopy expansion goal is too modest and should be more aggressive.
Shoreline City Council, Position 7: Christopher Roberts
The Urbanist endorses Christopher Roberts for re-election to Shoreline City Council because of his track record promoting abundant housing and sustainable transportation. First elected to the Shoreline City Council in 2009, Roberts has accomplished a lot for urbanists in Seattle’s neighbor to the north.
As mayor, he led Shoreline’s Comprehensive Plan update, which increased middle-housing density beyond the state’s minimum requirements. Roberts was a key leader in the Shoreline City Council’s decision to fully abolish mandates for off-street parking citywide in new development. Under Roberts’ leadership, the city recently legalized neighborhood commercial businesses, allowing corner cafes and walkable convenience stores.
Roberts supported the donation of surplus property for the construction of a 100-unit permanent supportive housing development and has said he is proud of the city’s support of an enhanced shelter in Shoreline. And Shoreline adopted stronger-than-average tenant protections under his tenure, a move Roberts supported, to help keep people housed.
More than a decade ago, Roberts helped lead Shoreline in upzoning the areas near the city’s two new Link light rail stations (148th Street and 185th Street). Looking forward, Roberts says he wants the city to adopt pre-approved accessory dwelling unit designs to expedite permitting and undertake a wider streamlining of the city’s entire development code.
Roberts supports building complete streets and told us, “We need to make sure our streets are safe for all users, especially since there are large percentages of people who do not own a car or do not drive.” He supported the N 175th Street safety project, despite backlash from tree preservationists, which includes expanded sidewalks and protected bike facilities. He even suggested reducing vehicle travel lanes in future phases to slow speeds on the dangerous road, a move that would save lives, save money, and even save trees.
Roberts is running un-opposed for re-election, but there is a good chance he won’t serve a full four-year term on the council. Earlier this year, he launched a campaign to unseat scandal-plagued John Wilson as King County Assessor.
Edmonds City Council, Position 1: Chris Eck
The Urbanist endorses Chris Eck for reelection to Edmonds City Council because she supports housing abundance, economic development, public transportation, and walkability.
Eck is a proponent of increasing housing supply and variety, and says, “Everyone who lives and works in Edmonds deserves to be able to afford a place to rent or own here… even soundly middle-income families like those with parents who are teachers and firefighters can’t afford to live here now.” To avoid sprawl, she supports adding housing near public transportation and businesses to create walkable centers.
Eck supports multi-modal transportation and commits to improving walkability, bike safety, and transit access. She will advocate for better bus connections to light rail and promised to prioritize traffic calming measures and sidewalks projects. She supported the use of red light cameras at dangerous intersections to improve safety for pedestrians and drivers.
Eck has not been on the council long; she was elected in 2023, but has been a Lynnwood and Snohomish County Planning Commissioner and Edmonds Tree Board Member.
We are optimistic Eck will be an ally for urbanist voters in Edmonds on the council. Vote Eck.
Kenmore City Council, Position 2: No Endorsement
The Urbanist is not endorsing either candidate for Kenmore city council Position 2. We endorsed Caitlin Sullivan in the primary, but she did not advance to the general election. Neither Tracy Banaszynski nor incumbent Joe Marshall returned their questionnaires from the endorsement committee.
Incumbent city councilmember Joe Marshall is about as bad on housing policy as they come. He opposed the Plymouth permanent affordable housing project and he opposes state mandates preempting exclusionary housing policies, saying earlier this year, “I staunchly remain in favor of local control.”
Running to unseat Marshall is the Chair of the Kenmore Planning Commission, Tracy Banaszynski, who supported an inclusionary zoning plan that would have essentially taxed middle housing developments and discouraged the kind of affordable in-fill development Kenmore needs more of while favoring giant, expensive McMansions the city already has too many of.
Kenmore City Council, Position 4: Nigel Herbig
The Urbanist is endorsing Nigel Herbig for Kenmore City Council because of his track record of advancing abundant housing policies and transportation safety improvements.
Herbig is an outspoken proponent of affordable housing policy and renter protections and works in the area of homelessness for the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) and serves on the King County Affordable Housing Committee.
Herbig worked to pass the city’s renter protection ordinance requiring landlords to give tenants 90 days’ notice for rent increases. He supported an inclusionary zoning (IZ) policy that incentivizes smaller, more affordable units while taxing the construction of large single-family homes (McMansions).
Herbig was one of the few council members to support the Plymouth permanent supportive housing (PSH) proposal, a fully funded 100-unit building for extremely low-income individuals exiting homelessness. After angry NIMBY backlash from some local residents, the Kenmore City Council voted to reject the project in January 2024. Following the rejection, he helped relocate the project (and its funding) to Redmond, where it recently broke ground.
Herbig has made transit, walkability, and bike safety a top priority. Since joining the council, Kenmore passed the Walkways and Waterways bond measure to build new sidewalks and bike lanes throughout the city. Herbig worked to pass Kenmore’s Target Zero resolution, which changed how city engineers approach transportation projects, prioritizing safety above speed for drivers, reducing pedestrian or bicyclist deaths and serious injuries.
Since he was first elected to the council in 2014, Herbig has been an ally of urbanists and should be re-elected. Vote Herbig.
Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 1: Semra Riddle
The Urbanist endorses Semra Riddle for Lake Forest Park City Council Position 1 because of her commitment to safer, active transportation, and expanded housing options supported by economic development in the city. Semra’s experience with city council for nine years shows in how she speaks specifically about policy backed by funding plans to move things forward.
Riddle is clearly supportive of mixed-use, affordable housing to expand to make significantly more multi-family, dense housing available as spaces like the Town Center are developed and built out. She wants to go beyond state minimums for middle housing and redevelop the Lake Forest Park (LFP) town center with at least 10% affordable housing, hoping developers can get on board with the plan. Riddle is motivated to get the city moving to also finally respond to the state mandates for affordable housing that have been pushed to the side since 2021. While she wants the city to exceed the state minimums, they need to get started first on at least meeting them.
On transit policy, Riddle recognizes the impact that the bus rapid transit line along SR 522 can bring to the area, when it opens in 2028-ish. She has good awareness of the challenges that Sound Transit is facing due to local opposition to the bus lane, and some challenges to reach the line from Lake Forest Park. Riddle is eager to support the infrastructure needed to build over the Besche’tla and McAleer creeks and maintain safe pedestrian areas near the Town Center. She wants things to keep moving and get done as soon as possible: last year, she was the only councilmember to not sign a letter to Sound Transit opposing business access transit (BAT) lanes in the city.
Riddle told The Urbanist she supports traffic calming on Perkins Way to make it safe for pedestrians and cyclists. The narrow road alongside McAleer Creek is the bike route connecting the Burke Gilman Trail to the Shoreline North light rail station and the Interurban Trail. But the twisting ravine has a dangerous problem with speeding drivers and no sidewalks. LFP needs more public parks, and turning Perkins into Safe Street could make it a recreational space for the locals while supporting the city’s climate goals.
Riddle identifies the way that the city is growing and changing, and has the awareness and expertise to balance growth with sustainability and other goals. Her support for increased housing with new developments and mindfulness around the progression for new and improved transit and pedestrian options is comforting. Vote Semra Riddle.
Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 3: Josh Rosenau
The Urbanist endorses Josh Rosenau for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 3. Rosenau is an urbanist pushing hard for walkable neighborhood retail, parks, and transit. He highlights his support for a “quick completion of the Stride S3” bus rapid transit (BRT) project, a welcome shift from Lake Forest Park Council’s previous slow-walking of this important connection.
Rosenau is a conservation biologist who has served on the LFP Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, and has a great comprehensive view of how to move Lake Forest Park forward. He has a solid understanding of urbanism, from housing to transportation, and in diving into the details necessary to gain partners and momentum for urbanist aspects to be included in decisions.
Rosenau is challenging Jon Lebo, whose work at Sound Transit necessitates his recusal in related council votes. With other council members actively pushing back on the BRT plan, Rosenau is keen on ensuring there’s enough support to move the bus forward and pave the way for transit improvements in other areas.
Rosenau is a sharp urbanist, with great political acumen regarding making essential headway in Lake Forest Park. Vote Rosenau.
Lynnwood City Council, Position 1: Derica Escamilla
Vote for Derica Escamilla as an urbanist voice moving Lynnwood’s issues and discussion forward. Escamilla is an environmental scientist with years of experience serving on Lynnwood’s Boards and Committees. Escamilla was appointed to the council last year and her values align with The Urbanist’s positions.
Escamilla told The Urbanist she welcomes middle housing zoning reforms and supports tax incentives to increase affordable housing. She wants to make public transit the safest, easiest, and most affordable option, advocating for lower fares and expanded routes. She is a champion for a more walkable and safely bikeable Lynnwood.
She’s pushed to continue funding for LEAD, Lynnwood’s diversion program that connects people with behavioral health issues with treatment to keep them from cycling through the criminal justice system. In contrast to her “tough on crime” opponents, she supports community-based programs to increase access to mental health services.
Escamilla is a youth basketball coach and advocate for increased recreational and participation opportunities for young people. Along with Council Vice President Josh Binda, she led the creation of a youth board to increase public engagement and ensure young voices are heard in local government.
In our interview, Escamilla acknowledged she is still new to answering questions about housing policy issues and she was unfamiliar with parking reform. She made some car-oriented comments that don’t align with The Urbanist’s positions. However, Escamilla is, by a wide margin, the best candidate for urbanists to support in this primary; neither of her opponents applied for an endorsement from The Urbanist.
Challenging her is Republican Diodato (Dio) Boucsieguez, who led the Binda recall campaign that failed to gather enough signatures. The Snohomish County Auditor and Snohomish County Hearing Examiner dismissed Boucsieguez’s most recent accusations against Binda as lacking merit. Boucsieguez has cited high taxes and the “urban problems” from the “Seattlelization” of Lynnwood as motivations for seeking office. Clearly not a fit for urbanists, let alone Democratic voters in general.
Escamilla will continue to be a strong voice for groups that have long been left out of decision-making in Lynnwood. She listens to the needs of workers, families, immigrants, and youth. Vote Escamilla.
Lynnwood City Council, Position 2: Isabel Mata
The Urbanist endorses Isabel Mata for Lynnwood City Council Position 2. Mata aims to take all viewpoints into consideration with her “No one left behind” campaign pushing to do more to live up to Lynnwood’s “All are welcome” slogan. This ideal has garnered criticism in practice, and Mata speaks of welcoming new members to the community while engaging with and preventing displacement of long-time residents.
Mata’s background in mindfulness shows as she looks into taking a comprehensive look at a wide variety of issues. She supports affordable housing along with affordable childcare, and sees transportation, parks, and health resources as important aspects of affordability and supporting working people and seniors.
Mata is facing Ki Seung Cho in this Lynnwood City Council race, owner of “Master Cho’s Taekwondo” and teacher of current conservative councilmember, Patrick Decker, who is running for a County Charter Commission seat, leaving this seat open. Cho holds a ninth-degree black belt, while Decker only holds one. Mata takes a different approach as a writer and mindfulness coach, and her views on urbanism are clear.
Mata believes in housing-first solutions, addressing root causes to solve problems, and coordinating for meaningful progress. As such, Mata is the urbanist choice for Position 2. Vote Isabel Mata.
Lynnwood City Council, Position 3: Josh Binda
The Urbanist endorses Lynnwood City Council Vice President Josh Binda for reelection because he supports expanded transit and policy reforms that will increase affordable housing. He is more competent and experienced on the tough policy issues facing Lynnwood than his challenger.
Binda says his top priority is increasing the supply of affordable housing in Lynnwood. In our interview, he told us that, as a renter, he will represent the growing population of people in Lynnwood who have been priced out of Seattle. He’s an advocate for mixed-income developments and policy reforms to increase availability. Binda supports eliminating parking mandates citywide and he supports affordable housing mandates and subsidized housing.
Binda told us outright, “I do not support camping bans or sweeps”. He wants more supportive housing, mental health services, job training, designated safe camping areas, and comprehensive outreach services to connect individuals with resources. He is a “huge proponent” of non-policing behavioral health co-responders, particularly for issues related to mental health, drug abuse, and homelessness.
As Council Vice President, he championed new boardwalks, trails, and parks, and says his council is now “very pro-transit.” Binda told us he wants to make the Lynnwood city center very transit-oriented and walkable so people don’t have to drive. He will advocate for expanded bus routes, increased funding for light rail, and supports creating safe, well-lit pedestrian pathways and dedicated bike lanes.
Binda said he’s excited to continue working with the city council on the Poplar Way Extension Bridge that would close a gap in the Interurban Trail, making biking and walking to the transit center safer. He also led the effort to secure $2 million for upgrades at Scriber Lake Park and was proud to tell us about the recent Boardwalk Trail grand opening.
He told The Urbanist he “wholeheartedly” supports progressive revenue sources and would advocate for raising Lynnwood’s minimum wage, saying the current wage is “completely unaffordable for working-class people.”
In our interview, Binda touted the Zip Shuttle, which provides an “on-demand shared ride” service to the Alderwood district. Though operated by Community Transit, these services are expensive per ride and don’t scale. The Urbanist loves last-mile solutions, though we’d like to see this money funding more efficient ways of getting people where they need to go.
There’s a lot at stake in this election. When he was first elected, he made history as the youngest African American elected official in Washington state history. An investigation by the Snohomish County NAACP found that starting before even taking office, Binda had been unfairly targeted by the media and city officials based on his race and age.
The mud-slinging has continued. Last year a recall campaign led by his opponents failed to gather enough signatures, and the Snohomish County Auditor and Snohomish County Hearing Examiner dismissed the most recent accusations against Binda as lacking merit. The head of the failed recall, Dio Boucsieguez, chose not to challenge Binda, and is running against CM Escamilla.
Binda’s opponent, Bryce Owings, did not respond to our questionnaire and has vaguely discussed his views on important urbanist issues, notably stating he’d leave parts of Lynnwood unchanged accessibility-wise because he personally can get around there. Owings endorsements have been strained by revelations of a history of arrests for drug use, dealing, and domestic violence, some of which occurred during the time he had claimed to be sober. This has caused backlash, but endorsements are mainly unchanged. Owings received the endorsement of Burien Councilmember Jimmy Matta, who voted for that city’s infamous criminalization of homelessness and camping ban. Owings also received the endorsement of former Lynnwood city council member, Ted Hikel, who fought increased density in Lynnwood’s comprehensive plan because “proposed changes denigrate the value of my property and impact the rights of all single-family homes throughout the city,” according to Hikel.
Binda is the right candidate for urbanist voters – supporting affordable housing, walkability, and transit. He’s the most experienced candidate in the primary and has more depth on the important issues facing the city than his opponents. He will be a voice for young renters, immigrants, and African Americans in a rapidly changing city. His reelection will send a strong message that the days of a regressive, small-minded Lynnwood City Hall are over. Vote Binda.
- Josh Binda questionnaire
- Bryce Owings did not return a questionnaire
Lynnwood City Council, Position 5: Mpiima M. Mugambe
Lynnwood voters have two good urbanist candidates to choose from for Council Position 5: incumbent Robert Leutwyler and Mpiima M. Mugambe. Either of the candidates would be strong advocates for urbanism in Lynnwood, but The Urbanist has decided to endorse Mugambe because of his support for the minimum wage and advocacy for non-policing public safety.
Both candidates support increasing housing density and supply in Lynnwood. Both candidates support eliminating or reducing parking minimums. Both are committed to investing in infrastructure for biking, walking, and transit. In that regard, Lynnwood will be a better, more livable city with either candidate on the council.
The Urbanist is backing Mugambe because of how the candidates differ.
Mugambe told The Urbanist he is running because it’s time for social workers to step into leadership. As a social worker, lecturer at the UW School of Social Work, and clinical supervisor on a Crisis Team for the Downtown Emergency Services Center (DESC) in Seattle, Mugambe has firsthand experience working with people facing homelessness, addiction, and mental health challenges, often alongside first responders. This background informs his advocacy for officer de-escalation training, community-focused law enforcement, and his support for increased mental health professional staffing.
In contrast, Leutwyler has been endorsed by the Lynnwood Police Officers Guild and said he “proudly supported increased funding to restore our police staffing levels.” But with the city facing a budget deficit (projected at $10.7 million by the end of 2026 due to lower-than-expected revenues), he was noncommittal about where the revenue to pay for increased PD staffing would come from and whether he would make cuts elsewhere in the budget to fund the police staffing increases.
Mugambe is the co-chair and treasurer of Fair Pay Lynnwood, a campaign to raise Lynnwood’s local minimum wage from the current state-level of $16.66 to $20.24 per hour, an effort supported by the Transit Riders Union. A single adult needs about $30.25 per hour to afford the cost of living in Snohomish County, and minimum wage increases have proven popular with voters, often passing by wide margins in nearby Tukwila, Burien, Renton, and Everett.
When we asked Leutwyler if he supported raising the city’s minimum wage, he was noncommittal and said he wants more time to conduct due diligence on the specific proposal.
Similarly, Mugambe has been a vocal and strong supporter of rent stabilization and tenant protections, while Leutwyler has expressed empathy for renters, but is cautious about specific implementations.
Mugambe, an immigrant and asylee from Uganda, has pledged to stand up for the safety of immigrant and LGBTQIA+ neighbors who are threatened. His background demonstrates a deep commitment to serving and protecting marginalized communities, and he believes local governments have a duty to protect all residents.
In his short tenure on the Lynnwood City Council, Leutwyler has distinguished himself as one of the most passionate and effective urbanists in Lynnwood. He holds an MBA, has served on the Planning Commission, and earned a Certificate in Municipal Leadership. His passion for delving into wonky and technical details, including traffic engineering, place making, and infrastructure innovation, is allowing the city government to get more things done.
But while both candidates are strong advocates for urbanist housing and transport policies, ultimately Mugambe will be a stronger voice for the core urbanist values of a just economy, inclusion, and justice for all.
Vote Mugambe.
Woodinville Council Position 1: Michelle Evans
The Urbanist endorses Michelle Evans for Woodinville City Council because of her demonstrated record advancing abundant housing, multimodal transportation, and holistic public safety. Her opponent, Jeff Lyon, has used massive spending and questionable campaign tactics to advance an anti-growth agenda.
She told The Urbanist, “We can’t solve a housing crisis with outdated zoning or fear-based politics. We need proactive, proven tools, and I’m committed to delivering them.”
Under Evans’ tenure, the city of Woodinville delivered the first workforce-affordable housing development in over 20 years at Eastrail Flats. She helped implement Woodinville’s first-ever Multi-Family Tax Exemption (MFTE) program to encourage below-market rents in new developments. She supports increased zoning density, including middle-housing, family-sized rentals, townhomes, and duplexes—especially near transit and services.
Evans advocated for expanded transit and supported the introduction of scooter and e-bike sharing to improve last-mile connections and reduce reliance on cars. She supports expanding the city’s sidewalk network, filling gaps in trails, upgrading bike infrastructure, and more traffic calming. And she has been an advocate for the Eastrail project, a multi-use trail connecting Woodinville to neighboring cities.
Evans supports the Eastside Fire & Rescue’s CORE Connect and the King County Sheriff’s Therapeutic Response Unit that send trained professionals — not just law enforcement — to respond to behavioral health crises. And she supports state-level progressive revenue sources and told us she supports a capital gains tax at the state level, as well as an income tax on the top 1% earners.
Evans is opposed by Jeff Lyon, a cryptocurrency executive who has poured more than $175,000 into his campaign. Lyon is running to block housing density and impede growth.
Urbanists in Woodinville have a clear choice in this race: vote for Michelle Evans.
Woodinville City Council, Position 5: Sarah Arndt
The Urbanist endorses Sarah Arndt for Woodinville City Council Position #5. Arndt is a current city councilmember running for re-election, and over her first three years on the council she has had an positive and impactful influence on a number of local issues – including the climate action plan, supporting housing projects, improving access to parks and open spaces, and guiding more investments toward multimodal transportation projects. Her re-election priorities seek to build upon the work she has started on the council.
In her re-election campaign, one of Arndt’s top priorities is addressing the housing crisis. Arndt is progressive in her housing approach by supporting inclusionary zoning, bringing more shelter, transitional housing, emergency housing, and permanent supportive housing (a.k.a. STEP housing) options into the fold, and removing housing barriers in the city’s code and permitting processes.
Arndt believes that while engagement is key to advancing STEP housing, “it is crucial that public engagement doesn’t become a veto process on good projects”. The Urbanist commends Arndt for recognizing the current climate around housing opponents abusing public engagement as a mechanism to block projects that have an overwhelmingly positive impact. Additionally, Arndt is anti-camping sweeps and believes in a housing first approach to supporting the unhoused community.
Another area that Arndt shines in advocating for trail and recreational public spaces in Woodinville. During her time on the council, she has helped open Wood Trails, the city’s largest and biggest park, secured funding for planning the Eastrail trail and linear park, and advocated for the city to be the preferred location for a new aquatic and recreation center. In a world of privatization of public amenity’s, Arndt has demonstrated a continued commitment to maintaining vital public spaces that enhance Woodinville’s quality of life.
While the Urbanist is giving Arndt our endorsement, it comes with a caveat surrounding parking requirements in the downtown core. Arndt is pro-parking and does not support reduced parking mandates. During her interview, she indicated she will prioritize access improvements for cars to better support Woodinville’s downtown core businesses. Woodinville once had transit services prior to the pandemic, however King County has been glacially slow mobilizing on providing a greater service area and re-establishing exurban routes. Woodinville has a tourism-based economy focused around wine and spirits, and the Urbanist strongly supports safer, alternative modes of transportation for Woodinville’s tourists.
That being said, Arndt does support investing in more multi-modal transportation options. We are interested to see how Arndt collaborates with King County Metro and its neighbors to develop a future with more transportation options. Arndt’s transportation goals also include filling sidewalk gaps, building protected bike lanes, improving street lighting, and ensuring curbs and crosswalks meet accessible design standards.
While Arndt is the only candidate in this city council race that applied for the Urbanist endorsement, she has rightfully earned her endorsement and aligns with the Urbanist on a majority of the issues we at the Urbanist advocate for.
North Shore (Kenmore, Bothell, and Woodinville) Proposition 1
A Northshore Park and Recreation Service Area ballot measure for Kenmore, Bothell, and Woodinville voters would renew a six-year levy to fund maintenance and operations at the Northshore Senior Center and Health & Wellness and Adult Day Health Center. The levy would support healthy aging with meals, health and fitness classes, and support for caregiver. It would also provide important building repairs and upgrades. Approve this levy renewal to support seniors in our community.
The Urbanist Elections Committee consists of Forest Baum, Emma Biscocho Pelletier, Angela Compton, Caitlin Hepworth, Kacie Masten, Jason Merges, Oliver Moffat, Ryan Packer, Aparna Rae, Maya Ramakrishnan, Hannah Sabio-Howell, Jazmine Smith, Doug Trumm, and Kelsey Vanhee.
Elections Committee
The Urbanist was founded in 2014 to examine and influence urban policies. We believe cities provide unique opportunities for addressing many of the most challenging social, environmental, and economic problems. We serve as a resource for promoting urbanism, increasing political participation, and improving the places we live. The Elections Committee consists of community volunteers and staff members of The Urbanist and is a standing body representing the political values of our organization.
