City of Kirkland

Sen. Joe Nguyen was elected to the Washington state Senate in 2018 and has worked as a senior program manager at Microsoft since 2013. His parents were refugees from Vietnam who came to White Center, where Nguyen was born and raised.

During Nguyen's time in the Legislature, he has been an advocate for Washington's families and equality, including playing a leadership role in fully funding the Working Families Tax Credit. In addition, he co-sponsored legislation to require anti-racism and equity training in public schools.

Nguyen is running for county executive to implement sweeping actions on the affordable housing crisis, to reform the criminal justice system with deep changes and accountability, and to make the state's economy work for everyone, not just the wealthiest people. In particular, Nguyen has proposed to make all transit services free to improve access and increase ridership. He also wants to leverage the new Regional Homelessness Authority to significantly scale up the building of affordable housing.

Nguyen has the support of elected leaders including state Reps. Kirsten Harris-Talley and David Hackney as well as state Sen. Bob Hasegawa and Treasurer Mike Pellicciotti. Nguyen is a progressive choice if you're looking for new leadership in the executive's office who will prioritize racial justice and systemic change.

Incumbent Rod Dembowski is an attorney who has represented District 1 since 2013. He has served in county affairs in several capacities, including as a pro bono counsel for the King County Superior Court, policy analyst in the county executive's office, and special prosecuting attorney.

If re-elected, Dembowski will continue working on sustainable human services funding, protecting the wild areas of the Puget Sound region, and looking for sustainable transit funding that improves transportation options. He also wants to expand housing with an eye on reducing commute times and increasing affordability for workers and families. While on the council, Dembowski has sponsored several progressive reforms, including giving grocery workers hazard pay in the pandemic and moving to make the sheriff an appointed position through the council and an advisory committee.

Challenging Dembowski is Kenmore resident and first-time candidate Sally Caverzan. According to her LinkedIn, she has worked as a long-term care social worker and is passionate about the environment. Her official voters' guide statement says that she would support instituting term limits for politicians, expanding mental health and addiction care with the creation of a King County regional treatment facility, and increasing supportive and permanent housing.

Dembowski has earned broad support from elected officials, reproductive health and environmental organizations, labor unions, and many more. We recommend Dembowski for King County Council in District 1 because of his proven track record of progressive leadership.

Deputy Mayor Jay Arnold is running unopposed for re-election to Kirkland City Council, Position 1. Prior to joining the city council, Arnold served on the Kirkland Planning Commission for five years and co-chaired the campaign to provide dedicated funding for Kirkland parks. He also served on the boards of the environmental organizations Futurewise and Spark Northwest.

First elected to the council in 2013, Arnold has worked hard to improve Kirkland's transportation, sustainability, and inclusiveness. He has supported efforts to strengthen safe routes to schools, improve transit options and reduce congestion, and provide co-responders for mental health calls to the police. Arnold is also a part-time technology consultant at Fuse. He was not involved in this recommendation.

Arnold has been a thoughtful and innovative leader as Kirkland has grown over the last eight years. He deserves your vote for Kirkland City Council, Position 1.

Penny Sweet is a wine shop owner and retired health care administrator who has served on the city council since 2010. She has twice served as deputy mayor and was selected to finish out former mayor Amy Walen's term in 2019. Sweet has co-chaired the King County Regional Water Quality Committee and is vice-chair on the board of Hopelink and the Cascade Water Alliance, among other responsibilities.

As one of the first cities in the U.S. to encounter COVID-19, and as a former health care professional, Sweet has worked hard to protect residents from the physical and economic toll of the pandemic. She has supported upgrades to the fire department, both for protective equipment and personnel, as they serve as first responders for sick community members. Sweet and the council also addressed last year's protests with a resolution to address institutional racism, which included the hiring of an equity consultant to provide policy recommendations to the city. Other accomplishments that Sweet is proud of include the redevelopment of Totem Lake Mall, and the creation of parks, two fire stations, and the Kirkland Justice Center. If re-elected, the mayor wants to continue to build momentum for affordable housing, transit, and growth management for Kirkland.

Sweet's challenger is Matthew Goelzer, an architect with a LEED certification for green building. He states that he will work closely with the Kirkland Alliance of Neighborhoods to address housing opportunities and densification in each neighborhood. He also wants to see the city implement a requirement to, at minimum, maintain current affordability and workforce housing with any new development.

Goelzer certainly has a progressive vision for the city, though there is overlap in the candidates' platforms and the direction that the city is currently taking. He agrees with the supporting the findings of the city's social equity and inclusion consultant, for example, and both candidates are looking to increase housing stock and affordability, provide green spaces, and more.

Either candidate would be a progressive choice, but Sweet's track record and greater backing from community organizations earn her the recommendation in this race.

Incumbent Neal Black was elected to his first term on the council in 2019. He serves as a member of the board of trustees for the King County Bar Association, where he works on the Housing Justice Project and other pro-bono civil legal aid programs.

If re-elected, Black will aim to encourage a greater mix of housing types, encourage economic growth and neighborhoods around transit hubs, and support pandemic recovery for residents and businesses. Some of that work has already begun - the council passed an eviction moratorium through the end of September and is offering assistance to renters, homeowners, and landlords behind on mortgage and rent payments. Black is strongly supported by a long list of progressive elected officials and an impressive variety of organizations that advocate for the environment, affordable housing, and more.

Challenging Black is Cherese Bourgoin, whose family owns a local salon. She also serves on the board of directors with the Kirkland Chamber of Commerce. Bourgoin states that electing her to the council would add a business advocate to the body. She notes that the unhoused population in Kirkland is growing, but does not offer a specific solution aside from saying she would help people get available services. Entry-level housing is also on her list of priorities, though again she fails to propose a solution to the challenge.

Black is by far the best choice for Kirkland City Council, Position 5.

Jon Pascal is running unopposed for re-election to Position 7 on the Kirkland City Council. As a former transportation commissioner and Kirkland planning commissioner, Pascal has worked on the city's Transportation Master Plan and other infrastructure improvements.

In his next term, Pascal hopes to continue investing in small traffic safety projects and transit options. He will also prioritize maintaining and expanding recreation opportunities in the city's parks, overseeing additional fire and emergency services, and supporting affordable housing.

Leah Choi is challenging incumbent Cassandra Sage to represent District 3 on the Lake Washington School Board. Choi is a first-time candidate with a background in financial planning, education, and science.

Choi is running on a progressive platform that starts with bringing climate education front and center in public schools to prepare the next generation to face this crisis. She also supports technical training programs for alternative paths to success, following the science on later start times for adolescents, and improving equity work so that all Lake Washington students can thrive.

Incumbent Cassandra Sage was first elected to the school board in 2017 and has pushed a more moderate agenda since joining. In this race, she is prioritizing equity and inclusion, academic recovery, and mental health support across the school district. Outside of school board work, Sage is a family advisor at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

We recommend Leah Choi in this race because of her endorsements from our partner organizations and her clear progressive vision for the seat. She deserves your vote to serve on the Lake Washington School Board in District 3.

Incumbent Mark Stuart is running for re-election to Lake Washington School Board in District 4. Stuart was first elected to the school board in 2013 and now serves as the board vice president. Outside of elected office, he works in global media relations and volunteers as the president of the Sammamish Rotary.

Stuart is running to rebuild, focusing on what remote learning highlighted about equity, health, and access in the school district. He wants to invest in mental and emotional support for students as well as social-emotional learning and equity programs. Stuart’s top three campaign priorities are investing in diversity and inclusion programming, implementing anti-discrimination policy, and improving communication between the school board and the community. In this race, he is supported by a number of our progressive partner organizations as well as important elected leaders.

Vishal Misri, a former executive at a digital service company who now works for Amazon, is challenging Stuart in District 4. Misri is a parent of a Lake Washington school district student and a member of the PTA. He is running to improve mental health services, teacher support, equity and inclusion measures, and school infrastructure.

Mark Stuart deserves to be re-elected to the Lake Washington School Board in District 4 to continue advocating for an equitable and well-resourced school district. We recommend him because of his strong support from our partners and his proven track record of progressive leadership.

Katie Grainger is running for King County Public Hospital District 2, Commissioner Position 4. Grainger works as a communications consultant with Clinical Care at Providence. She was the first in her family to receive a college degree and went on to earn a master's at the University of Washington. Additionally, Grainger serves as an ambassador with the Sjogren's Syndrome Foundation.

Grainger believes her experience living with an autoimmune disease paired with her work at a health care nonprofit makes her well-poised to bridge hospital administration and patient needs while bringing a community focus. If elected, she wants to work on health care reform at the local level in the service of the health and wellbeing of all district residents.

Grainger is facing retired emergency doctor Charles Pilcher. He was elected to Commissioner Position 4 in 2010 and is running to cut funding for services. While Pilcher is the only physician on the board, he does not appear to be a progressive choice.

Katie Grainger is the best candidate for King County Public Hospital District 2, Commissioner Position 4.