Elections
In 2017,Mosqueda ran for the open at-large District 8 position on the Seattle city council after incumbent Tim Burgess announced he would not seek reelection,later becoming interim mayor of Seattle. [4] In the August primary,she came in first against seven other challengers,earning 31% of the vote,with affordable housing activist Jon Grant also advancing to the general with 26%. [7] [8] Both Mosqueda and Grant ran as progressives,with Mosqueda running as an "insider" and was endorsed by labor unions and the Young Democrats of King County,while Grant was running as an "outsider" and endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America and Socialist city council member Kshama Sawant. [9]
In the November general election,Mosqueda defeated Grant,60% to 40%. [10] She immediately took office once the election was certified due to the vacancy left by Burgess. [11]
In 2021,Mosqueda announced that she would seek reelection and not run in the Mayor election. [12] She faced ten challengers in the primary election,significantly our raising all of them and received more endorsements from elected leaders and labor unions. [13] In the August primary election,Mosqueda came in first with 59% of the vote,and structural engineer Kenneth Wilson also advancing to the general with 16% of the vote. [14] [15] Mosqueda focused her campaign on addressing economic inequalities in Seattle,while Wilson focused on fixing major infrastructure like bridges. [16]
In the November general election,Mosqueda defeated Wilson in a landslide,59% to 40%. [17]
Tenure
In her first year on council,Mosqueda passed legislation to protect domestic workers and voted no on repealing the controversial Seattle head tax,which was meant to build affordable housing and pay for homelessness services. [18] During her first term she also led the push legislation that would give parents access to paid family leave care benefits after the death of a child and if a partner dies during childbirth. [19] Mosqueda was the prime sponsor of the JumpStart tax,which is a payroll tax on large businesses and funds affordable housing and Green New Deal policies. [20]
During the 2020 George Floyd protests,Mosqueda,as budget chair,called for a "full,thorough,simultaneous deep dive" into the Seattle Police budget. [21] She also called for 50% cuts into the police budget and reinvest the money into the community. [21] At the end of 2020,Mosqueda and the majority of the council blocked MayorJenny Durkan proposal to increase the SPD budget to cover overtime costs and voted to ensure "out-of-order" layoffs happen in the department. [22]
Mosqueda remained budget chair in her second term during the 2023-24 budget process,with a $141 million deficit and an $82 million revenue shortfall. [23] Mosqueda's budget proposal,which passed with amendments,included eliminating 80 vacant positions at SPD and not funding Mayor Bruce Harrell's policy proposals,like the Shotspotter program. [24] [25]
On January 2,2024,Mosqueda resigned from the Seattle City Council after being elected to the King County Council. [26]
