At its best, the District 3 race to lead Capitol Hill, the Central District, First Hill, and Seattle’s central neighborhoods is one of the most interesting moments of democracy in Seattle history. At its worst, the battle showcases the tactics of a polarizing firebrand against a base-pleasing middle-grounder.
CHS’s entirely unscientific barometer of voter mood in the district seems to bear out results that reflect the dichotomy. Kshama Sawant’s District 3 Mood Meter ratings reflect a massive split between those who love and those who, well, don’t love the candidate. Meanwhile, challenger Pamela Banks scores well in the positives — but has nearly as many neutral and negative ratings to match.
We’re not advising it — things have gotten chippy and you’ll be up against a campaign cash arms race — but Friday is your last chance to throw your hat in the ring:
To become an official write-in candidate, a voter must complete and file a Declaration of Write-in Candidacy. The Declaration of Write-in Candidacy form will be made available on our website in May. Voters must, at the time of filing, possess the qualifications specified by law required for the office and must be properly registered to vote in the district represented by the office at the time of filing. You cannot file to be a write-in candidate if you are already on the ballot (except for precinct committee officer) and/or have already filed for the same office at the preceding primary.
“Declarations of Write-in Candidacy,” the King County Elections 2015 candidate manual (PDF) continues, “must be received before the close of business 18 days prior to the primary or general election.”
The county will only tally votes for “official” write-in candidates, it turns out, so the formality is a requirement and voting for an unofficial write-in only gums things up.
To jump in, you’ll need to reside within the D3 borders, of course, and also scrape together the $1,199.76.
You will also be up against some formidable coalitions — all of the below have formally endorsed Sawant and Banks and/or contributed to their campaign:
- Sawant: Nick Licata, Pramila Jayapal, Mike McGinn, Jesse Hagopian, Molly Neitzel, Charles Mudede, Lindy West, The Stranger, King County Labor Council, Seattle Transit Blog, Transit Riders Union (View all contributors)
- Banks: Sally Bagshaw, Tim Burgess, Jean Godden, Bruce Harrell, John Okamoto, Tom Rasmussen, Jamie Pedersen, Greg Nickels, Rachel Marshall, Michael Wells, Michael Malone, Ian Eisenberg, Gregg Holcomb, Maria Barrientos, Ethan Stowell, 37th Dems, The Seattle Times, Vulcan Inc., Seattle Police Officers Guild, Black PAC (View all contributors)
In the meantime, there are still some big issues to weigh in on:
What’s Your City Council District Mascot?
- Pamela Banks: The Jimi Hendrix Statues
- Kshama Sawant: The Megaphones
You have a few hours to decide.
