In a special election with a surprisingly strong voter turnout, Seattle’s Socialist Alternative Councilmember Kshama Sawant narrowly survived her recall election.

Almost 53% of Seattle’s District 3 voters cast ballots in the December 7 special election. While the Yes vote led on election night and the following day’s count, the No vote slipped ahead in the November 9th vote count and has grown its margin slightly with each additional batch of counted ballots. The final vote was:

• Yes     49.62%
• No      50.38%

At this point, there is an indication that a legal challenge will be filed. The longest-serving member of the City Council, Councilmember Sawant, will be up for reelection in 2023. The recall election was much closer than her 2019 victory, which could reflect an erosion of support for her in the 3rd district.