General election

 

You’ve heard this before from me: It’s important to elect Democratic candidates who are able to tack to the middle, thereby reaching the most voters—not the most ideological voters. 

 

I say “Democratic” because Republicans now support a neo-fascist personality cult.

 

Ballot measures

 

Note: Managing an operating budget by referenda—levies—is as idiotic as requiring Congress to approve an increase to the debt ceiling to pay for what it already agreed to spend.

 

State Senate Joint Resolution 8201. YES. This allows the state to invest money in the long-term care fund in the same way as the state pension funds, which include investments in the stock market, and by the same people who have proven to be good fiduciaries. Investing only in government bonds doesn’t keep up with inflation. This is a bipartisan measure that was approved by the legislature with a 128-to-16 vote.

 

King County Prop. 1. YES. This funds the Medic One system. Frankly, it’s ludicrous for this not to be part of the regular operating budget, but our state’s tax system is so messed up that they have to put popular, no-brainer programs to a vote.

 

Seattle Prop. 1. YES. Education levy. What ails Seattle schools won’t be cured until accountability lies with the mayor, and not with a committee of random people. But lots of money will trickle down to kids who need it the most.

 

Seattle Pro. 2. NO. B&O tax maneuvers. This gives a break to small businesses and raises taxes on bigger companies. The problem that our local leftists ignore is that raising taxes on large companies is an invitation for them to leave Seattle—and take their jobs with them, thereby lowering the tax base. The Oct. 8 Wall Street Journal documented how Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and other companies are moving offices to Bellevue and Redmond. Plus, the B&O tax is on gross business income—not on profits. Long-term, the B&O tax, however structured, is an economic disaster. Still, targeting the corporations that form our employment base is suicidal.

 

Legislature

These are districts where there’s more than one candidate. Where more than one Democrat is a good candidate, I recommend the one who seems to be a centrist. 

 

D=district

P=position

 

D5 senate (Issaquah). Victoria Hunt

 

D33, P1 (Burien) Kevin Schilling. Burien mayor. His opponent is also good, but Schilling is more of a centrist. He worked for Rep. Derek Kilmer and has an impressive academic background.

 

D41, P1 (Mercer Island, Newcastle): Janice Zahn. Long endorsement list. Her Republican endorsement thinks it’s appropriate to talk about his Bible studies.

 

D48 senator (Kirkland, Bellevue): Two good Democrats, but I’ll go with Amy Walen. Ex-Kirkland mayor and state rep. Her opponent is the incumbent. 

 

D48, P1 (Kirkland, Bellevue): Osman Salahuddin, incumbent, endorsed by everyone from business to Planned Parenthood. His Republican opponent says he’ll “support and defend the Constitution,” something that Republicans simply don’t do anymore.

 

King County

 

Executive: Claudia Balducci. Fellow councilmember Girmay Zahilay is running impressive TV ads, but has never run anything else. Claudia has been a workhorse for years.

 

Council Dist. 3 (Issaquah, Snoqualmie): Sarah Perry, incumbent endorsed by God and everyone. Her Republican opponent is endorsed by Dino Rossi and Rob McKenna—not quite extremists, but not the people you want to take advice from. 

 

Council Dist. 5 (South King): Steffanie Fain. Currently, president of the Harborview board. Has a balanced approach of police and services. Endorsed by a cast of thousands including governors Chris Gregoire and Steve Hobbs. Her opponent is a good community-oriented person, but Fain is the butter in the milk. (OK, that’s an allusion young people won’t understand.)

 

Council Dist. 7 (South King): Maya Vengadasalam. We all know that 80-year-old incumbent Peter von Reichbauer is going to win re-election. But that’s not because he’s good. His biggest endorsement on his website is right-wing ex-congressman and Seahawk Steve Largent. The Stranger endorsed Vengadasalam, even while acknowledging she was a centrist.

 

Council Dist. 9 (Bellevue, Eastside): Jude Anthony. Reagan Dunn (son of the late Republican U.S. Rep. Jennifer Dunn—thus the “Reagan”) is going to win re-election, and he’s done some good things. But my protest vote goes to Anthony, a retired Amazonian who says he’s a problem-solver. His choice of photo in the voters guide is unfortunate.

 

Port of Seattle

They’re all unopposed. We hope they’re figuring out how the Port can survive President Clown’s tariffs.

 

Cities

I won’t go through all the city races since I’m ignorant about their local issues. So if you live outside Seattle or Bellevue, you’ll need to go through your voters pamphlet and decide yourself by looking at what they say and their endorsements. If you’re in Seattle or Bellevue, read on.

 

City of Bellevue

Council Pos. 1: Vishal Bhargava

 

Council Pos. 2: Naren Briar. Her incumbent opponent donated $50,000 to the Trump inaugural committee. She’s been endorsed by everyone who doesn’t support President Clown, plus the Seattle Times.

 

Council Pos. 4: Pradnya Desh

 

Council Pos. 5: Claire Sumadiwirya

 

Council Pos. 6: Lynne Robinson, incumbent mayor.

 

City of Seattle

 

Mayor: Bruce Harrell. No one would ever accuse him of having charisma, but in his slow, plodding way, he’s brought sanity back to city government. We’ve seen a lot of improvements under Harrell. His socialist opponent has never run anything, let alone a city. She once supported defunding the police, but told the Times that she has since “learned” that we need police. She’s simply unqualified.

 

City Attorney: Ann Davison. She’s done what she promised to do: Prosecute jerks. Her opponents don’t like her because they oppose her prosecuting those poor, misunderstood drug dealers, thieves, taggers, and vandals. Unfortunately, Davison hasn’t raised money, and came in way behind in the primary. I don’t think her opponent will be a disaster—she was an assistant U.S. attorney—but Davison has been endorsed by centrists like Gregoire and Locke.

 

Council Pos. 2 (south end): Adonis Ducksworth. He stands out. A former public defender and union member, he’s been endorsed by mainstream councilmembers including Hollingsworth, Solomon, Kettle, and Strauss; several minority organizations; unions; Larry Gossett; and others.

 

Council Pos. 8 (citywide): Rachel Savage. Alexis Mercedes Rinck, incumbent, will win, but she doesn’t deserve to based on leftist agenda. My protest vote goes to Savage, who heads an addiction-services nonprofit based on meditation.

 

Council Pos. 9 (citywide): Sara Nelson. Boy, has she made enemies. Of course, anyone who gets things done will make enemies, and she’s made the best kind. If you love wasted addicts blocking sidewalks, or vandals busting storefronts, or think all cops are evil, then Sara’s not your gal. I think a well-trained police force, getting junkies off the streets and into rehab, and supporting downtown businesses is important. So does Sara Nelson. What’s inexplicable to me is that she’s running a crappy campaign. Still, she’s been endorsed by former governors Gregoire and Locke, as well as Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, my senator from Capitol Hill and First Hill, which certainly has had its share of crime and drugs. My politically astute friend Janis Van Cleve described Nelson as “the best thing that has happened to Seattle City Council in a decade.”

 

 

Seattle schools

Electing school boards is insane. Elected boards have no accountability, they engage in group think, and put decision-making in the hands of committees. Let’s do what other cities do: Make the mayor accountability for schools. Since that’s not going to happen here, the best we can hope for is to eliminate obvious crazies. 

 

Dist. 2: Sarah Clark. She advocates common sense—as if no school-board candidate past, present, or future didn’t promise the same—but has good endorsements.

 

Dist. 4: Laura Marie Rivera. Nonprofit and education background. The incumbent, a labor rep, doesn’t have the sense to change his photo in the voters pamphlet so he doesn’t look like Alfred E. Neumann. He’s been part of the cesspool that’s the Seattle school board.

 

Dist. 5: Vivian Song. Maybe her MBA from Harvard will fix the district. Right. But Councilmember Hollingsworth and Mayor Harrell endorse her.

 

Dist. 7: Jen LaVallee. All school-district elections are a crap shoot. She at least acknowledges “out-of-touch leadership.” She formed a statewide advocacy group for schools, called the Billon Dollar Bake Sale, and I love bakeries. She also has a degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and I’m a native upstate New Yorker.