After spending an estimated $400,000 of money largely from enthusiasts outside Seattle, self-proclaimed Trotskyist and Seattle City Council incumbent Kshama Sawant garnered 49.9% of the votes in a 5-candidate primary race in the returns released on election night, with Pamela Banks, her strongest challenger, trailing at 35.3%. These results will be updated over the next few days as King County Elections counts more ballots. Despite Sawant’s huge expenditure, the turnout was low. This may bode well for Banks. Assuming the 49.9% represents a maximum of Sawant loyalists, the Trotskyite may have maxed out her vote. The votes for other candidates, Beach and Hearne, will likely go to Banks. This means the November election will depend on Banks’ ability to get voter turnout. MONEY!
The other big story for Seattle last night is that aging incumbent Jean Godden may be on the way out, as she’s in third place after the first ballot drop. But Ms. Godden is close enough to Michael Maddux that late-counted returns might get her into the runoff.
Image: Iran, which prints a lot of counterfeit American money, likes Sawant so much they’re putting her on the U.S. $15 bill.
MONEY and TURNOUT will be the issues in November. The turnout will be much higher. Of course people will not be on vacation, but the ballot has several hot issues starting with the nearly $1 billion Move Seattle property tax levy. The billion dollar measure is a 250% increase over the current $361 million Bridging the Gap levy. The current levy, which has not fixed many streets it promised to fix, will likely be a focus for the debate between Sawant (who thinks “tax the rich” is policy) and the more thoughtful Banks.
The other election measure likely to affect the Sawant-Banks race is the proposed $30 million levy for taxpayer financing of vouchers for City Council elections. Although this seems like a natural in a race between the left-liberal candidates, this system would be a huge strike against efforts like Sawant’s to bring huge amounts of outside money into a local race. The argument that her campaign is supported by “the people” … that is national unions … is going to come up against the argument that the Kochs or a local billionaire can easily buy a council race.
Finally, Tim Eyman is back with Initiative 1366. This state-wide initiative would require a 2/3 vote of of both houses to raise revenue or close tax loopholes. The result would be a huge hole in the state budget, creating a constitutional crisis over school funding.
IT S THE MONEY!
“self-proclaimed Trotskyite”
Nope, still not true, but is endearing to see you use a term of derision that wouldn’t have been out of place coming from the Communist Party of old. The term you are looking for is trotskyist, by the way, but hey who cares about fact checking when there’s a good smear to be had?
“Assuming the 49.9% represents a maximum of Sawant loyalists, the Trotskyite may have maxed out her vote.” You’re kidding yourself, right? Do me a favour, look up how it went down last election. Sawant increased by some 15 percentage points between the primary and the general and a good chunk of those were late voters…yet you think first ballot drop of the primary represents the upper cap? You go on believing that if you want, but you might be dissapointed very very soon.
“The argument that her campaign is supported by “the people” … that is national unions … ” Do me a favour and look up Sawants donors. Yes, some of them are Union Locals, buut….she also has the highest number of single contributors and a low average. But I get it, facts are hard. And so are jokes apparently, or, to give you the benefit of the doubt, I assume that Iran jab was a joke.
Dear Anonymous,
So you do not like the term Trostkyite??? And I am painting the woman who calls herself a Troskist or a Troskyist because there is a distinction others might want to know? Really? Pray tell, what that might be?
Frankly, I have no cat in that fight any more than I care about whether Rand Paul is a rationalist or an objectivist. Rather I suspect she is a slogan wielding demagogue who would not understand dialectical materialism if Hegel came to her in a dream and whispered into her ear. Her sopyhmoric writings as shown on
yourGoldy’s website are hardly reassuirng that she is an intelelctual (or even a well read economist).Is there an official lexicon for the terms Trotskyist, Trotskyistsa, Trotskyite??? That said, I aware that amongst the various schisms of Bolshevism there are many favors. I do seem to remember listening to radicalss duing the Vietnam war trying tyo explain these subtleties as they were explaiing the beficience of Mao vs Stalin or Stalin vs Tito or Marcuse vs Freud???
I am certain you can use the internet but just in case you cannot
Trotskyism Merriam Webster
noun Trots·ky·ism \ˈträt-skē-ˌi-zəm, ˈtrȯt-\
Definition of TROTSKYISM
: the political, economic, and social principles advocated by Trotsky; especially : the theory and practice of communism developed by or associated with Trotsky and usually including adherence to the concept of worldwide revolution as opposed to socialism in one country
Troskyite (Fee Distionary)
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun 1. Trotskyite – radicals who support Trotsky’s theory that socialism must be established throughout the world by continuing revolutionTrotskyite – radicals who support Trotsky’s theory that socialism must be established throughout the world by continuing revolution
Trotskyist, Trot
radical – a person who has radical ideas or opinions
As for your spin on Sawant’s financing .. at $50 per vote this is pretty impressive! You, not I cited the unions .. I said nothing about who back east or elsewhere provided this inordinate amnount of money .. What I see is that only 16% of Swanat’s donord come from her district.
No doubt you can cook that potato in your favorite saute, but I believe in simpler food … destrict elections ought to be funded by folks who the district or at worst in Seattle. National unions???? Realy???
Of course
youand Sawant are FOS when you claim that Pam Banks or Rod Hearne are getting (their much smaller) bankrolls from Megacorp. You can read the city website too.Oh, while we are at it, you do seem to have trouble with jokes. How long have you had this problem? Is it a mild form of PTSD after withdrawal from your verbal combat days as a writer?
Well, I can’t take the full responsibility for the joke you liked so mush.
. The idea for the $15 bill wasn’t mine. Though I did think it was a pretty cute thought by one of my co editors, I think I saw some of these floating around amongst the red shirts. I doubt that Iran would do it .. not even Kinko’s. Maybe she is printing money on her Canon Pixma so she can pay her vills after govong away all but a $40.000 salary?
I hope she is not using a city machine!
“The term you are looking for is trotskyist …” Fine, I fixed it, but I retained the capital “T” because the word derives from the name of a person other than e. e. cummings.
Update: After the Wednesday and Thursday ballot count releases by King County Elections, Sawant now has 51.8% of the vote, and Maddux has opene up a 4.8% lead over Godden for the second spot on the November ballot in the Pos. 4 race, so Godden’s council tenure appears to be over.