The Metropolitan King County Council,the legislative body of King County,Washington,consists of nine members elected by district. The Council adopts laws,sets policy,and holds final approval over the budget. Its current name and structure is the result of a merger of King County and the Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle,better known as Metro,which was a federated county-city structure responsible for water quality and public transportation.
The Seattle City Council is the legislative body of the city of Seattle,Washington. The Council consists of nine members serving four-year terms,seven of which are elected by electoral districts and two of which are elected in citywide at-large positions;all elections are non-partisan. It has the responsibility of approving the city's budget,and passes all legislation related to the city's police,firefighting,parks,libraries,and electricity,water supply,solid waste,and drainage utilities. (The mayor of Seattle is not considered part of council.)
Bruce Allen Harrell is an American politician and attorney serving as the 57th and current mayor of Seattle,Washington. He was a member of the Seattle City Council from 2008 to 2020. From 2016 to 2020,he was president of the city council. He was acting mayor of Seattle from September 13 to 18,2017. He was elected mayor in his own right in the 2021 Seattle mayoral election,becoming the city's second Black mayor,and its first African-Asian American mayor.
Timothy L. Burgess is an American journalist and politician from Seattle,Washington. He was a member of the Seattle City Council from 2007 to 2017,and served as Mayor of Seattle for 71 days in late 2017. Prior to his political career,Burgess was a radio journalist and Seattle Police Department (SPD) officer.
Sally G. Bagshaw is an American politician and former member of the Seattle City Council from 2016–2019. Before being elected to city council,she had been the chief civil deputy prosecutor in the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office for eight years under Norm Maleng.
Michael J. O'Brien is an American politician and former member of the Seattle City Council who represented District 6 in northwest Seattle. He was first elected in 2009 to a different,city-wide council seat. He was the leading proponent of the opt-out list for the Yellow Pages. He was the only opponent of the proposed deep bore tunnel under downtown Seattle on the city council. He was chair of the local chapter of the Sierra Club before running for office. In this capacity,he was one of the leading opponents of the 2007 Roads and Transit ballot measure.
Kshama Sawant is an Indian-American politician and economist who served on the Seattle City Council from 2014 to 2024. She was a member of Socialist Alternative,the first and only member of the party to date to be elected to public office.
Teresa Carmen Mosqueda is an American politician and labor activist from Seattle,Washington. She is a member of the King County Council and has represented District 8 since 2024. Mosqueda was a member of the Seattle City Council from 2017 to 2023,in at-large position 8.
Maria Lorena González is an American lawyer and former politician who was a member of the Seattle City Council from position 9. She was the first Latino elected to the council. She was a candidate for mayor of Seattle in 2021 but was defeated by Bruce Harrell 59 percent to 41 percent.
Robert M. Johnson is an American politician. He served on the Seattle City Council representing the fourth district,covering northeast Seattle and the area around the University of Washington,from 2016 until his resignation in April 2019.
The 2017 Seattle mayoral election was held on November 7,2017. It was won by former U.S. Attorney Jenny Durkan,who beat civic activist Cary Moon in the general election by 15 percentage points. The two candidates had advanced from an earlier primary election held in August,which ensured that Seattle would have its first female mayor since Bertha Knight Landes was elected in 1926. Municipal elections are officially nonpartisan though most candidates have declared party affiliations.
Tammy Janine Morales is an American politician from Seattle,Washington. She was elected to represent District 2 on the Seattle City Council in November 2019.
Girmay Hadish Zahilay is an American politician and lawyer who is a member of the King County Council from District 2 in Seattle,Washington. He was elected in 2019,defeating longtime incumbent Larry Gossett.
Andrew Joseph Lewis is an American politician and attorney who served as a member of the Seattle City Council from District 7. He was an assistant city attorney before his election to city council and worked on political campaigns.
Alex C. Pedersen is an American politician and former member of the Seattle City Council. He represented Seattle's District 4,which includes Wallingford,the University District,and Sand Point,from November 2019 until completing his term of office in December 2023. Previously,Pedersen was an aide to city councilmember Tim Burgess and a private sector housing finance analyst.
The 2021 Seattle mayoral election was held on November 2,2021,to elect the Mayor of Seattle. It was won by former Seattle City Council President Bruce Harrell,who defeated then-current President Lorena González;both candidates had advanced from a nonpartisan primary election on August 3.
The 2019 Seattle City Council election was held on November 5,2019. Seven seats of the nine-member Seattle City Council were up for election. Four incumbent members of the city council did not run for reelection,while the remaining three incumbents all won reelection.
The 2021 Seattle City Council election were held on November 2,2021. Two seats of the nine-member Seattle City Council were up for election.
Sara E. Nelson is an American businesswoman and politician serving as a member of the Seattle City Council from Position 9. A member of the Democratic Party,she defeated Nikkita Oliver in the 2021 election. On January 2,2024,the city council voted unanimously to appoint her City Council President upon the retirement of Debora Juarez.
Heidi Wills is an American former politician who was a member of the Seattle City Council from 2000 to 2004. In 2019,she ran for city council in District 7 but lost in the general election.
