Cascadia today: Progressives pounce in primary + OB gyns flee Idaho + a novel about God & sex
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Progressives post strong showing in Seattle primary results
In a stunning showing, progressive community activist Katie Wilson was leading incumbent mayor Bruce Harrell 46 percent to 45 percent in early returns last night. Because votes tend break more liberal in later returns, it was very strong showing for the general secretary of the Transit Rider Union. “Bruce Harrell is doing a bad job,” Wilson told her supporters over loud cheers. “We’re going to fix that in November.”
I reported on the results for PubliCola.
The night went badly for Harrell and his centrist city council – with pro-police city council member Sara Nelson well behind nonprofit leader Dionne Foster, 53% to 39%. In District 2, in the city's south end, attorney Eddie Lin will face the mayor's favored candidate, Adonis Duckworth. Republican city attorney Ann Davison also had a poor showing, with Erika Evans, a former US prosecutor, leading the tough-on-crime incumbent 51% to 37%. The Stranger has more results, including the expected showdown for King County Executive in November, with Girmay Zahilay leading Claudia Balducci by 10 points.
Washington State Standard has the rundown on some key races in the state legislature, which went well for appointed Democrats. Tacoma Weekly has the results from Tacoma municipal elections, with pro-transit, urbanist candidate Anders Ibsen leading the race for mayor, and likely facing John Hines, though several other candidates aren't far behind. In Spokane's position 3 city council race, incumbent Zack Zappone will likely face Christopher Savage in the fall.
The Seattle results seems to indicate the conservative, public-safety-focused backlash that swept city politics four years ago is over. In addition, voters in Seattle renewed the city's innovative democracy voucher program 56% to 44%, continuing a program that allows voters to help fund candidates' campaigns with public dollars. Katie Wilson's campaign manager, Alex Gallo Brown, told me at last night's election party on Beacon Hill that the vouchers were a key part of Wilson's strong showing in the primary.
"We were able to raise thousands of dollars from everyday people without having to make those phone calls," Brown said.
Third of OB-gyns have left Idaho after abortion ban
OPB reports that Idaho's 2022 ban on abortion has had another terrible affect on women's health: more than a third of the state's OB-gyn doctors have left the state. Truthout has more on the exodus, which is having a profound negative effect on gynecological care in Idaho, especially for older women.
“Idaho is digging a physician workforce hole that will take years, if not decades, to fill,” – Susie Keller, CEO of the Idaho Medical Association.
BC farm workers need protection from heat
At the Tyee, two academics at the University of Victoria argue that British Columbia isn't doing enough to protect the province's farmworkers from extreme heat, which gets worse each year in the climate crisis. Among the suggested new rules would be simple, clear limits on when temperatures are too hot to work.
Jon Raymond on God & Sex
The Portland Mercury reviews Portland novelist and screenwriter Jon Raymond's new novel, God and Sex, which is about – well, God and sex... and also trees . There's also a bit about New Age spirituality and some rather detailed scenes of fucking, apparently. Raymond will discuss his new book at an event at Powell's City of Books in Portland at 7 pm Thurs Aug 14.
--Andrew Engelson
