Ciudad de Woodinville

King County Assessor John Wilson is running unopposed for re-election. He worked as the chief deputy assessor for four years before being elected by the public to lead the office in 2015. Wilson has also worked in the county’s Department of Information Technology and in public affairs consulting. 

In office, Wilson has focused on housing affordability, making sure our tax code is balanced, and improving the efficiency of assessor services. One of his top priorities has been to ensure that property taxes don’t push our senior neighbors out of their homes. Wilson also revamped the office’s web services and instituted the Taxpayer Transparency Tool so county residents can easily calculate how policy changes impact their upcoming taxes. In this race, Wilson’s platform emphasizes similar values of accessibility, innovation, and efficiency in the office while working on community issues like housing and immigration.

With his years of experience and strong community focus, John Wilson deserves your vote to serve another term as King County Auditor. 

Incumbent Julie Wise is running for her third term serving as King County Director of Elections. Wise has worked in elections since 2000 and as the county’s director since 2015. During her two terms, she has brought innovative community services to the offices that have advanced civic education and voter participation.

Wise has led progress in the county elections office, instituting the Voter Education Fund (a public-philanthropic partnership), providing prepaid postage on ballots, introducing new language options, and adding 65 new ballot drop-off locations. Her past term included successfully navigating the storm of election misinformation and conspiracy theories about the democratic process. Wise has won numerous awards for her leadership in the office.

Wise’s campaign reflects her continued commitment to reducing barriers to voting, protecting elections from infringement, building community trust in the accuracy of election results, and making sure every vote is counted. Her biggest priorities for a third term are continuing progressive efforts to increase accessibility while investing in security to protect voters and elections offices from intimidation.

Republican Doug Basler is challenging Wise in this race. Basler runs a digital video and marketing services company, and he has previously run for office. His campaign platform dangerously promotes far-right fictions of election fraud that fueled the 2020 criminal conspiracy to overthrow the will of the people. Basler has also previously questioned the integrity of county elections, and even participated in lawsuits aimed at overturning the function of our democratic institutions. 

King County voters deserve an elections director who is focused on delivering quality and accurate services rather than someone who wants to overturn our votes and stoke chaos in order to elevate their position and that of their party. Julie Wise deserves re-election for another term as King County Director of Elections to continue bringing strong leadership to the office. 

Incumbent Dave Somers is running for re-election for Snohomish County Executive. A former member of the Snohomish County Council, Somers has served as executive since 2016, where he manages twelve county offices, including Human Services, Medical Examiner, and Emergency Management.

As county executive, Somers has supported measures to create parks and open spaces, invest in alternative fuels, aid salmon recovery, and develop the Snohomish County Housing Task Force to help meet the affordable housing needs of the community. More recently, Somers announced the Snohomish County Outreach Team (SCOUT) to pair social workers with law enforcement on behavioral health calls. Somers has also awarded $500,000 in federal recovery dollars for two new youth and family resource centers: the South County Korean Community Service Center and The Clearwater School. These two centers will help provide culturally-appropriate health services, community workshops, food access, and support for LGTBQ youth and families.

Challenging Somers is Republican Bob Hagglund, who has served as the Snohomish County Republican Legislative District committee chairman and election integrity chairman since 2020. He also ran unsuccessfully for secretary of state in 2022. In an interview with The Everett Herald, Hagglund said that he voted for Trump in 2020 and hopes more Republicans will run on new ideas. Despite that, he touts tired old policies that have failed to address the root causes of homelessness and often end in cycling people through jail who may simply need more affordable housing or small amounts of support.

Somers is by far the best choice for Snohomish County Executive. 
 

Cindy Gobel, a certification and training specialist with the Washington Secretary of State, is running for county auditor again after a narrow loss for the position four years ago. She previously served the public as a representative with the Women’s Law Caucus in Snohomish County from 2012 to 2015. Gobel states that she has spent 11 years working in records, licensing, and animal control with law enforcement, and several more years working in elections, including some in former Secretary of State Kim Wyman's office.

Gobel views the auditor’s office as a place where we all come together – to register a pet, apply for a marriage license, or register to vote. If elected, she has a progressive vision for strengthening our democratic systems, increasing transparency and community trust, and delivering efficient services for all residents. County auditors play an important role in upholding our election integrity, and Gobel wants to safeguard Snohomish voters from conspiracies and ensure every vote is counted. She also wants to implement accessibility measures to make sure that all Snohomish residents can make use of the auditor’s services, especially non-English speakers and residents of color who have historically been left behind by the office.

Gobel is challenging incumbent auditor Garth Fell, who has 24 years of county election management experience, including previously working as Snohomish County’s elections manager and as county auditor. If re-elected, Fell wants to continue to ensure accurate, transparent, and customer-focused elections and animal services. Fell’s leadership in the auditor’s office has been characterized as “steadfastly neutral” by the Everett Herald. However, with our democracy under attack from the right, it is imperative that our next county auditor has a bold, community-focused plan that seeks to improve the office rather than simply maintain the status quo. 

Gobel has earned an impressive list of progressive and community endorsements in this race. She is the best choice for Snohomish County Auditor.
 

Susanna Johnson, a 30-year veteran of the Snohomish County Sheriff's Office, is challenging incumbent Adam Fortney for Snohomish County Sheriff. She has worked in many roles across departments, including as a patrol deputy, detective sergeant, and SWAT Entry Team. Johnson was recently recruited by the Bothell Police Department to serve as a Lateral Police Captain and promoted to deputy chief. She is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy, which is the most sought-after executive law enforcement leadership training.

In our interview with Johnson, she pointed to her vast executive and police experience compared to Fortney's and her desire to return the sheriff's office to steady leadership. She points to Fortney's rehiring of officers fired for dishonesty and improper use of force as well as the hiring of a Proud Boy as two reasons why the public has lost confidence in the office as a neutral body. She also points to internal issues, including the department's loss of accreditation, which costs taxpayers money in higher litigation and insurance fees, as well as increasing reports of PTSD for officers as other reasons for voters to be concerned. If elected, Johnson wants to see the office return to more community policing, building rapport among neighbors and businesses, reducing armed officer responses to calls when it's unnecessary, and using better analysis to prevent crime. 

Incumbent Adam Fortney has served as sheriff since a contentious run against former sheriff Ty Trenary in 2019, whom Fortney worked for as sergeant. Fortney is a so-called "constitutional sheriff" who has refused to enforce laws that he doesn't personally believe in, including public health laws. 

Fortney also used his position to publicly advocate against state laws on police accountability and high speed chases in a video he released from the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. These types of communications may be illegal, as sheriff's offices and other public agencies are supposed to be limited to communications with constituents, not lobbying against lawmakers or public policy.

Fortney's term has been marred by endless controversies that have eroded confidence in his leadership and judgement. Johnson's clearheaded vision would return the office to a much healthier place, and her enormous amount of endorsements, from progressive elected officials to other sheriffs' offices, show the strength of her platform and personal character. Johnson is by far the best choice for Snohomish County Sheriff. 
 

Claudia Balducci is running unopposed for re-election to the King County Council from District 6. 

First elected in 2015, Balducci previously served as the mayor of Bellevue during her 12 years on the Bellevue City Council. She is also the founder and chair of the Regional Affordable Housing Committee and a board member of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. 

Balducci is running on a platform of affordable housing, updating transportation options, and ensuring climate justice. A few of the policies that she and the council worked on this term include putting a fully serviced shelter on the Eastside for people experiencing homelessness, improving and electrifying buses, and passing gun violence prevention policies. Balducci spearheaded a successful effort to create a Sound Transit "starter line" to connect Bellevue and Redmond while work continues on the East Link Extension to Seattle.

Balducci is one of the brightest and most effective progressive leaders in our region. She has earned your vote for re-election to the King County Council.  

David Edwards is running for Woodinville City Council, Position 2. He works as an attorney and serves on the Woodinville Planning Commission and the Evergreen public hospital board. He has lived in East King County for 30 years and volunteers with the Woodinville Farmer's Market.

Edwards is running to increase transparency in local government and protect local parks and green spaces as the city grows. He also wants to improve relationships with other local leaders to ensure that the voices of Woodinville residents are represented in important regional decisions. Finally, he's committed to keeping Woodinville a safe and welcoming place to live and raise a family.

Edwards is running against software engineer Shengquan Liang, who also serves on the planning commission. He wants to improve walkability and make data-driven decisions for Woodinville. Unfortunately, Liang opposes policy changes that would make housing more affordable in Woodinville. Without these long overdue reforms, spiraling housing costs will continue to displace our seniors and prevent young people from buying their first homes.

Edwards' platform and strong endorsements make him the clear choice for Woodinville City Council, Position 2.

Mayor and incumbent council member Mike Millman is running for re-election to Woodinville City Council, Position 4. Millman is a small business owner and spent nearly three decades with the Everett Fire Department where he held a number of leadership positions. He has been an active community leader serving as an elected fire commissioner and on the city’s planning commission.

If re-elected, Millman wants to invest in infrastructure, community safety, and public green spaces. Specifically, he is in favor of expanding the roadway where cars enter and exit Woodinville, adding a mobile integrative health unit staffed by medical personnel and social workers, wraparound services in homeless shelters, and continuing to invest in parks and trails like the Wood Trails park and the Eastrail Corridor project. Millman has earned a long list of endorsements in this race, including from many local leaders.

The other candidate in this race is Shan Evans, who has worked in administrative assistance for a number of large corporations. Evans serves on the Woodinville Public Spaces Commission. In this race, she is running on a vague platform to restrict some community funding, manage growth responsibly, and improve infrastructure.

We recommend Mike Millman in this race for Woodinville City Council, Position 4.

Electrical engineer Han Tran is running for Northshore School Board, Director District 3 to replace David Cogan, who is not seeking re-election. Tran is an active community advocate, previously running for Bothell City Council in 2021 on a strong progressive platform. In addition, she participated in the school district’s Ethnic Studies Work Team and served as a Washington Human Rights Commissioner.

As an immigrant and a working mother of Northshore district students, Tran wants to champion equity and inclusion, empower educators, and bring a holistic and progressive approach to addressing the district’s needs. She would work to close opportunity gaps by implementing targeted academic support, culturally responsive teaching, and accountability metrics. Tran also believes in empowering staff with high quality professional development and data-informed decisionmaking. The rest of her campaign priorities are equally detailed and community-centric, reflecting her deep knowledge of the issues and the district. In this race, Tran has received an impressive list of progressive endorsements from unions, Democratic organizations, and elected officials.

Myriam Juritz, a substitute teacher with a Doctorate in Engineering in the Northshore School District, is running against Tran for the District 3 director seat. Juritz serves on the board of the Northshore Schools Foundation, and has also served with the Natural Leaders program, NSD Parent Advisory for Student Success, and more. She is a Spanish-speaking immigrant and credits her upbringing in political unrest as motivating her to run for local government to ensure that community needs are met. Juritz has also volunteered in the district extensively to help improve the Dual Language program, English Language Arts, and the Wellness and Safety Task Force. Her campaign platform emphasizes improving academic excellence and student health, both mental and physical. She states that fact-based education, resilience, and long-term fiscal responsibility is core to improving schools and education. However, her available platform is not as detailed as Tran’s, nor has she earned as many community endorsements.

Tran is the clear choice in this race and deserves your vote for Northshore School Board Director, District 3.