Katie Wilson Bio, Career, Family, Education, Party, Mayor of Seattle

… We cannot tackle the major challenges facing our city unless we do it together.” “But it also means that we all have a collective responsibility for this city and for each other. “When I say this is your city, that means you have a right to be here and to live a dignified life — whatever your background, whatever your income,” Wilson said. “I feel very good about the future of this country and this city still,” he said. Later-arriving votes, which historically trend more liberal, broke heavily in Wilson’s favor, adding to a progressive shift to the left nationally. But Washington conducts all-mail elections, with ballots postmarked by Election Day.

In 1890, Seattle adopted a Freeholders charter that allowed for two-year mayoral terms. As such, the mayoral office turned over frequently. Seattle mayoral history falls into three distinct eras, each defined by the city charter.

During Brown’s second term, voters rejected a measure that would implement a city manager position. He was re-elected in March 1924 and began a second term on June 2, 1924. Following re-election, he began his third term on March 20, 1916.

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Wilson does not own a car and primarily rides public transit to get around Seattle with her daughter. She also supported increasing zoning for houses and public housing to tackle high rents, along with banning algorithmic price fixing and “junk fees” in rent costs. Wilson also proposed fare-free transit in Seattle following the adoption of fare-free policy by Olympia-based Intercity Transit in 2020. Similarly, as mayor, she opposed the expansion of Police surveillance cameras around the city with the exeception of world cup sites. As mayor, she stopped a city-wide rollout of the Microsoft Copilot AI chatbot to city employees that started under her predessor. She was ceremonially sworn into office on January 2, 2026, with local transit union leader Pauline Van Senus administering the oath of office.

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A new Freeholders Charter in 1946 changed the mayoral term from two years to four years. He regained public trust with a pro-labor campaign and began a second term on June 1, 1936. When she took office on June 7, 1926, Landes became the first woman mayor of a large American city.

• Wilson, 43, is a democratic socialist who had never held elected office.
• However, six weeks before completing her degree, she made the bold decision to leave Oxford and move to Seattle in 2004—a city whose progressive culture aligned with her values.
• Mayors were initially prohibited from holding consecutive two-year terms, but that restriction was removed in 1896.
• In 2011, she co-founded the Transit Riders Union (TRU), a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving Seattle’s transit system and fighting for the rights of low-income and working-class residents.

On March 8, 1910, Seattle voters adopted a charter amendment to establish nonpartisan nominations and elections for all city-wide elected positions. With the passage of the Freeholders Charter of 1890, the mayoral term was expanded to two years. Smith, who was re-elected for a second term as mayor the following year, was a strong supporter of the Library Association.

A new Freeholders Charter in 1946 lengthened the mayoral term to four years, and incumbents could seek re-election without term limits. The 1869 city charter called for mayoral terms of only one year. She founded the small nonprofit Transit Riders Union in 2011 and has led campaigns for better public transportation, higher minimum wages, stronger renter protections and more affordable housing. The lesser-known Wilson, a democratic socialist, ran a campaign that echoed some of the themes of progressive mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani in New York. Her campaign earned endorsements from local Democratic organisations and unions backing transit equity, affordable housing, and renter protections.

Wilson, 43, is a democratic socialist who had never held elected office. Before becoming mayor, he served 14 years on the King County Council. Nickels finished third in the primary election on August 1xbet mobile app 18, 2009, as he vied for a third term.