Primary Elections in the South End Will Impact the Everyday Lives of South Seattle's Residents

by Luna Reyna

Seattle summer is at its peak this month, and with local music and food festivals, Seafair, beach days, and major league baseball and basketball games to attend, an Aug. 1 primary election is not top of mind for most people. Unfortunately, that doesn't bode well for the key races in the South End.

To get you back to the joys of Seattle summers, we've put together a roundup of who's running and what they say they stand for. You can feel good about performing your civic duty in an election that will impact the everyday lives of South Seattle's residents, and be back out soaking up the sunshine in no time.

Candidate information is taken from their campaign websites.

Seattle City Council District 2

District 2 is Seattle's only majority-minority district, representing the Chinatown-International District, Beacon Hill, Rainier Valley, SoDo, and Georgetown.

Tammy Morales is running for reelection to this position. Before becoming a City Councilmember, Morales worked for the Rainier Beach Action Coalition and served as a Seattle Human Rights Commissioner. As a representative of District 2, Morales has advocated for and supported funding for reproductive care and gender-affirming care; homelessness services, such as Community Resilience Hubs for neighbors to escape extreme heat and smoke events; housing support (by enacting an eviction moratorium to protected renters during the height of the pandemic); and public safety measures, like funding safer bike lanes in South Seattle after vehicle fatalities in South Seattle reached an all-time high.

Tanya Woo is challenging incumbent Tammy Morales. Last year, Woo organized the effort to stop the expansion of a homeless shelter in the Chinatown-International District and surrounding neighborhoods, calling out the systemic racism of King County, along with the City of Seattle and King County Regional Homelessness Authority, in planning to put the complex in the CID "without any meaningful community outreach or engagement."

Woo is also a business owner in the Chinatown-International District who hopes to address the housing and homelessness crisis as well as community-based policing alternatives for public safety, and safe, frequent, and accessible transit options for South Seattleites.

Margaret Elisabeth is the national co-chair of the Green Party of the United States. A key aspect of Elisabeth's campaign has been advocating for Seattle to meet the carbon-neutral goal by 2030 and better preparations for the increasing effects of climate change. Elisabeth also hopes to enact a citywide single-payer point-of-service health care for every resident of Seattle, a living wage of $25 per hour, and equitable education with free breakfasts and lunches.

King County Council District 8

District 8 encompasses Burien, Capitol Hill, Chinatown-International District, downtown Seattle, First Hill, Georgetown, Little Saigon, Pioneer Square, SoDo, South Park, Tukwila, Vashon and Maury Islands, and White Center.

Teresa Mosqueda, a District 8 resident and the at-large Seattle City Councilmember serving her sixth year in office and as the Council's budget chair, is hoping to fill outgoing Joe McDermott's seat.

Mosqueda's past accomplishments in workers' rights and protections, housing reform, reproductive rights, and more have garnered her nearly 100 endorsements. Her priorities include addressing gun violence and awareness; investing in behavioral health services and workforce; increasing workforce housing, supportive housing, and green housing; and focusing on family stability through affordable child care, accessible transit, and a living wage.

Sofia Aragon, the first Asian American mayor of Burien, is also running for Joe McDermott's seat in District 8.

Aragon's priorities include funding policing to address rising crime rates, affordable housing investments, advocating for environmental justice through preserving green space as a buffer to air pollution, utilizing the Burien Climate Action Plan, and addressing homelessness with 24-hour service facilities. Aragon's campaign website also advocates for modernizing the public health system and workforce development.

Renton City Council, Position 7

Nancy Sivitilli is a mom, wife, and resident of Renton who supports small businesses; wants to address crime, homelessness, and drugs; and wants to bolster education.

Steven Vargas says he doesn't "believe in handouts," but he does believe "in providing opportunities for those willing to put in the work." Vargas' priorities are addressing crime and public safety, more transparent governance, and housing affordability.

Michael Westgaard believes the "war on drugs" was a failure and wants to prioritize compassion with treatment options, crisis care centers, and response teams, and overall public safety with police oversight. Westgaard advocates for housing by supporting unoccupied unit tax on rental and commercial spaces, rent controls, ending property tax exemptions, and more. He is also an advocate for raising the minimum wage and better public transit and bikeable walking trails that connect Renton with nearby cities and neighborhoods.

Camila Lagow currently serves on the Renton Civil Service Commission, where she works to improve accountability between law enforcement and community members. Some of her priorities are public safety through investments in police departments and providing a better environment for small businesses. Lagow also wants to address homelessness, addiction, and mental health.

Randy Corman served on the Renton City Council for 27 years before deciding to move on in 2021. Corman prioritizes housing affordability through new affordable market-based and rent-assisted apartments; state-mandated "missing middle" housing rezoning; discounted development fees for creation of smaller, more affordable single-family homes; and more. Other priorities include traffic reduction, protecting the environment, lowering taxes for residents, public safety through adding police officers as needed, and community policing.

Kim-Khnh Vn is the incumbent running for reelection for Position 7. Vn is a community volunteer and attorney who works pro bono for Northwest Immigrants Rights Project. During her time on the Renton City Council, Van funded the purchase of body cameras and the hiring of police officers and mental health navigators, denounced the SR 169 Asphalt Plant permit, and advocated for gun safety and clean water. Vn backed homeownership programs, like the Racial Investment to Secure Equity program, and allocated $18 million from the American Rescue Plan Act funds for equity, housing, and human services.

City of SeaTac Council Position 3

Marianne "Ginger" West is a Navy gulf war veteran whose priorities are homelessness, veteran's services, and transportation. No website is available for Ms. West.

Elizabeth Greninger's campaign priorities include affordable housing through accessory dwelling units on personal properties; economic development through modeling programs, like Spice Bridge Food Hall in Tukwila; and community health by protecting North SeaTac Park, access to healthy, affordable food, and access to behavioral health resources.

Peter Kwon is running for reelection. He has served on the Council for seven years and is proud of his nonpartisan Council position. Kwon takes responsibility for ensuring SeaTac secured increased funding for public and human services and improvements to parks, roadways, and sidewalks without increasing City taxes during the pandemic.

Port of Seattle Commissioner Position 5

Jesse Tam promises to work with business, labor, tribal, and environmental communities to bring jobs to the Port of Seattle. Tam believes his experience in the banking industry will support his efforts to deliver efficient and transparent Port operations. Tam is an advocate for union workers and believes climate change needs to be addressed in a way that also creates local jobs.

Fred Felleman is running for reelection to a third term. His achievements include the founding of the Energy and Sustainability Committee; the hiring of a tribal liaison and creation of a memorandum of understanding with the Suquamish and Muckleshoot tribes, as well as the development of a tribal internship program; the transformation of Terminal 117 into the Duwamish River People's Park, including the Port's largest habitat restoration project along the Duwamish River; and achieving greenhouse gas reduction goals 10 years early.

Felleman's campaign promises to expand workforce development, combat human trafficking, deepen tribal relations, and more.

Todd Curtis believes his vast career experience as an aerospace engineer in aviation projects, experience as a policy analyst, business experience in technology, and more will allow him to innovate and diversify the Port's job creation efforts, addressing the climate crisis, and more.

Voter Information

According to Courtney Hudak, the communications specialist for King County Elections, there is generally less interest in odd-year primary elections like this one, resulting in a mere 35% expected turnout this election.

"The Primary is the opportunity to determine which two candidates will be on the ballot in the fall!" Hudak said in an email. "We encourage voters to take the opportunity to make their voices heard about who they want to vote for in the General election."

Hudak suggested people visit one of the Vote Centers to register and get a ballot until 8 p.m. on election night, Aug. 1.

Voters can sign up to receive email or text alerts about where their ballot is in the election process.

Voters can also request to receive their ballots and other voting materials in Somali and Russian for the first time this year. King County also provides all voting materials in Chinese, Korean, Spanish, and Vietnamese.

Editors' Note: This story was clarified on 07/27/2023 to indicate that King County, in partnership with the City of Seattle and King County Regional Homeless Authority, planned to expand a homeless shelter in the CID.

Featured image by vesperstock/Shutterstock.com.