The November 7 general election featured all seven Seattle City Council seats elected by district, including three Seattle City Councilmembers seeking reelection. Another incumbent City Councilmember was on the ballot but running for a seat on the King County Council.
Citywide Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda is seeking a seat on the King County Council that retiring Councilmember Joe McDermott vacated. Mosqueda won her primary by a 54.75% to 39.77% margin over Sofia Aragon in a 3-way race. The election night results for the general election show a very different result, with Mosqueda ahead by 260 votes in a 50%/50% race. If Councilmember Mosqueda wins the County Council seat, the Seattle City Council will name a person to serve in that citywide seat until filled in the November 2024 general election.
A net gain of 2-4 moderates on the Council. In the City Council races, moderates are positioned to pick up at least two seats (Districts 1 and 3) and are well ahead in District 7. A moderate candidate is also ahead by a narrower margin in District 2. In Districts 4 and 5, the moderate candidates are well ahead in their efforts to succeed moderate Councilmembers Alex Pedersen and Debora Juarez. Although he is slightly behind on election night, Councilmember Dan Strauss is the only incumbent with a good chance of winning reelection. Councilmembers Strauss and Lewis (District 7) are the key swing votes on the current Council.
A net gain of 2 moderate seats – combined with moderates holding Districts 4 and 5 – will form a governing majority with Citywide Councilmember Sara Nelson. The majority could grow to 7 seats, pending Districts 2 and 7 outcomes.
Councilmember Nelson recruited and helped moderate candidates in all seven districts and deserves enormous credit for this outcome. She will be a powerful force on the Council in 2024 and 2025.
It’s important to note that the King County Elections office will continue counting votes for the next few weeks. Historically, the candidates endorsed by The Stranger will pick up a disproportionate share of votes counted after election night. We will provide updates on these races as new results become available over the coming weeks.
See a breakdown of preliminary results for the Seattle and King County Councils here.
