# 2021 Seattle mayoral election

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The 2021 Seattle mayoral election was held on November 2, 2021, to elect the Mayor of Seattle. It was won by former Seattle City Council President Bruce Harrell, who defeated then-current President Lorena González; both candidates had advanced from a nonpartisan primary election on August 3.
Incumbent mayor Jenny Durkan initially sought reelection to a second term in office in February 2020, but withdrew that December due to backlash from her handling of the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic in Seattle as well as the Capitol Hill Occupied Protest during the George Floyd protests.
Harrell held a 24-point lead over González when she conceded on November 4; his margin of victory was the largest of a non-incumbent candidate in a Seattle mayoral race since the 1969 election of Wesley C. Uhlman. Harrell took over as mayor on January 1, 2022, having previously held the position as acting mayor for five days in September 2017 upon the resignation of Ed Murray; due to a spike in COVID-19 cases, he was sworn in privately the prior week and held a small inauguration ceremony on January 4.
The 2021 election was the first in which mayoral candidates were eligible to use Seattle's democracy vouchers program, which has captured the interest of other cities.

## Primary election
### Candidates
#### Declared

* Clinton Bliss, medical doctor and small business owner
* Henry Dennison, rail worker and candidate for Governor in 2020
* James Donaldson, activist, former Seattle SuperSonics player, and candidate for mayor in 2009
* Colleen Echohawk, executive director of the Chief Seattle Club
* Jessyn Farrell, state representative for the 46th district (2013–2017), candidate for mayor in 2017
* Lorena González, president of the Seattle City Council (2020–present), at-large city council-member (2015–present)
* Bruce Harrell, former acting mayor (2017), former president of the Seattle City Council (2016–2020), former city council-member (2008–2016; 2016–2020), candidate for mayor in 2013
* Andrew Grant Houston, renter, small business owner, and activist
* Arthur K. Langlie, businessman and grandson of former mayor of Seattle and governor of Washington Arthur B. Langlie
* Stan Lippman, disbarred attorney and perennial candidate
* Don L. Rivers, King County Metro worker
* Lance Randall, executive director of Southeast Effective Development Seattle
* Casey Sixkiller, deputy mayor of Seattle
* Omari Tahir-Garrett, activist and candidate for Seattle City Council District 2 in 2019
* Bobby Tucker, author

#### Withdrew

* Jenny Durkan, incumbent mayor

#### Declined

* Gordon McHenry Jr., president and CEO of the United Way of King County
* Cary Moon, activist, urban planner, and runner-up for mayor in 2017
* Teresa Mosqueda, city councillor (endorsed Lorena Gonzalez)
* Joe Nguyen, state senator (running for King County Executive)
* Nikkita Oliver, Attorney, community activist and candidate for mayor in 2017 (running for Seattle City Council)
* Rebecca Saldaña, state senator (endorsed Lorena Gonzalez)
* Girmay Zahilay, member of the King County Council

### Endorsements

Mayors
* Mike McGinn, former mayor of Seattle
Seattle city councilmembers
* Sally Bagshaw, former Seattle city councilmember
* Sally Clark, former Seattle city councilmember
* Dan Strauss (co-endorsement with Jessyn Farrell)
Organizations
* Young Democrats at the University of Washington
* Washington Stonewall Democrats
Statewide officeholders
* Hilary Franz, Commissioner of Public Lands
State legislators
* David Hackney, State Representative (District 11)
* Brady Pinero Walkinshaw, CEO of Grist, former state representative, and general election-advanced candidate for Washington's 7th congressional district in 2016
* Cindy Ryu, State Representative (District 32)
* Gerry Pollet, State Representative (District 46)
* Strom Peterson, State Representative (District 21)
* June Robinson, State Senator (District 38)
Seattle city councilmembers
* Dan Strauss (co-endorsement with Colleen Echohawk)
Federal officeholders
* Julian Castro, former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, former mayor of San Antonio, Texas, and candidate for President of the United States in 2020
* Pramila Jayapal, U.S. Representative from Washington's 7th congressional district
* Bernie Sanders, U.S. Senator from Vermont, former candidate for President of the United States in 2020
* Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, former candidate for President of the United States in 2020
State senators
* Rebecca Saldaña, State Senator (District 37)
State Representatives
* Liz Berry, State Representative (District 36)
* Nicole Macri, State Representative (District 43)
* Kirsten Harris-Talley, State Representative (District 37)
Seattle city councilmembers
* Lisa Herbold, Seattle City Council member (District 1)
* Andrew Lewis, Seattle City Council member (District 7)
* Tammy Morales, Seattle City Council member (District 2)
* Teresa Mosqueda, Seattle City Council member (District 8)
* Mike O'Brien, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
* Jim Street, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
Individuals
* Jorge Barón, executive director of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project
Organizations
* Latino Victory Fund
* UFCW21
* Working Families Party
Media
* The Stranger
Federal officeholders
* Gary Locke, former United States Secretary of Commerce, former governor of Washington
* Marilyn Strickland, U.S. Representative from Washington's 10th congressional district
* Adam Smith, U.S. Representative from Washington's 9th congressional district
State legislators
* Steve Bergquist, State Representative (District 11)
* Reuven Carlyle, State Senator (District 36)
* Jamie Pedersen, State Senator (District 43)
* Jesse Salomon, State Senator (District 32)
* Sharon Tomiko Santos, State Representative (District 37)
Seattle city councilmembers
* David Della, former Seattle City Council member (District 7)
* Jan Drago, former Seattle City Council and King County Councilmember (District 4)
* Abel Pacheco, former Seattle City Council member (District 4)
* Tom Rasmussen, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
Mayors
* Norm Rice, former mayor of Seattle
* Wes Uhlman, former mayor of Seattle
Organizations
* Washington Technology Industry Association
Media
* The Seattle Times
Federal officeholders
* Derek Kilmer, U.S. Representative from Washington's 6th congressional district
* Neighborhoods for Smart Streets
* Seattle Chamber of Commerce

### Polling

Graphical summary
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Colleen Echohawk | Jessyn Farrell | Lorena González | Bruce Harrell | Andrew Grant Houston | Casey Sixkiller | Other | Undecided |
| Change Research (D) | July 12–15, 2021 | 617 (LV) | ± 4.3% | 10% | 6% | 12% | 20% | 6% | 4% | 9% | 32% |
| Washington Research Group (D) | July 13–14, 2021 | 524 (LV) | ± 4.3% | 5% | 4% | 8% | 17% | 4% | 3% | 5% | 55% |
| ALG Research (D) | May 10–16, 2021 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 7% | 7% | 11% | 23% | 3% | 5% | 3% | 41% |
| GQR Research (D) | March 23–28, 2021 | 400 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 9% | 6% | 19% | 20% | – | – | 8% | 38% |

### Forum

2021 Seattle mayoral candidate forum :
| No. | Date | Host | Moderator | Link | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan |
| Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | | | | | | |
| Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Colleen Echohawk | Lorena González | Bruce Harrell | Arthur Langlie | Lance Randall | Casey Sixkiller |
| 1 | Jun. 29, 2021 | Downtown Seattle Association | Chris Daniels Essex Porter | YouTube | P | P | P | P | P | P |

### Results

By August 6, Echohawk, Farrell, and Houston had all conceded, and Harrell and González were viewed as the winners of the primary.
Nonpartisan primary results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Bruce Harrell | Bruce Harrell | 69,612 | 34.00 |
| Lorena González | Lorena González | 65,750 | 32.11 |
| Colleen Echohawk | Colleen Echohawk | 21,042 | 10.28 |
| Jessyn Farrell | Jessyn Farrell | 14,931 | 7.29 |
| Arthur Langlie | Arthur Langlie | 11,372 | 5.55 |
| Casey Sixkiller | Casey Sixkiller | 6,918 | 3.38 |
| Andrew Grant Houston | Andrew Grant Houston | 5,485 | 2.68 |
| James Donaldson | James Donaldson | 3,219 | 1.57 |
| Lance Randall | Lance Randall | 2,804 | 1.37 |
| Clinton Bliss | Clinton Bliss | 1,618 | 0.79 |
| Omari Tahir-Garrett | Omari Tahir-Garrett | 391 | 0.19 |
| Bobby Tucker | Bobby Tucker | 377 | 0.18 |
| Henry Dennison | Henry Dennison | 347 | 0.17 |
| Stan Lippmann | Stan Lippmann | 323 | 0.16 |
| Don Rivers | Don Rivers | 189 | 0.09 |
| Write-in | Write-in | 386 | 0.19 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 206,814 | 100.00 |

## General election
### Candidates

* Lorena González, city council president
* Bruce Harrell, former city council president

### Endorsements

Endorsements in bold were made after the primary election.
Federal officeholders
* Julian Castro, former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, former mayor of San Antonio, Texas, and candidate for President of the United States in 2020
* Pramila Jayapal, U.S. Representative from Washington's 7th congressional district
* Bernie Sanders, U.S. Senator from Vermont, candidate for President of the United States in 2016 and 2020
* Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, candidate for President of the United States in 2020
State senators
* Rebecca Saldaña, State Senator (District 37)
State Representatives
* Liz Berry, State Representative (District 36)
* Nicole Macri, State Representative (District 43)
* Kirsten Harris-Talley, State Representative (District 37)
Mayors
* Mike McGinn, former mayor of Seattle
Seattle city councilmembers
* Lisa Herbold, Seattle City Council member (District 1)
* Andrew Lewis, Seattle City Council member (District 7)
* Tammy Morales, Seattle City Council member (District 2)
* Teresa Mosqueda, Seattle City Council member (District 8)
* Dan Strauss, Seattle City Council member (District 6)
* Mike O'Brien, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
* Jim Street, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
Individuals
* Jorge Barón, executive director of the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project
Organizations
* Latino Victory Fund
* UFCW 21
Media
* The Stranger
Federal officeholders
* Gary Locke, former United States Secretary of Commerce, former governor of Washington
* Marilyn Strickland, U.S. Representative from Washington's 10th congressional district
* Adam Smith, U.S. Representative from Washington's 6th congressional district
State legislators
* Steve Bergquist, State Representative (District 11)
* Reuven Carlyle, State Senator (District 36)
* Jessyn Farrell, former State Representative and candidate for Mayor of Seattle in 2017 and 2021
* Jesse Salomon, State Senator (District 32)
* Cindy Ryu, State Representative (District 32)
* Sharon Tomiko Santos, State Representative (District 37)
* Steve Bergquist, State Representative (District 37)
* Jamie Pedersen, State Senator (District 43)
Seattle city councilmembers
* David Della, former Seattle City Council member (District 7)
* Jan Drago, former Seattle City Council and King County Councilmember (District 4)
* Abel Pacheco, former Seattle City Council member (District 4)
* Tom Rasmussen, former Seattle City Council member (District 6)
Mayors
* Norm Rice, former mayor of Seattle
* Wes Uhlman, former mayor of Seattle
* Charles Royer, former mayor of Seattle
Organizations
* Washington Technology Industry Association
* Washington State Council of County and City Employees
* IAFF Local 27 (Firefighters Union)
Media
* The Seattle Times

### Polling

Graphical summary
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Lorena González | Bruce Harrell | Other | Undecided |
| Change Research (D) | October 12–15, 2021 | 617 (LV) | ± 4.1% | 32% | 48% | 2% | 18% |
| Strategies 360 (D) | September 13–16, 2021 | 450 (RV) | ± 4.6% | 33% | 40% | – | 27% |
| Strategies 360 (D) | September 13–16, 2021 | 287 (LV) | ± 5.8% | 37% | 48% | – | 15% |
| GQR Research (D) | September 11–14, 2021 | 400 (LV) | ± 4.9% | 45% | 45% | – | 10% |
| Elway Research | September 7–9, 2021 | 400 (LV) | ± 5.0% | 27% | 42% | 7% | 24% |

### Debates

2021 Seattle mayoral debates :
| No. | Date | Host | Moderator | Link | Nonpartisan | Nonpartisan |
| Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | | |
| Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Key: P Participant  A Absent  N Not invited  I Invited W Withdrawn | Lorena González | Bruce Harrell |
| 1 | Oct. 14, 2021 | KCTS9 TVW Washington State Debate Coalition | Mary Nam | | P | P |
| 2 | Oct. 28, 2021 | KCTS9 TVW Washington State Debate Coalition | Essex Porter | YouTube | P | P |

### Results

General election results :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Bruce Harrell | Bruce Harrell | 155,294 | 58.56 |
| Lorena González | Lorena González | 109,132 | 41.15 |
| Write-in | Write-in | 777 | 0.29 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 265,203 | 100.00 |