There’s a major upheaval expected on the Seattle City Council in 2019. Seven out of nine council seats are up for grabs, leaving the door wide open for some new faces.
RELATED: Seattle City Council poised for major shakeup in 2019
Mike O’Brien (District 6), Sally Bagshaw (District 7), Rob Johnson (District 4), and Council President Bruce Harrell (District 2) have all expressed that they will not be seeking re-election.
Lisa Herbold (District 1), Kshama Sawant (District 3), and Debora Juarez (District 5) all announced re-election campaigns.
36 other candidates and counting have already putting their respective names in the hat, four of whom will eventually end up being first-time council members. Here’s a look at the people angling for that honor.
NOTE: If you are a declared, registered candidate for city council and are either 1. Not on our list of candidates, or 2. Would like to submit a photo for your entry, please email us at feedback@mynorthwest.com.
District 1: Lisa Herbold (running, took office 2015)
Candidate: Jesse Green
Status: Declared
Background: Worked for years in banking, food processing, and construction industry
Candidate: Brendan Kolding
Status: Declared
Background: Former Seattle Police Department Lieutenant
Candidate: Phillip Tavel
Status: Declared
Background: Lawyer
District 2: Bruce Harrell, Council President (not running, took office 2008)
Candidate: Henry Clay Dennison
Status: Declared
Background: Member of the Socialist Workers Party
Candidate: Ari Hoffman
Status: Declared
Background: Business owner in Seattle
Candidate: Tammy Morales
Status: Declared
Background: Former staffer in Texas Legislature, ran against Harrell in 2015
Candidate: Christopher Peguero
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle City Light employee for over a decade
Candidate: Omari Tahir-Garrett
Status: Declared
Background: Council candidate in 2015.
Candidate: Phyllis Porter
Status: Declared
Background: Community organizer and educator
Candidate: Mark Solomon
Status: Declared
Background: Crime Prevention Coordinator, Seattle Police Department
District 3: Kshama Sawant (running, took office 2014)
Candidate: Pat Murakami
Status: Declared
Background: Neighborhood activist, president of South Seattle Crime Prevention Council
Candidate: Logan Bowers
Status: Declared
Background: Former software engineer at Microsoft and Amazon, currently runs Hashtag Cannabis in Fremont
Candidate: Ami Nguyen
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle Public Defender
Candidate: Egan Orion
Status: Declared
Background: Head of Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce
Candidate: Zachary DeWolf
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle School Board Member, served as President of Capitol Hill Community Council.
District 4: Abel Pacheco (interim councilmember, previously Rob Johnson’s seat)
Candidate: Shaun Scott
Status: Announced candidacy in The Stranger
Background: Democratic Socialists of America organizer
Candidate: Alex Pedersen
Status: Declared
Background: Tim Burgess’ former aide
Candidate: Ethan Hunter
Status: Declared
Background: Student at Seattle Central College
Candidate: Emily Myers
Status: Declared
Background: Ph.D student at University of Washington
Candidate: Joshua Newman
Status: Declared
Background: Boeing Engineer
Candidate: Sasha Anderson
Status: Declared
Background: Works with Big Brothers Big Sisters high school mentor program
Candidate: Frank Krueger
Status: Declared
Background: Small business owner
Candidate: Heidi Stuber
Status: Declared
Background: Businesswoman and autism advocate
Candidate: Cathy Tuttle
Status: Declared
Background: Founder of Seattle Neighborhood Greenways
Candidate: Beth Mountsier
Status: Declared
Background: Transit Project Manager for City of Redmond
District 5: Debora Juarez (running, took office 2016)
Candidate: John Lombard
Status: Declared
Background: Private consultant on land-use planning, lecturer at University of Washington
Candidate: Ann Davison Sattler
Status: Declared
Background: Former caseworker in the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, D.C.
Candidate: Alex Tsimerman
Status: Declared
Background: Frequent antagonist at Seattle City Council meetings
Candidate: Mark Mendez
Status: Declared
Background: Recreation Leader for City of Seattle
Candidate: Tayla Mahoney
Status: Declared
Background: Student at Seattle University Law School.
District 6: Mike O’Brien (not running, took office 2010)
Candidate: Jay Fathi
Status: Declared
Background: Family physician, former CEO of Coordinated Care
Candidate: Jon Lisbin
Status: Declared
Background: Involved in Seattle Fair Growth, ran for council in 2015
Candidate: Kate Martin
Status: Declared
Background: Professional planner and designer
Candidate: Dan Strauss
Status: Declared
Background: Policy adviser to Councilmember Sally Bagshaw
Candidate: Kara Ceriello
Status:
Background: Local business owner
Candidate: Sergio Garcia
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle Police Officer
Candidate: Joey Massa
Status: Declared
Background: Washington Army National Guard veteran
Candidate: Terry Rice
Status: Declared
Background: Managing Director at Savor Seattle, and Global Food Tourism Association board member
Candidate: Heidi Wills
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle City Council Member between 2000 and 2003
Candidate: Jeremy Cook
Status: Declared
Background: North Ballard resident, lived in Seattle for over a decade
Candidate: Robert Miller
Status: Declared
Background: Background unknown
Candidate: Melissa Hall
Status: Declared
Background: Lawyer
Candidate: John Peeples
Status: Declared
Background: North Ballard resident, lived in Seattle for over a decade
Candidate: Ed Pottharst
Status: Declared
Background: Neighborhood District Coordinator for City of Seattle
District 7: Sally Bagshaw (not running, took office 2010)
Candidate: Naveed Jamali
Status: Declared
Background: Former U.S. Navy Reserve intelligence officer and MSNBC intelligence analyst
Candidate: Michael George
Status: Declared
Background: Co-founder of Parents for a Better Downtown Seattle
Candidate: Isabelle Kerner
Status: Declared
Background: Former intern for Maria Cantwell
Candidate: Andrew Lewis
Status: Declared
Background: Seattle City Attorney’s Office
Candidate: Daniela Lipscomb-Eng
Status: Declared
Background: Account executive, WBL Services
Candidate: Jim Pugel
Status: Declared
Background: Former acting Police Chief for Seattle Police Department
Candidate: Jason Williams
Status: Declared
Background: Management consultant, spent five years advising organizations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, NBC Universal, The Rockefeller Foundation, and more. Currently works at Microsoft.
Candidate: Don Harper
Status: Declared
Background: Former stage manager and road manger for 8 years. Master Electrician and owner of Harper Electric Inc for 30 years and now retired. Teaching electricians at CITC part time. Still serving on the Queen Anne Community Council for 21 years and is the Chair of the Parks Committee. Don is married to professional musician & teacher of music Suzanne Grant and has a son Nicholas.
Candidate: James Donaldson
Status: Declared
Background: Former Seattle Supersonic in the 1980s, current CEO of mentorship startup
Candidate: Gene Burrus
Status: Declared
Background: Attorney
Councilmembers Teresa Mosqueda (District 8) and Lorena Gonzalez (District 9) are not up for re-election in 2019.
