Shaun Scott is young black man posed with crossed arms and wears a purple sweater. Alexis Mercedes Rinks is a Latina woman wearing hoop earrings. Ryan Mello is a white man in a shirt and tie.
Shaun Scott is headed to the state house, Alexis Mercedes Rinck to the Seattle City Council, and Ryan Mello to the Pierce County Executive based on election results. All were endorsed by The Urbanist. (Campaign photos)

On election night, we reported progressives were cruising to victory in Washington state, and results have held in later ballot drops, nearly across the board. The state is poised to reject three of four Republican-backed statewide initiatives repealing or undermining progressive legislation funding transportation and climate infrastructure.

Washingtonians also locked Republicans out of all statewide offices, and prevented them from gaining any ground in the state legislature. In fact, Democrats could cross the 60% threshold in both chambers, clearing the way to passing bonding without Republican votes.

Urbanist-backed candidates did extraordinarily well. Urbanist-endorsed Shaun Scott and Alexis Mercedes Rinck defeated more conservative opponents by decisive margins. Urbanist Ryan Mello has held on his lead in the race for Pierce County Executive. Plus, Pierce County Councilmember Jani Hitchen successfully defended her seat, maintaining Democrats’ control of the body, giving Mello’s agenda a legislative path.

Washington state votes by mail, so usually somewhere between half and 60% of total expected ballots are counted on election night. The remainder filter in over the next week or so as counties work through late returns placed in drop boxes or mailboxes in the last days of the election.

The Urbanist Elections Committee made endorsements in a long list of races and measures.

Republicans flailing statewide

  • Initiative Measure No. 2066 appears to have passed narrowly: 51% to 48%. The initiative will prevent programs discouraging installation of natural (fracked) gas heating and cooking systems and limiting program incentivizing greener alternatives.
  • Initiative Measure No. 2109 has failed and increased its margin slightly from election night: 64% “No” to 36% for “yes.” If passed, it would have repealed Washington’s capital gains tax, forcing a massive financial crisis on public schools across the state that relied on that funding.
  • Initiative Measure No. 2117 has failed by essentially the same margin as election night: 62% “No” to 38% for “yes.” This would have repealed the Climate Commitment Act, the cap and trade system it set up, and the infrastructure investments it funded.
  • Initiative Measure No. 2124 has failed: 55% “No” to 44% for “yes.” Washington Cares, a long-term care insurance program, will continue to be fully funded.
  • Governor: Democrat Bob Ferguson trounced Republican Dave Reichert 56% to 44%.
  • Attorney General: Democrat Nick Brown (endorsed) defeated Republican Pete Serrano by nearly the same margin: 56% to 44%
  • Lands Commissioner: Dave Upthegrove (endorsed) edged out Republican Jaime Herrera Beutler 53% to 47%, completing the Democratic sweep of statewide offices.

Prop 1 and Rinck coast in Seattle

  • Seattle Proposition No. 1 (endorsed) passed easily: The Urbanist-backed transportation levy passed by a two-to-one margin: 66.5% to just 33.5% no. Seattle’s $1.55 billion transportation levy should help offset a tougher federal transportation funding environment under the Trump administration, which has frequently held up transit grants in the past. Read Ryan Packer’s article on the levy’s passage for more.
  • Seattle City Council 8: Alexis Mercedes Rinck (endorsed) won, thoroughly dispatching centrist appointee Tanya Woo. On election night, Rinck was up 57% to 42%, with 56% turnout so far. That lead grew in later returns, reaching 58% to 41% by Monday’s drop with nearly 80% turnout.

Democrats grow state legislature majority to 60%

  • LD10 Senate: Republican incumbent Ron Muzzall has again survived reelection thanks to a surge in late returns. Democratic challenger Janet St Clair jumped out to a lead on election night: 56% to 44%. On Wednesday, the margin had narrowed to just a 61-vote lead for St Clair. By Monday, Muzzall was up by two points: 50.9% to 48.9%.
  • LD14: Republicans are up big in all races, dashing hopes of a Democratic foothold in the Yakima Valley.
  • LD17-2: Democrat Terri Niles lost. He was close behind Republican David Stuebe (49.8% to 50%) on election night, but has failed to make up the ground since. Niles now trails by a full point.
  • LD18 Senate: Democrat Adrian Cortes is clinging to a lead. He was leading Republican Brad Benton by 1.8 points on election night: 50.8% to 49%. The lead has shrunk, but Cortes had a 232-vote edge on Monday. This would be a senate pickup for Democrats if it holds. We could be headed to a recount on this one, given the razor-thin margin.
  • LD18-2: Democrat John Zingale lost to Republican John Fey but it was close and under a two-point margin. This district appears to be getting more favorable for Democrats.
  • LD22 Senate: Urbanist-endorsed Jessica Bateman won easily, adding another progressive urbanist leader in the senate, where several housing reforms went to die. As a member of the state house, Bateman was a clear housing leader. Bateman grabbed more than 70% of the vote, giving her a solid mandate.
  • LD26-1: Democrat Adison Richards won. He was leading Republican Jesse Young 52% to 47% on election night. The race narrowed a little, but not much. Richards is up 51.6% to 48.3%, as of Monday. This looks to be the one pickup for Democrats in the House.
  • LD26-2: Democrat Tiffany Mitchell lost to Republican incumbent Michelle Caldier: 45% to 55%. The other LD26 house seat was clearly less favorable to Democrats.
  • LD-27-2: Devin Rydel Kelly (endorsed) lost to incumbent Jake Fey, who chairs the house transportation committee, by a margin of 22% to 76%.
  • LD43-2: Shaun Scott (endorsed) was up 67% to 31% over conservative Andrea Suarez on election night. Scott’s share grew in late returns, reaching 68.6% of the vote by Monday. Suarez, a Republican who claimed to convert to being a Democrat just before ballots arrived, was thoroughly rejected.
  • LD45-2: Progressive challenger Melissa Demyan (endorsed) lost to incumbent Democrat Larry Springer: 42% to 56%.
Jessica Bateman earned The Urbanist’s endorsement and voters handed her a promotion from the state house to the state senate. (Campaign photo, edits by author)

Mello leads Democrat takeover in Pierce County

  • Pierce County Executive: Urbanist-endorsed Democrat Ryan Mello has won. Mello was up 51% to 48% over Republican Kelly Chambers on election night and maintained that margin.
  • Pierce County Council D2: Democrat Davida Haygood (endorsed) lost to incumbent Paul Herrera 43% to 57%
  • Pierce County Council D3: Democrat John Linboe (endorsed) lost to incumbent Amy Cruver 36% to 63%.
  • Pierce County Council D6: Democrat incumbent Jani Hitchen (endorsed) won. She is leading 52% to 47% over Republican Loujanna “LJ” Rohrer, same as election night.

State Supreme Court: Democrats hold off conservative assault

  • Democrat-backed Justice Sal Mungia has won. On election night, Mungia was up over conservative-backed Dave Larsen by a razor-thin 49.84% to 49.66% margin in the State Supreme Court, Position 2. The margin has grown since then to a 0.8% lead for Mungia, as of Monday.
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Article Author
Doug Trumm
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Doug Trumm is publisher of The Urbanist. An Urbanist writer since 2015, he dreams of pedestrianizing streets, blanketing the city in bus lanes, and unleashing a mass timber building spree to end the affordable housing shortage and avert our coming climate catastrophe. He graduated from the Evans School of Public Policy and Governance at the University of Washington in 2019. He lives in East Fremont and loves to explore the city on his bike.