The Seattle City Council will vote next Tuesday on legislation to expand the City’s existing civil rights protections to include people in consensually non-monogamous relationships. Some may roll their eyes or make a clumsy joke comparing the whole ordeal to a Portlandia sketch (yes, Portland already has an ordinance protecting poly people), but the personal testimonies from non-mongamous Seattlites gave greater understanding of how this simple addition will deliver massive

The University of Washington wants to crackdown on protest, pushing changes to the Student Code of Conduct that would trump up punishment for students that cover their faces or are merely present when someone else damages property. Initially, UW tried to sneak these new rules through while most students were away for summer break. But after backlash, implementation will have to wait until after the faculty senate can review the new changes. To combat the crackdown, students w

Washington’s most groan-inducing Democratic member of Congress crossed party lines this week to support an amendment condemning socialism, clearly in response to the Democratic Socialists of America’s rise in popularity. No one should be shocked that Gluesenkamp Perez signaled her moderate virtue in yet another time-wasting resolution to finger wag the left. But what’s possibly more controversial is the fact that voting “yes” on this resolution is also a vote urging the enac

Uber Eats will pay more than $4.3 million to over 14,000 gig workers for allegedly violating Seattle’s App-Based Worker Minimum Payment Ordinance thanks to the enforcement of Seattle’s Office of Labor Standards (OLS). The settlement highlights the vital role OLS plays in protecting vulnerable workers, but it’s just a drop in the bucket compared to the tens of millions OLS has recouped for Seattle workers in its decade of existence. And as City Hall stares down a difficult bud

Earlier this year, Washington State House Representatives Melanie Morgan (D-Tacoma) and Amy Walen (D-Kirkland) crossed party lines to oppose the signature progressive legislation of the session: the Millionaire’s Tax. Now, they’re facing the consequences of voting like Republicans in their blue districts. As of Friday’s ballot drop, both Morgan and Walen are behind their progressive challengers, Tacoma small business owner Krista Perez and Redmond City Council Member Jessica

Right wingers are losing what’s left of their lead-paint-infected minds over the Seattle City Council allocating a measly $300,000 to LGBTQ+ organizations grappling with an influx of trans and queer people who are fleeing their hostile hometowns for solace in Seattle. Some made an argument in public comment that dedicating dollars to the trans refugee surge amounts to a waste of taxpayer money. But their issue is not fiscal responsibility— if it were, they would be coming to

The Seattle City Council voted 8-0 to pass Mayor Katie Wilson’s rental junk fee ban, legislation that codifies what fees landlords can impose, mandates upfront transparency, and bans any charges not explicitly permitted. To the relief of tenant advocates, the council also completely rejected amendments to water the legislation down. But not only is this a win for Seattle’s renter majority, it is a win for the Mayor, especially coming off a few particularly nasty public spats

At their 2pm Tuesday meeting, the Seattle City Council will vote on Mayor Katie Wilson’s junk fee ban, an ordinance that lays out what landlords can charge for, mandates upfront transparency for those charges, and bans anything not explicitly permitted in that list. The legislation can pass as is — it earned five votes in committee — but there’s a chance the council waters down the bill with amendments to cap “pet rent” instead of outright banning it and to allow landlords to

Seattle City Council President Joy Hollingsworth passed an amendment to the supplemental budget redirecting $250,000 in unused funding, originally set aside for an unrealized surveillance camera expansion, to pay for Community Violence Interruption ambassadors from We Deliver Care (WDC). Hollingsworth, a supporter of last year's controversial surveillance expansion, is, through this amendment, acknowledging reality: The mayor will not use all of the surveillance funding the c

The 2026 election could be another “change” election with younger challengers aiming to unseat longtime incumbents in several State legislative races around Seattle. But these young, scrappy candidates will likely have their best shot if their peers make it to the ballot box. And so far, per usual, older voters make up the vast majority of ballots in King County boxes. As of 1pm Monday, King County voters 65 years old and older have cast four times as many ballots as voters u