City of Lake Forest Park

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.

Stephanie Angelis is an environmental professional and real estate broker running to bring a progressive and equitable vision to Lake Forest City Council, Position 3.

She currently serves on the board of the Ballinger Neighborhood Association and as a precinct committee officer for the 32nd Legislative District Democrats. Angelis also volunteers in King County shelters and advocates for low-income and homeless individuals.

Angelis' campaign is centered on three priorities: environmental ethics, strengthening community, and affordable housing. Building off of her environmental background, she wants to create a model environmental community that protects open spaces and parks, conserves urban forests, and welcomes diversity into the community. Angelis' plan has earned her the support of local progressive elected officials and organizations.

Angelis' opponent in this race is Jon Lebo, an architect and deputy project director of the East Link Extension project at Sound Transit. Lebo is also a youth soccer coach and has served on the Lake Forest Park Planning Commission, including three years as chair. Lebo is taking a more moderate tack to the race that is not likely to go far enough to solve some of the most pressing issues in Lake Forest Park. Lebo states that he will create more types of housing and preserve single-family neighborhoods, but Angelis goes further in her willingness to encourage low-impact development, reverse historical redlining that has kept families from owning property in some neighborhoods, and support affordable housing. Notably, Lebo is openly campaigning against Proposition 1, which would support sidewalks, initially around schools, as well as the first-ever free public lakefront access in Lake Forest Park.

With home prices in the Shoreline-Lake Forest Park area up by 14 percent and housing stock at a historic low, families who want to live, work, and play in Lake Forest Park will struggle without progressive leadership from the city council. We recommend Stephanie Angelis for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 3.

Tracy Furutani is a scientist and educator who has taught about climate change at North Seattle College for the last 25 years. Furutani is now running for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 5 to lead on sustainability and equity for all residents. Outside of his work at the college, he also writes for Shoreline Area News, serves on the board of Shorelake Arts, and works as an administrator and stream monitor for Lake Forest Park Streamkeepers.

Furutani states that Lake Forest Park should join many other cities in King County in creating a climate action plan that would help mitigate and reduce the effects of climate change on the city. He would seek grants and other funding sources to maintain parks and green spaces and continue improving the health of Lyon Creek and McAleer Creek. If elected, Furutani would also prioritize walkability and work with the police department to ensure that, in the wake of nationwide protests and calls for accountability, the community's expectations meet the level of service.

Running against Furutani is Maddy Larson, current chair of the Lake Forest Park Planning Commission. She has also worked as a teacher and in nonprofit museum management. Larson's campaign priorities are balanced growth, community building, and "legacy building" through economic and environmental stewardship. Though she states that she has worked on recommendations for modifying the accessory dwelling unit (ADU) code, Larson is not specific on her campaign website about how, where, and if she would champion growth in other areas of the city, with a greater focus on parks, bikes, and pedestrian pathways. Larson has declined to state a position on Proposition 1, which if passed will support sidewalks and the city's first free public lakefront access, while Furutani supports it.

We lean towards Furutani because of his support from the progressive community.

Larry Goldman is an associate teaching professor in chemistry at UW-Seattle running for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 7. He serves in several community groups, including the grassroots group North Seattle Progressives, the 47th Legislative District Democrats, and the Lake Forest branch of People for Climate Action.

Much of Goldman's campaign focuses on improving the city's sustainability and infrastructure. As new Sound Transit light rail stations arrive, Goldman notes that the city could do more to drive down greenhouse gases since Lake Forest Park is one of the few cities in the county that has yet to develop a climate action plan. He believes that pedestrian and cyclist access should be emphasized, as well as maintaining the tree canopy, carefully using the funds from Rep. Jayapal's salmon recovery plan to fix local culverts and keep salmon populations healthy. He also speaks to the affordable housing crunch by stating that the city should consider allowing accessory dwelling units (ADUs) to alleviate some of the housing need, and possibly utilize land more efficiently by allowing a limited number of duplexes.

Goldman's opponent Paul Sanford is a vice president of product management who has coached youth sports. Sanford shares some of Goldman's goals, including protecting the city's watershed and canopy, increasing bike lanes and walkability, and considering accessory dwelling units. However, Sanford is somewhat less concrete on his site about what kinds of housing outside of ADUs that he would support.

Local Democratic organizations have all stood behind Goldman, who has held more leadership positions in the community pushing for progressive change. We recommend Goldman for Lake Forest Park City Council, Position 7.