2021 Seattle City Attorney election

2021 Seattle City Attorney election

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Turnout	54.57% [1]
Candidate Ann Davison Nicole Thomas-Kennedy Party Nonpartisan Nonpartisan Popular vote 132,638 122,947 Percentage 51.5% 47.7%
Results by precinct Results by state legislative district [a] Results by county council district [a] Results by congressional district [a] Davison:   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% Thomas-Kennedy:   40–50%   50–60%   60–70%   70–80%   80–90%   90–100% Tie:    No votes:
City Attorney before election Pete Holmes Democratic Elected City Attorney Ann Davison Republican

The 2021 Seattle City Attorney election was held on November 2, 2021. Incumbent City Attorney Pete Holmes sought reelection to a fourth term in office, but came third place in the officially nonpartisan August 3 primary election and failed to advance to the general election, with both Nicole Thomas-Kennedy and Ann Davison finishing ahead of Holmes in the primary. Davison defeated Thomas-Kennedy in the general election.

Primary election

Candidates

Declared

• Ann Davison (Republican), commercial lawyer, Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 2020, and runner-up for Seattle City Council District 5 in 2019 ^{[2] [3]}
• Pete Holmes (Democratic), incumbent Seattle City Attorney (2010–present) ^[2]
• Nicole Thomas-Kennedy (Democratic), police abolitionist, former public defender, and pro bono defense attorney ^{[2] [4]}

Withdrawn

• Steve Fortney (Democratic), former U.S. Department of Justice lawyer ^{[5] [6]}

Endorsements

Pete Holmes

Statewide officeholders

• Bob Ferguson, Attorney General of Washington (2013–present) and former King County Councilmember (2004–2013) ^[7]
• Hilary Franz, Washington Commissioner of Public Lands (2017–present) ^[8]
• Mike Pellicciotti, Washington State Treasurer (2021–present) and former state representative (2017–2021) ^[8]

State legislators

• Rebecca Saldaña, State Senator (District 37) ^[8]
• Jamie Pedersen, State Senator (District 43) ^[8]
• David Frockt, State Senator (District 46) ^[8]
• Liz Berry, State Representative (District 36) ^[9]
• Kirsten Harris-Talley, State Representative (District 37) ^[8]
• Nicole Macri, State Representative (District 43) ^[8]
• Roger Goodman, State Representative (District 45) ^[8]
• Gerry Pollet, State Representative (District 46) ^[10]
• Javier Valdez, State Representative (District 46) ^[8]
• Adam Kline, former state representative (1997–2015) ^[8]

Judges

• Faith Ireland, former Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court ^[8]

Local officeholders

• Dow Constantine, King County Executive (2009–present), former King County Councilmember (2002–2009), former state senator (2000–2002), and former state representative (1997–2000) ^[11]
• Dan Satterberg, King County Prosecuting Attorney (2007–present) (former Republican) ^[7]
• Rod Dembowski, King County Councilmember (District 1) ^[9]
• Jeanne Kohl-Welles, King County Councilmember (District 4) ^[9]

Seattle city councilmembers

• Lisa Herbold, Seattle City Councilmember (District 1) ^[9]
• Andrew J. Lewis, Seattle City Councilmember (District 7) ^[9]
• Teresa Mosqueda, Seattle City Councilmember (District 8) ^[9]
• Nick Licata, former Seattle City Councilmember (1998–2016) ^[12]

Organizations

• UFCW 21 ^[8]

Individuals

• Lisa Daugaard, executive director of the Public Defender Association and co-founder of Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion ^[9]
• Rick Steves, travel writer ^[7]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [b]	Margin of error	Ann Davison	Pete Holmes	Nicole Thomas-Kennedy	Other	Undecided
Change Research (D) [13] [A]	July 12–15, 2021	617 (LV)	± 4.3%	14%	16%	14%	4% [c]	53%

Results

Nonpartisan primary results ^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Nicole Thomas-Kennedy	71,367	36.39
	Nonpartisan	Ann Davison	64,179	32.72
	Nonpartisan	Pete Holmes (incumbent)	60,093	30.64
	Write-in		500	0.25
Total votes			196,139	100.00

General election

Candidates

Declared

• Ann Davison (Republican), commercial lawyer, Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor in 2020, and runner-up for Seattle City Council District 5 in 2019 ^{[2] [3]}
• Nicole Thomas-Kennedy (Democratic), police abolitionist, former public defender, and pro bono defense attorney ^{[2] [4]}

Debate

2021 Seattle City Attorney debate

No.	Date	Host	Moderator	Link	Nonpartisan	Nonpartisan
Key:  P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited  W  Withdrawn
					Ann Davison	Nicole Thomas-Kennedy
1	Oct. 7, 2021	Seattle Channel	Brian Callanan	YouTube	P	P

Endorsements

Ann Davison

Federal officeholders

• Daniel J. Evans, former U.S. Senator (1983–1989) and Governor of Washington (1965–1977) ^[11]

Governors

• Christine Gregoire, former Governor of Washington (2005–2013) (Democrat) ^[15]
• Gary Locke, former Governor of Washington (1997–2005) (Democrat) ^[15]

Mayors

• Greg Nickels, former mayor of Seattle (2002–2010) (Democrat) ^[16]
• Charles Royer, former mayor of Seattle (1978–1989) (Independent) ^[17]
• Wesley C. Uhlman, former mayor of Seattle (1969–1978) (Democrat) ^[16]

Seattle city councilmembers

• Richard Conlin, former Seattle City Councilmember (1998–2014) (Democrat) ^[18]

Judges

• Bobbe Bridge, former Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court ^[19]
• Phil Talmadge, former Associate Justice of the Washington Supreme Court (Democrat) ^[19]
• Ronald Cox, former Presiding Chief Judge of the Washington Court of Appeals ^[19]
• Ann Schindler, former Presiding Chief Judge of the Washington Court of Appeals ^[19]
• Bruce Hilyer, former Presiding Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Laura Inveen, former Presiding Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Sharon Armstrong, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Greg Canova, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Terrence Carroll, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• John Erlick, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Deborah Fleck, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Michael Heavey, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• J. Kathleen Learned, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Barbara Linde, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Nicole MacInnes, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Barbara Mack, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• George Mattson, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Richard McDermott, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Jeffrey M. Ramsdell, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Palmer Robinson, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Carol Schapira, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Mariane Spearman, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Julie Spector, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Jay White, former Judge of the King County Superior Court ^[19]
• Kimi Kondo, former Presiding Judge of the Seattle Municipal Court ^[19]
• Ed McKenna, former Presiding Judge of the Seattle Municipal Court ^[19]
• Judith Montgomery Hightower, former Judge of the Seattle Municipal Court ^[19]

Local officeholders

• Chris Bayley, former King County Prosecuting Attorney (1971–1979) ^[11]
• Mark Sidran, former Seattle City Attorney (1990–2002) (Democrat) ^[18]

Organizations

• Seattle Building and Construction Trades Council ^[20]

Media

• The Seattle Times ^[21]

Individuals

• Scott Lindsay, former Public Safety Advisor for Seattle mayor Ed Murray and candidate for Seattle City Attorney in 2017 ^[22]

Nicole Thomas-Kennedy

State legislators

• Rebecca Saldaña, State Senator (District 37) ^[18]
• Kirsten Harris-Talley, State Representative (District 37) ^[23]

Mayors

• Michael McGinn, former mayor of Seattle (2010–2013) ^[24]

Seattle city councilmembers

• Tammy Morales, Seattle City Councilmember (District 2) ^[25]
• Teresa Mosqueda, Seattle City Councilmember (District 8) ^[25]
• Mike O'Brien, former Seattle City Councilmember (2010–2020) ^[26]

Local officeholders

• Girmay Zahilay, King County Councilmember (District 2) ^[20]

Organizations

• Fuse Washington ^[27]
• IUPAT DC 5 ^[28]
• Joint Council of Teamsters No. 28 ^[29]
• Martin Luther King. Jr. County Labor Council ^[30]
• Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates ^[31]
• Seattle Democratic Socialists of America ^[32]
• Seattle Indivisible ^[33]
• SEIU 775 ^[34]
• SEIU 925 ^[35]
• SEIU 1199NW ^[36]
• UFCW 21 ^[37]

Media

• The Stranger ^{[38] [39]}
• The Urbanist ^[40]
• Seattle Medium ^[41]
• The Daily of the University of Washington ^[42]

Individuals

• Cary Moon, co-founder of the People's Waterfront Coalition and candidate for mayor in 2017 ^[24]

Campaign finance

Candidate totals raised are as of filings on or before November 2, 2021, and totals spent reflect expenditures up to October 25, 2021. Independent expenditures are up-to-date as of filings on or before November 1, 2021.

Candidate	Campaign committee		Independent expenditure		References
	Raised	Spent	For	Against
Ann Davison	$439,216.26	$370,194.11	$9,930.34	$14,000.00	[43] [44] [45] [46]
Nicole Thomas-Kennedy	$428,408.98	$348,061.48	$1,176.29	$425,462.86	[47] [48] [49] [50] [51] [52] [53] [54] [55] [56]

Polling

Graphical summary

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size [b]	Margin of error	Ann Davison	Nicole Thomas-Kennedy	Other	Undecided
Change Research (D) [57] [A]	October 12–15, 2021	617 (LV)	± 4.1%	43%	24%	2% [d]	30%
Strategies 360 (D) [58]	September 13–16, 2021	450 (RV)	± 4.6%	19%	16%	–	65%
		287 (LV)	± 5.8%	26%	19%	–	55%
Elway Research [59]	September 7–9, 2021	400 (LV)	± 5.0%	26%	22%	8% [e]	45%

Results

General election results ^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Nonpartisan	Ann Davison	132,638	51.49
	Nonpartisan	Nicole Thomas-Kennedy	122,947	47.73
	Write-in		2,004	0.78
Total votes			257,589	100.00

Notes

1. Some districts also include precincts outside of Seattle.
2. Key:
   A – all adults
   RV – registered voters
   LV – likely voters
   V – unclear
3. "Would not vote" with 4%
4. "Would not vote" with 2%
5. "Neither One" And "No Opinion" with 4%

Partisan clients

1. Poll sponsored by the Northwest Progressive Institute

References

1. "Election Results – November 02, 2021" (PDF). King County Elections. November 2, 2021. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
2. Brunner, Jim; Gutman, David (August 6, 2021). "Pete Holmes concedes Seattle city attorney race; Thomas-Kennedy, Davison will face off in November". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
3. Johnson, Gene (October 20, 2021). "Abolitionist or Republican? Stark choice in Seattle race". Associated Press. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
4. Bowman, Nick (September 28, 2021). "Seattle city attorney candidate: Abolitionist platform is about 'scaling back and building up'". MyNorthwest.com. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
5. Bowman, Nick (June 4, 2021). "Race for Seattle City Attorney draws pair of last-minute challengers". MyNorthwest.com. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
6. "Steve Fortney drops out of City Attorney race". Northwest Asian Weekly. May 27, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
7. Beekman, Daniel (July 15, 2021). "Endorsements roll in for Seattle mayoral, council races". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
8. "City attorney election in Seattle, Washington (August 3, 2021, top-two primary)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
9. "Seattle's 'Great Reset' — Holmes announces bid for fourth term as City Attorney". Capitol Hill Seattle Blog. February 9, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
10. Brunner, Jim (July 29, 2021). "City Attorney Pete Holmes worries he'll get squeezed out in tight 3-way Seattle primary". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
11. Takahama, Elise (July 22, 2021). "Former public defender, arbitrator challenge 3-term incumbent Pete Holmes in Seattle city attorney race". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
12. Kroman, David (August 6, 2021). "Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes concedes primary election". Crosscut. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
13. Villeneuve, Andrew (July 16, 2021). "A three-way race for Seattle City Attorney: Pete Holmes barely ahead of two challengers". The Cascadia Advocate.
14. "Official Final Election Results, updated 8/17/2021" (PDF). King County Elections. August 17, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
15. Brunner, Jim [@Jim_Brunner] (September 28, 2021). "Inbox: Former Govs Chris Gregoire and Gary Locke endorse Ann Davison @NeighborsForAnn for Seattle City Attorney, criticizing rival Nicole Thomas-Kennedy's @ntkallday abolitionist stance #waelex" (Tweet). Retrieved September 28, 2021– via Twitter.
16. Brunner, Jim (October 23, 2021). "Abolish prosecutions? Crack down on misdemeanors? How Seattle city attorney rivals would wield authority". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
17. Kroman, David (October 6, 2021). "Seattle city attorney's race: A stark choice marks the 2021 ballot". Crosscut. Retrieved October 6, 2021.
18. Beekman, Daniel (October 27, 2021). "Endorsements stack up as Seattle voters weigh candidates for mayor, city attorney and City Council". The Seattle Times. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
19. Kroman, David [@KromanDavid] (October 7, 2021). "Inbox: A long list of retired judges comes out in support of Ann Davison for city attorney. Some had already made their preferences known, some are new" (Tweet). Retrieved October 7, 2021– via Twitter.
20. "City attorney election in Seattle, Washington (2021)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
21. "The Times recommends: Ann Davison for Seattle city attorney". The Seattle Times. July 15, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
22. Lindsay, Scott (October 15, 2021). "Seattle's city attorney race and the problem of repeat offenders". Crosscut. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
23. Fowler, Lilly Ana (October 21, 2021). "Two Seattle candidates reflect rise of abolitionism in U.S. politics". KNKX. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
24. Bowman, Nick (August 9, 2021). "With 12-year incumbent out, tectonic changes are on the way for Seattle City Attorney's office". MyNorthwest.com. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
25. Radil, Amy (October 7, 2021). "Stark differences on crime electrify race for Seattle city attorney". KUOW. Retrieved October 7, 2021.
26. Robertson, Kipp (October 19, 2021). "Seattle City Attorney's race is a tale of two extremes". KING 5. Retrieved October 19, 2021.
27. "City of Seattle Voter Guide". Fuse Progressive Voters Guide. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
28. "2021 Washington State Endorsements". IUPAT DC 5. October 14, 2021. Archived from the original on November 1, 2021. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
29. "2021 Endorsements" (PDF). Joint Council of Teamsters No. 28. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
30. "2021 MLK Labor Endorsements". MLK Labor. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
31. "Washington Candidate Endorsements". Planned Parenthood Action. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
32. "Seattle Democratic Socialists of America endorses Nicole Thomas-Kennedy for City Attorney". Seattle Democratic Socialists of America. September 20, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
33. "Seattle Indivisible Endorses: Gonzalez for Mayor, Mosqueda and Oliver for City Council, & Thomas-Kennedy for City Attorney". Seattle Indivisible. October 11, 2021. Retrieved October 11, 2021.
34. "2021 Washington Election Endorsements". SEIU 775. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
35. "Our 2021 Endorsements". SEIU 925. August 5, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
36. "2021 Endorsements". SEIU 1199NW. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
37. "endorsements". UFCW 21. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
38. "The Stranger's Endorsements for the August 3, 2021, Primary Election". The Stranger. July 14, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
39. "The Stranger's Endorsements for the November 2, 2021, General Election". The Stranger. October 13, 2021. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
40. "The Urbanist's 2021 General Endorsements". The Urbanist. September 20, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
41. "The Seattle Medium's 2021 General Election Political Endorsements". The Seattle Medium. October 27, 2021. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
42. "OPINION: 2021 King County general election endorsements". The Daily of the University of Washington. October 18, 2021. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
43. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 11/2/2021 11:39:14 AM by Jason Michaud". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. November 2, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
44. "Special Report of Independent Expenditures filed 7/28/2021 2:55:52 PM by seec staff". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. July 28, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
45. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/8/2021 to 10/16/2021 filed 10/16/2021 11:50:01 AM by Jay Petterson". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 16, 2021. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
46. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/26/2021 to 11/1/2021 filed 11/1/2021 2:49:28 PM by Jay Petterson". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. November 1, 2021. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
47. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 10/26/2021 10:41:32 PM by Andy Lo". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
48. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 7/13/2021 to 7/26/2021 filed 8/27/2021 4:57:35 PM by Leticia Ocampo Villamar". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. August 27, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
49. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 7/27/2021 to 8/31/2021 filed 9/9/2021 3:44:11 PM by Leticia Ocampo Villamar". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. September 9, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2021.
50. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 9/1/2021 to 10/11/2021 filed 10/12/2021 3:31:04 PM by phillloyd". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 12, 2021. Retrieved October 12, 2021.
51. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 10/26/2021 7:33:26 PM by Alice Lockhart". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
52. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 10/26/2021 9:49:48 AM by phillloyd". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
53. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 10/26/2021 3:18:24 PM by Leticia Ocampo Villamar". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
54. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/12/2021 to 10/25/2021 filed 10/26/2021 4:46:16 PM by Courtney Normand". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 26, 2021. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
55. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/26/2021 to 11/30/2021 filed 10/28/2021 9:06:47 AM by phillloyd". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
56. "Full Summary Report (C4) - 10/26/2021 to 11/30/2021 filed 10/28/2021 2:30:20 PM by Alice Lockhart". Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 28, 2021.
57. Change Research (D)
58. Strategies 360 (D)
59. Elway Research

External links

Official campaign websites

• Ann Davison for Seattle City Attorney
• Pete Holmes for Seattle City Attorney
• Nicole Thomas-Kennedy for Seattle City Attorney Archived September 15, 2021, at the Wayback Machine