🏁 Today’s the day…right?

Katie Wilson Now Leads Bruce Harrell by Less Than 100 Votes

As of Monday Night, the mayor’s race is on the thinnest of razor edges. Katie Wilson now leads Bruce Harrell by just 91 votes. It’s a pretty extraordinary comeback from just under a week ago, when she trailed Harrell by 8 points. [King County]

• An Insanely Close Election: With just 6400 ballots left to count, we could be talking as little as 2000 votes separating the candidates, which would automatically trigger a recount.
  • A machine recount is required when the difference between the top two candidates is less than 2,000 votes AND ALSO less than 1/2 of 1% of the total number of votes cast for both candidates.
  • A manual recount is required when the difference between the top two candidates is less than 150 votes AND ALSO less than 1/4 of 1% of the total votes cast for both candidates. [Washington Secretary of State]
• Please Make Sure Your Ballot Counted: The Stranger is reporting that nearly 2000 ballots (including nearly 500 for people 18-24!) are being challenged for signature-related reasons. Click here to make sure your ballot has been counted (I’ve done it twice!) [The Stranger]

🛬 Cancelled Flights At Sea-Tac Airport: The number of flight cancellations at SEA hit 57 on Monday and are expected to rise on Tuesday as the FAA continues to reduce flights owing to limited staffing during the (maybe soon to be over?) government shutdown. Check your flight status here, and also maybe take a look at this Seattle Times article about what to do if your flight is cancelled. [Seattle Times]

💵 The Government May Not Be Reopen (Yet), But You Can Use Your SNAP Benefits: Washington Governor Bob Ferguson said in a written statement Sunday that SNAP benefits are available and to use them if they are on your cards, despite a temporary pause issued by the Supreme Court. The government may reopen in a few days, which will mean the full funding of SNAP. [Seattle Times]

🎓 Federal Funding Cut For Migrant Education: The Trump administration is cutting funding for UW’s College Access Migrant Program, which sends recruiters to agricultural communities across the state to enroll students and support them during their first year. This news comes as community colleges and other institutions are seeing federal funding cuts and changes in fund distribution. [KUOW]

📷 Redmond Shuts Off Controversial Surveillance Cameras: Redmond has disconnected its Flock surveillance cameras after 3 ICE arrests occurred within a mile of one of the 25 devices. Flock cameras capture time and location stamped photos of passing vehicles, which are administered by a private company.

• This news comes after it was revealed in October that Border Patrol had searched the Flock Databases of Renton, Auburn, Lakewood, and Mukilteo, as well as 14 other towns across the state.
• In September, the Seattle City Council voted to expand use of video cameras by police, despite concerns from residents about abuse. [KUOW]

🏀 Rest In Peace Lenny Wilkens, Seattle Basketball Legend: Former SuperSonics player and coach Lenny Wilkens passed away at the age of 88 on Sunday. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a player and coach, one of only 5 people to achieve such an honor. [Seattle Times]

🥯 Looking For A Good Meal? Here’s a list of Seattle’s Best New Restaurants of 2025. I actually ate at Hey Bagel just yesterday and I can tell you: those are good bagels. [The Infatuation]