Politics and Government

A budget amendment put forward by Council President Nelson asks for information on how and when the city creates priority space for buses, citing opposition to Route 40. At a meeting last week, Nelson suggested that if she had wanted to kill a controversial project she already could have done it.

Get Seattle’s biggest businesses to ante up $5 million now to prevent school closures, then get the Washington State Legislature to pass a wealth tax on the super-rich, enabling Washington’s public schools to thrive.

On Tuesday, progressive advocates rallied at Seattle City Hall to make a last-ditch defense to reverse a $330 million JumpStart cut that would deplete affordable housing funding. Tuesday was the last public hearing before Council finalizes the budget next week.

Shaun Scott is headed to the Washington State House. Jessica Bateman is headed to the state senate. Alexis Mercedes Rinck won a Seattle City Council seat, and Ryan Mello is the new Pierce County Executive. All were endorsed by The Urbanist.

Passage of Seattle's transportation levy was all but assured Tuesday night, after initial returns showed two-thirds of voters in support.

Progressives are off to a fast start in Washington state early returns. All four Republican-backed statewide initiative repealing progressive legislation are in trouble. Urbanist-endorsed Shaun Scott and Alexis Mercedes Rinck are up big, and urbanist Ryan Mello has a lead in the Pierce County Executive race.

Election Day 2024 is upon us, and the outcome will have a huge impact on the lives of residents in Seattle and Washington state. Here's a quick rundown of what's on the ballot and what the outcome could mean.

Lucid Stew's "Taking Back The Streets Cascadia Edition" analyzes the idea of repurposing I-5 lanes to create a high speed rail line between Eugene and Vancouver, BC, connecting Portland, Tacoma, Seattle, and a handful of other cities along the way. A two-hour trip from Seattle to Portland or Vancouver, BC would be possible.