Rantz: Who should you support in Seattle mayoral race?

Seattle voters are starting to receive ballots in their mailboxes. But with so many mayoral candidates trying to make it past the primary, you may need some assistance on who to vote for. Here’s a quick overview to help you pick from some of the candidates:

Jenny Durkan

You Should Vote for Her if… you were a Mayor Murray supporter; you want a candidate that will fairly consider business interests; you’re OK that she’s avoiding taking clear positions on issues impacting the community because she doesn’t want to alienate Progressive activists with her mainstream views; if identity politics are important to you; if you support Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole.

Mike McGinn

You Should Vote for Him if… you supported him the first time around; you want to bring the Sonics back to a brand new, privately-financed arena in SODO; you think he learned from his inability to build bridges with opponents in City Council; you want a Progressive candidate, but not one that’s insane and irresponsible; you want some common-sense approach to dealing with housing affordability; you oppose regressive taxes; you want Fifth Avenue in Downtown Seattle to be made transit-only.

Nikkita Oliver

You Should Vote for Her if… you’re a fan of Councilmember Kshama Sawant; you’re OK taking a chance on a passionate activist who doesn’t have government experience; you support municipal broadband and consistent attempts to tax the wealthy; you oppose regressive taxes; you oppose building a new juvenile courthouse and detention center in Seattle; you hold a more pessimistic view of the police department.

Cary Moon

You Should Vote for Her if… you don’t care about Seattle; you don’t value free speech.

Jessyn Farrell

You Should Vote for Her if… you oppose the soda tax; you think transit should be a priority; you want to spend more money tackling homelessness; if you value the experience serving in Olympia offers; if you want environmentalism to play a bigger role in deciding the future of the city.

Bob Hasegawa

You Should Vote for Him if… you support a mayor who won’t treat drivers like the bad guys; you want your leader to come with government experience; you don’t care about an arena or bringing the Sonics back; you support impact fees on developers; you don’t want an automatic green light on new tent encampments; you buy into the idea of a municipal bank.

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