Seattle council selects Harris-Talley as temporary council member

The Seattle City Council chose Kirsten Harris-Talley on Friday to take over a vacant council seat left open by Tim Burgess, who is now the city’s mayor.

“I am ready to get to work,” Harris-Talley said. “While I am here a short time, I plan to focus my priorities on what I have been working on.”

RELATED: Mayor Burgess seeks to regulate off-duty police jobs

Harris-Talley said those priorities include reproductive justice, restorative justice, and providing funding to community-led programs. She will be in the position until the November election results have been verified and a new council member is voted in.

Friday’s decision is the final hurdle for Seattle’s government in the wake of Ed Murray’s exit from the mayor’s office. Tim Burgess left the council to take over as the city’s mayor until the November election. But that left his position empty shortly before the council is expected to craft the city’s budget.

A total of 16 people applied to take over Burgess’ council position. Council members nominated Harris-Talley, Abel Pacheco Jr., and former council member Nick Licata. Harris-Talley won the seat by five votes. Two votes went to Pacheco Jr. and one vote went to Licata.

With position 8 filled, the council is now a complete nine members as it goes into debating the budget.

“Miss Harris-Talley is a remarkable candidate … budgeting and making complex decisions and prioritizing our resources is not something that is new to her,” Councilmember Lorena Gonzalez said. “I’m going to vote for her despite the fact she likes to sing karaoke.”

Harris-Talley is the program director of Progress Washington, a progressive organization that aims to change political infrastructure in the state. She has worked on reproductive justice issues in the past.

Follow @http://twitter.com/Mynorthwest