🏙️ Who is our next mayor?

The Mayor’s Race Still Needs To Be Called, and It’s Gonna Be Close!
As of 5pm Thursday, Nov. 6, Katie Wilson has gained some ground with 46.9%. Bruce Harrell still leads with 52.64%.

Wilson needs about 54% of outstanding ballots to win, according to PubliCola. It’s a big gap to fill, but not impossible and has happened before! A Wilson win would add to the progressive push across the Puget Sound and the entire country. It’s sounding like this race is going to take a while to get called. Settle in, Seattle.

Here’s what else hasn’t been called:

• King County Executive: Another nailbiter, but King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay is now leading Claudia Balducci by 4.6 percentage points. Girmay and Balducci work closely together and are largely aligned on policy and politics, so no surprise this race is close. If elected, Zahilay would be the first immigrant and refugee to lead the county. [Seattle Times]
• Seattle School Board:
  • District 7: Jen LaVallee and Carol Rava are 12 points apart, but the race has yet to be called.
  • District 2: Remains too tight to call with Kathleen Smith holding the lead over Sarah Clark.
• Here are our called races:
  • Seattle City Attorney: Erika Evans ✅
  • Seattle City Council:
    • Position 2: Eddie Lin ✅
    • Position 8: Alexis Mercedes Rinck ✅
    • Position 9: Dionne Foster ✅
  • Seattle School Board:
    • District 4: Joe Mizrahi ✅
    • District 5: Vivian Song ✅
  • Ballot Measures:
    • ✅ Proposition 1: Voters said yes to paying for the renewal of the Family, Education and Preschool Promise Levy to fund daycare, preschool and student health, and academic and safety support from kindergarten through senior year.
    • ✅ Proposition 2: Voters also said yes to changing the B&O tax rules so small businesses pay less, big businesses pay more, and the Seattle general fund earns more to fill gaps in our budget.
  • Seattle Taxes:
    • ✅ King County Proposition 1: Voters reapproved a six-year property tax levy to fund Medic One, the county-wide emergency medical service.
    • ✅ State Senate Joint Resolution 8201 WA Cares: Washington voted to amend the state constitution to allow the Long-Term Services and Supports Trust Fund (known as WA Cares), the public long-term care insurance program, to invest in the stock market.

Puget Sound is (Mostly) Pro-Housing: City Cast Seattle Contributor Ryan Packer has a piece about the pro-housing victories across the Puget Sound in Tacoma, Redmond, Burien, Woodinville, and Newcastle. [The Urbanist]

For Complete Election Results: Visit King County's election results page. Vote tallies will update daily as ballots are counted. Though, they’re currently not planning to count over the weekend.

And, Make Sure Your Vote Was Counted: King County has a handy tool for tracking your ballot, so double check that it was received, verified, and counted. Also, the Stranger is reporting that 1,794 ballots in Seattle need to be cured and they tell you exactly how to do it.

🛫 Air Travel Is About to Get (Even More) Frustrating: On Reddit, Commissioner Sam Cho has announced that SEA has been designated as one of the 40 airports that will restrict air traffic to alleviate the pressure on air traffic controllers who are tired and working without a paycheck. They plan to reduce flights by 10% over several days to allow airlines time to make changes. This is a result of the longest government shutdown in history and will result in flight cancellations. [Washington State Standard]

• Headed to the airport for a flight or to pick up a friend? Donations for TSA and ATC (who are working without pay) can be dropped off at the SEA Conference Center between 8am and 4pm. They’ll take non-perishable food, hygiene items, and diapers. [Reddit
• Thanksgiving travel will be impacted if the shutdown continues. At that point, air traffic controllers and TSA will have worked without pay for 8 weeks. Expect lots of calls outs and stressed out people. Maybe this is the year to pile into the car and make it a long drive! [KUOW]

🏫 Seattle Schools Have a New Superintendant: Benjamin Shuldiner has been announced as the new Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools. He is currently the superintendent of Lansing District Public Schools in Michigan. Shuldiner is described as a budgeting expert, which is helpful considering Seattle School’s $87 million shortfall. [Seattle Times]

💡 Feeling SAD? So Did the Guy Who Discovered It: Read this interesting profile of the psychiatrist who discovered SAD. His tips? Lights, exercise, and walks when the sun is out. [Washington Post]

☂️ Umbrellas? Maybe We Do Need ‘Em: The wettest day of the year has us asking if maybe we actually do need umbrellas?