Tuesday, August 1 is Washington’s Primary Election and we’re taking a look at some of what you can expect to see on the ballot.
The top two candidates in each race will advance to the November General Election.
Follow KIRO 7′s August Primary coverage
Ballot drop-offs end at 8 p.m. You can find drop boxes in King County, Pierce County, Snohomish County and Thurston County, or use the statewide drop box and voting centers map.
>>KIRO 7 will be on air with the first results at 8:30 p.m.
Seattle City Council
Seattle’s council will see a major upheaval, with voters sorting through more than 40 candidates. Seven of nine seats are in the hands of voters. Four current council members are not returning, so the council will be getting a facelift.
Council members not seeking reelection this year include Kshama Sawant, Alex Pedersen, Debora Juarez and Lisa Herbold.
Voters in Magnolia — depending on where they live — will have a new council member representing them.
New district maps, which were approved in November 2022, split Magnolia between two districts — 6 and 7.
King County Council
There are two open positions for the Metropolitan King County Council: District 4 and District 8.
In District 4, Jeanne Kohl-Welles, current King County council member and vice chair, will retire from her position after her term ends this year.
Competing for her open seat are Becka Johnson Poppe, Jorge L. Barón and Sarah Reyneveld.
In District 8, incumbent Joe McDermott is not running for another term.
Competing for his slot are Teresa Mosqueda, Sofia Aragon and the ever-present GoodSpaceGuy.
Tacoma City Council
Two positions are up for grabs, with eight candidates. In District 3, incumbent Keith Blocker isn’t running for reelection, leaving the field open to five candidates. Meanwhile, incumbent Kristina Walker is running for reelection to her at-large Position 8 seat.
Snohomish County Executive
Three people are running for Snohomish County Executive, including incumbent Dave Somers.
Somers is facing Republican County Chairman and Precinct Committee Officer Bob Hagglund and entrepreneur Christopher Garnett.
Bellingham Mayor
Six people are running for Bellingham Mayor, including incumbent Seth Fleetwood. Four of his challengers are on the ballot, while one, Joel Johnson, is running as a write-in candidate.
Fleetwood’s other four opponents are Kim Lund, Kristina Michele Martens, Mike McAuley, and Christopher J. McCoy.
Olympia Mayor
Dontae Payne, David Ross, and Desiree Toliver all seek to replace the incumbent, Mayor Cheryl Selby.
Selby did not run for reelection and instead is shifting her focus to being a community volunteer with either the Olympia Armory or the Inspire Olympia program.
Pierce County Fire Protection District No. 3
In the South Sound, West Pierce Fire & Rescue is hoping voters say yes to a replacement levy that funds a quarter of the department’s operating budget. The current maintenance and operations levy expires at the end of this year.
If not approved, staff may have to be cut, according to Fire Chief Jim Sharp.
He says staff cuts could potentially be dangerous, especially at this time of year. The department is fighting more brush fires this year than they did in all of last year.
The department, which serves about 150,000 people, is asking for $16.9 million each year until 2028.
Sharp says fire risks seem to be increasing every year.
“We see this as a continuing trend, we’ve seen this for several years now. If it had been one or two years, we would not have thought much about it, but each summer gets longer, hotter, drier, so it’s definitely something we have to plan for,” said Sharp.
In all, there are 11 fire levies in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.
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