Dear UAW Member,
From Monday (3/25) through Wednesday (3/27) Local 4121 members will have the opportunity to vote in our straw poll for one of the candidates running for Seattle City Council in District 4. This District includes an especially high proportion of UAW 4121 members, and so this is an exciting opportunity to elect a candidate who will represent us effectively. Each of the candidates are listed below, with links to their campaign websites.
You can also find more information about them, including questionnaires and video responses to questions submitted by UAW members here. Note that not all candidates responded to our invitation to submit a questionnaire and video.
Voting will take place online via email starting at 9:00 a.m. Monday and will end at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday. You will be sent an email with the subject line “Seattle City Council District 4 Straw Poll.”
The candidates who have declared for District 4 are:
Sasha Anderson: “I work in public service, currently with Big Brothers Big Sisters, where I direct a high school mentoring program. I am privileged to see first hand the intelligence, strength and potential of our city’s youth, and am dedicated to creating a just and more equitable Seattle for them. I believe that is attainable if we work together.”
Emily Myers: “As an executive board member of UAW4121 and a delegate to the King County Labor Council, I have experience fighting for workers to create a safer, more equitable workplace and better paying jobs. As a City Councilmember, I will support collective action of workers in all sectors in their fight for better working conditions and stronger contracts. As a leading voice in the #metooSTEM movement, I have fought sexual harassment in academia and built coalitions to empower women and gender minorities. From helping found the Seattle chapter of 500 Women Scientists to speaking truth to power within my own workplace, I’ve found opportunities to fight for equity in science and to get scientists engaged in collective action.”
Joshua Newman: “Although I wasn’t born and raised here, after 20 years, Seattle is where I’ve lived the longest. I arrived in 1999 to attend the University of Washington, and worked throughout college: as a lifeguard at the Bellevue Aquatic Center and the IMA; an engineering Research Assistant; and a beer and pretzel vendor at then-Safeco field. I swam for the Huskies, volunteered with WashPIRG, and was active in ASUW Student Senate and Hillel UW. I graduated in August 2003 with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering.”
Abel Pacheco: “As the Director of Strategic Engagement for the Washington MESA (Mathematics, Engineering, Science, Achievement) program within the Office of Minority Affairs & Diversity at the UW, I have successfully advocated to increase funding and opportunities for students of color across the state to engage in STEM education. I will continue to prioritize increasing access to opportunities for young people so they can thrive in our city.”
Alex Pedersen: “Alex, the former legislative aide to Tim Burgess, is committed to providing the residents of District 4 with responsive and effective leadership that is accountable to all our communities: Bryant, Belvedere Terrace, Cowen Park, Eastlake, Hawthorne Hills, Inverness, Laurelhurst, Magnuson Park, Maple Leaf, Ravenna, Ravenna Springs, Roosevelt, Sand Point, the U District, University Park, View Ridge, Wallingford, Wedgwood, and Windermere.”
Shaun Scott: “I’m running to represent Seattle City Council District 4 because I have a vision for Seattle that is rooted in addressing and alleviating the conditions of our most vulnerable residents. As a former student at the University of Washington, a renter in District 4, and a labor organizer with the Campaign Workers Guild, I’m intimately familiar with how struggles for affordable housing and economic justice weigh on the residents of our district. Join me in making Seattle a fair city. Let’s create a future for us all.”
Heidi Stuber: “As an experienced Businesswoman, I know what it takes to tackle big problems and enact real solutions. I’ve lived in Seattle for 16 years and as a single mother of an autistic child, I also know firsthand the struggles to live and thrive in this city. Everyone deserves to live without worrying about where they are going to sleep at night or how to put food on the table. We have a responsibility to our neighbors to ensure safe, quality housing; make Seattle more affordable for families, seniors, and the middle-class; and safeguard our schools and environment for generations to come.“
Cathy Tuttle: “I have been active in the Seattle community and District 4 since the 1980s, when I started work on community justice and environmental issues. While finishing my PhD in urban design and planning at the University of Washington in the 90s, I volunteered with Richard Conlin in writing his sustainable communities report. I also staffed the Planning Commission and read all 37 neighborhood plans so I could help local people shape their hopes and ideas into practical built projects. I took another job working for the city at Seattle Parks, where I managed multi-million dollar budgets, led community meetings, and built teams of staff, artists, and consultants for 40 parks and community centers. Parks and streets, land use and transportation, sustainable communities, and public space continue to be my main area of policy expertise.”
