Seattle Mayor-elect Katie Wilson has unveiled her full 60-member transition team, a diverse coalition that includes campaign supporters of outgoing Mayor Bruce Harrell as well as longtime business advocates, signaling her intention to govern through broad-based collaboration rather than partisan exclusivity.
Wilson had previously announced a five-member core transition leadership team that included a pair of City Hall veterans with extensive municipal government experience. The expanded group now announced is tasked with developing policy recommendations for the first-time elected official who will assume office in January.
“I’m a coalition builder, that’s how I ran my campaign, and that’s how I’ll govern,” Wilson stated in a press release announcing the complete transition team composition.
The transition team has been organized into seven distinct policy areas focused on specific aspects of city governance:
- Housing Affordability & Community Needs
- Economic Development & Workers Rights
- Transportation & Environment
- Arts, Culture & Creative Economy
- Civic Narrative & Major Initiatives
- Standing Up for Our Values
- Public Safety, Parks & Wellbeing
“I don’t expect everyone on the transition team to agree with me on every issue, and it doesn’t matter who they supported in the election,” Wilson continued in her statement. “I have sought out their input and invited them to join my transition team because being a successful mayor means being a mayor for everyone,” she added, emphasizing her commitment to inclusive governance despite her democratic socialist political identity.
Wilson, a self-described socialist, has assembled a team that includes Downtown Seattle Association President Jon Scholes, Seattle Kraken Senior Vice President Mari Horita, former University of Washington President Ana Mari Cauce, Community Roots Housing CEO Colleen Echohawk, and SODO Business Improvement Area Executive Director Erin Goodman, representing establishment institutions alongside progressive advocates.
Multiple students will also advise the transition process, including ASUW Vice President Sonal Virk from the University of Washington, reflecting Wilson’s emphasis on incorporating youth perspectives into policy development.
The transition team is expected to outline short-term, medium-term, and long-term priorities for Wilson’s administration. The positions are unpaid volunteer roles, with participants contributing expertise and perspectives without financial compensation. Wilson will be sworn in as Seattle’s mayor in January.
The Housing Affordability & Community Needs policy area will be co-led by Colleen Echohawk, CEO of Community Roots Housing, and Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association. Policy area members include Cate Bridenstine, Executive Director of Imagine Institute; Alvertis Brooks Jr., Executive Director of Rainier Valley Community Development Fund; Gregory Davis, Managing Strategist at Rainier Beach Action Coalition; Alison Eisinger, Executive Director of the Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness; and Nakita Venus, Executive Director of Seattle’s LGBTQ+ Center.
The Economic Development & Workers Rights policy area will be co-led by Richard de Sam Lazaro, Senior Director of Government Affairs at Expedia, and Corina Yballa, Political Director of MLK Labor. Policy area members include Jeanie Chunn, Founder of Seattle Restaurants United; Arif Gursel, Founder and Executive Director of The Union; Toshiko Hasegawa, Commissioner at the Port of Seattle; Joe Mizrahi from UFCW 3000 who serves on the Seattle School Board; and Terrance Stevenson, Director of the SeaCiti Initiative at WTIA.
The Transportation & Environment policy area will be co-led by Shemona Moreno, Executive Director of 350 Seattle, and Anna Zivarts, Program Director of the Disability Mobility Initiative. Policy area members include Lowell Bander from 9Zero Climate Innovation Hub; Lindsay Goes Behind, Chief Impact Officer at Seattle Foundation; Lee Lambert, Executive Director of Cascade Bicycle Club; Paulina Lopez, Executive Director of Duwamish River Community Coalition; and Gordon Padelford, Executive Director of Seattle Neighborhood Greenways.
