Affordable housing champion Chopp stepping aside in the 43rd — Shaun Scott announces run

Chopp at the recent 43rd District Town Hall

(Image: Statewide Poverty Action Network)

A progressive Democrat and champion of affordable housing who held off repeated challenges from the left, Frank Chopp announced this week he will not seek reelection to the state House of Representatives and is bringing three decades representing the 43rd District in Olympia to an end.

“I’ve always been driven by the belief that everyone deserves a foundation of home, health, and hope,” Chopp said in his announcement. “These are the basic needs for economic success, for better education outcomes, for restoring lives and reaching potential. I am proud to have played a role in helping people throughout Washington gain access to services and support that help them gain independence and realize their dreams.”

Shaun Scott of the Statewide Poverty Action Network who lost his 2019 race against Alex Pedersen to represent the University District on the Seattle City Council has announced a run for the now open 43rd District seat.

Chopp’s final political race in 2022 turned out to be an anticlimax. CHS reported here on the Democratic leaders in Capitol Hill’s state legislative district running unopposed. In recent reelection races, Chopp’s biggest political battles have been fending off younger, hugely more progressive challengers in the primary including community organizer and sex worker Sherae Lascelles in 2020. Chopp was also able to make a stand against upstart Socialist Alternative candidates including his 2012 defeat of Kshama Sawant which put her on her path to a decade at Seattle City Hall.

Along the way, Chopp has faced only tepid competition from Republican challengers. Continue reading

Elections! Biden suffers small ‘uncommitted’ protest vote dent, battle for Seattle citywide Position 8 begins (again)

Their totals will climb but groups backing an “uncommitted delegates” protest vote over Gaza against Democratic incumbent Joe Biden in the Washington presidential primary only dented the president’s Election Night tally.

Meanwhile, Seattle is turning its attention to the start of a 2024 political race that will be a big deal for the city.

Statewide in Tuesday night’s first count, Biden landed with just under 86% of the Democratic vote. The “uncommitted” ballots landed at just over 7%. For comparison, in 2020’s Washington primary, Biden finished neck and neck with challenger Bernie Sanders, each with around a third of the vote. Continue reading

Reminder: Your Washington presidential primary ballot needs to be in the Capitol Hill drop box by 8 PM — You can recover your hopes for democracy later

2020 was a lifetime ago but it might be a good day to rechannel that energy. Tuesday could be the most depressing presidential primary vote in your young but very full life. Or you could, digging deep into it all, find the brightest side, the lesser evil, the spryest geriatric…

Here is a reminder that your Washington primary ballot is due in a King County Elections drop box by 8 PM tonight. You can find the closest on Broadway in front of Seattle Central or in the Central District at the Garfield Community Center.

The 2024 vote comes as Washington is settling into a new way of holding its presidential primaries after the state transitioned from its longtime, long-lined caucus system and moved its vote up from May. Continue reading

Why 23rd Ave is at center of new Seattle Transportation Plan

(Image: CHS)

The mayor’s proposal for the priorities that will define the size and scope of Seattle’s next more than $1 billion transportation levy is now in the hands of the Seattle City Council. The council must now finalize the plan in preparation for taking a new levy proposal to voters this fall.

The council’s transportation committee will hold its first meeting on the process Tuesday.

CHS reported here on the Harrell administration’s efforts to shape the transportation plan and a framework for safe and efficient protected areas for bikers along its arteries, a proliferation of transit-only lanes, and preparations for possible new light rail lines criss-crossing Capitol Hill and the Central District along 23rd Ave and Denny Way.

The final proposal from Mayor Bruce Harrell has crystalized on a roster of highest priority initiatives and projects while also downplaying massive investments like new light rail lines. The plan would emphasize equity and economic investments along with safety and motor vehicle traffic priorities while also continuing the long-running effort to lower speeds across the city — a mix that places 23rd Ave at the top of the heap for Capitol Hill and Central District area investments.

This combination of priorities would create a plan that emphasizes major investments in parts of the city that are heavily populated but have been left behind in current transportation priorities like the Rainier Valley where traffic deaths and safety issues remain disproportionately high despite transit and development investments. Continue reading

For Capitol Hill Democrats, the 2024 primary question could be Biden vs. ‘Uncommitted’

Ballots are being collected in the 2024 Washington presidential primary and Democratic voters on Capitol Hill are facing a much different choice than they did in 2020.

The 2024 March 12th primary vote is even less about which candidate should lead the party this time around. In 2020, when Washington’s March primary played out, there was still some semblance of hope for Bernie Sanders supporters as thousands rallied at the Tacoma Dome and Democratic hopefuls swung through the Pacific Northwest just as the COVID-19 crisis was about to envelope the nation.

2024’s primary will bring no rallies to Seattle — only a question of incumbent Joe Biden, a handful of fringe challengers, or the Democratic establishment’s potentially most daunting opponent this year — “Uncommitted.” Continue reading

After the race for District 3, Hudson continues advocacy work and sees hope in Seattle’s big 2024 goals: an equitable comprehensive plan and an ambitious new transportation levy

Hudson making a 2023 campaign stop before her new path with Commute Seattle (Image: @AlexHudsonforSeattle)

It is very likely the voters in the Seattle City Council’s District 3 could not go wrong in November. Though Central District born and raised Joy Hollingsworth reached a solid victory, First Hill neighborhood and transit champion Alex Hudson also would have brought a strong fight for the needs of Seattle’s core neighborhoods to City Hall.

After the election, Hudson has spent the past few months finding a new path to helping the residents of First Hill, the Central District, Capitol Hill and the entire city resting up from the long campaign, sorting out her new priorities, and moving forward in her new role as executive director at Commute Seattle.

“Running for office is an incredible experience and a grueling task,” Hudson told CHS. “I was grateful for the opportunity, especially right after the election, to take a little break—spend some time with my family, catch up on much needed sleep, unwind my brain, and thank people and reflect on the experience.”

She also snatched up the leadership position at Commute Seattle, a nonprofit that works towards making the city more walker and bicycle friendly, while centering those disproportionately impacted by transportation costs.

Hudsons calls her new role the “perfect fit”and is “still very much doing the work that I love and that I’m committed to around transportation, transit and mobility, and doing that in service of the people of the City of Seattle.”

Running for D3 has changed Hudson, she said, by helping her come to appreciate the community’s experiences and real concerns around safety. From her campaign team canvassing a total of 18,000 people during her campaign, Hudson listened to residents’ genuinely held concerns that were backed up by numerous negative experiences, and holds a well of compassion and empathy for those who are struggling in society.

“I think it has helped to crystalize so many of the values that I had walking in—that people deserve a government that works for them,” Hudson said. “People deserve to have a government that invests in opportunities that spreads that fairly, that has meaningful and specific plans for making life better here in the City of Seattle. I feel more committed to making that possible than I did before.” Continue reading

Social housing: Backers aim for Seattle vote on $53M business payroll tax to fund publicly owned affordable apartments and homes

A view from a unit in Broadway’s affordable senior community Pride Place

Seattle is building a Social Housing Public Development Authority to create affordable, publicly owned housing across the city.

Now, a proposal is being lined up for the fall ballot to pay for it by adding a new tax on the companies creating the city’s millionaires. There is political urgency with strong turnout expected for the 2024 presidential election. The city also has a housing crisis to solve.

The Let’s Build Social Housing ballot initiative unveiled this week would add a 5% tax on companies for every dollar over a million paid to a Seattle employee in annual compensation including salary, stock, and bonuses.

The House our Neighbors group behind the proposal says the tax would add up to around $50 million a year to fund the development authority and power its ability to borrow to build or acquire 2,000 units of housing over 10 years.

It could be a relatively small price to pay for a city stuck in an affordability crisis that is only getting worse.

“If we were honest with ourselves and the public, we do not have a plan to address our affordable housing needs at scale,” Tiffani McCoy, House Our Neighbors Policy and Advocacy Director said in a statement to media. “No level of government has a plan and the private sector cannot fill this need. This is where social housing comes in.”

The new tax could be seen as an extension of the JumpStart program created during the pandemic to fund social services and affordable housing. Continue reading

There is a big year of voting ahead — Warm up with the 2024 King Conservation District election

A year of major political decisions starts with a smaller, mostly online vote in Seattle and King County.

You have until February 13th to cast your ballot in this year’s King Conservation District board of supervisors race for Position No. 1:

For the fifth year, the King Conservation District election will primarily rely on electronic ballot access. Ballots will be available to eligible voters online through the KCD website from January 23, 2024, at 8:00 AM through February 13, 2024, at 8:00 PM. Voters may return ballots electronically through the online ballot access system or reach out to KCD for assistance. Democracy Live operates the online ballot access portal and King County Elections will tabulate all ballots and report all results.

The board leads the natural resources assistance agency created “to promote the sustainable use of natural resources through responsible stewardship.” It covers most of the county including Seattle.

The 2024 Position 1 race features three candidates.

Brittney Bush Bollay wants to return to the board to support “local agriculture, clean waterways, abundant forests, and healthy salmon” while safeguarding the budget, and “growing partnerships with other government organizations,” and shaping “a new, fair contract with our unionized staff.” “During the past three years the Conservation District has entered a period of unprecedented stability and success, and I pledge that we will only grow from here,” the incumbent writes. Continue reading

March primary: Donald Trump’s name will appear on Washington’s ballot — and so will Joe Biden’s

Donald Trump will appear on the primary ballot in Washington State. That’s not really news. But you might be a bit surprised to see that the 2024 presidential election is coming at you so quickly.

The Washington Office of the Secretary of State announced it has received candidate names from the Washington State Democratic Party for the 2024 Presidential Primary taking place March 12th — only eight short weeks from now.

The state Democratic Party submitted three candidate names, the announcement says: Joseph R. Biden Jr., Dean Phillips, and Marianne Williamson. Continue reading

State sorting out questions about all-mail voting after Capitol Hill mailbox blunder

The culprit spotted on 15th Ave (Image: Google Maps)

Just in time for what is shaping up to be a tense and challenging 2024 presidential election, a Capitol Hill mailbox along 15th Ave E has state officials asking questions about a key component in Washington’s all-mail election process — the United States Postal Service.

Secretary of State Steve Hobbs says his office has asked what steps the USPS is taking “to prevent out-of-service mail collection boxes from being left in public spaces during Washington elections” after ballots were found uncollected inside the Capitol Hill mailbox.

In the November election, officials found 85 ballots that had not been collected from a USPS dropbox located near Kaiser Permanente’s Capitol Hill campus. USPS officials said the mailbox had been marked with “out of service” signs “multiple times” but the signage was “removed.” The box was to be be taken out of service and replaced, according to USPS. Continue reading