(The Center Square) - Just a little over six months in office, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is testing her political power.
The mayor, a self-proclaimed Democratic socialist, has bucked political norms by endorsing left-wing challengers against two veteran incumbent liberal Democrats in the Washington Legislature in the Aug. 4 primaries.
Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, who represents the 43rd District in Seattle, and Representative Gary Pollet, who represents the 46th District also in Seattle, label themselves as progressives in support of affordable housing, taxing corporate interests, and fighting for the common man.
In fact, Pedersen is one of the most prominent legislators in Olympia. As Senate Majority Leader, he spearheaded the new tax on millionaires through the state Senate earlier this year.
He touted the tax on his campaign website, noting the successful effort for the state’s first-ever millionaire income tax.
But the Wilson-backed candidate, Hannah Sabio-Howell, who is trying to unseat Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, and Ron Davis, who is challenging veteran Representative Gerry Pollet, promise more political action from the left side of the spectrum.
Their political agenda, with key goals of more taxes on corporations, aims to push the state Democratic Party even further to the left.
“Two of these candidates are running against incumbents who have served in the Legislature for many years,” Wilson said in a statement. “There is strong pressure for elected officials to endorse fellow incumbents. It’s a way of maintaining relationships, part of the quid pro quo of governing. I understand this, but it’s not the way I want to do politics.”
Wilson did not respond to additional requests for comment.
Wilson, a former organizer for better transit and renters' rights, beat the odds-makers who said it was impossible for her to defeat then-Mayor Bruce Harnell last November.
Wilson edged a narrow victory, and the August primary will be a test of her political strength to see if her endorsements carry any weight.
None of the candidates responded to requests for interviews from The Center Square.
Davis, a former tech entrepreneur, promises on his campaign website to tax the rich even more than the millionaire's tax, which places an income tax on residents who make more than $1 million annual.
"It's time to tax the rich to pay for the public goods we all deserve," he says.
Davis wants a corporate payroll tax, a corporate profits tax and the reinstatement of the estate tax rates that the legislature cut earlier this year.
He also wants to freeze the rent in publicly owned buildings, build affordable housing at scale, strengthen renter protections, and tighten rules to prevent landlords from evicting tenants. His most ambitious housing goal is to build 1.2 million homes over 20 years.
Davis said he will also prioritize free child care and fast transit.
Pollet also pushes for affordable housing. He says he fought Trump in the state legislature by passing legislation to ban federal immigration agents from wearing masks. He also champions abortion rights.
In a statement, Pollet dismissed Davis as “a tech-bro dilettante” who has spent the past three years since he lost a City Council race “carping on his blog about city policies and raising PAC money for Katie Wilson.”
Pollet is a faculty member at the University of Washington School of Public Health and the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, where he teaches public health policy and environmental health.
On her campaign website, Sabio-Howell thanks Wilson for her endorsement.
"She ran on a platform about making Seattle a city that working people can afford to build good lives in, and that’s exactly our campaign’s vision too," she said. "As renters, as organizers, we know what the crisis of affordability feels like because we live it and we know what it takes to fight against the ultra-wealthy interests that created it."
She supports Pedersen’s millionaires tax, which could be eliminated by the voters next November in a ballot referendum.
Sabio-Howell, whose background is as a community organizer, said she supports more taxes on corporate interests. She calls for establishing the Well Washington Fund and taxing large corporations to support healthcare access, higher education, and fighting for a corporate income tax on mega corporations.
Davis, like Sabio-Howell, is putting strong emphasis on the Wilson endorsement, hoping it will sway voters.
He displays a Wilson endorsement letter on his website that portrays the former tech entrepreneur as an agent of change.
“Voters are feeling a warranted frustration with the status quo, and I believe (Ron) can help us to chart the way forward," Wilson said.
