SPECIAL ELECTION – DECEMBER 7, 2021
Third District Recall Forum, Soapbox and Questions
In most years we would have completed our election events. This year we will have an additional election to determine whether Third City Council District City Councilmember Kshama Sawant should be recalled and removed from office. This is the only issue on this Special Election Ballot. King County Elections is scheduled to distribute the ballots around November 17th, . Completed ballots are due on December 7th.
We have two events scheduled for consideration of this issue, both in the Mount Baker Room, on Zoom and Channels 370 and 371.
Tuesday, November 16th at 7:30 p.m. – Third District City Council Recall Forum
The Forum will be a moderated event, with representatives of the Recall Sawant Committee and the Kshama Solidarity Committee. The event will include opening statements, rebuttals, a set of questions solicited from Skyline Residents, and closing statements from the committees.
Wednesday, November 17th at 3:00 p.m. – Skyline Soapbox – Third City Council District Recall
The Skyline Soapbox will be similar to past Soapbox events. As it is a single issue, not a collection of candidates and ballot issues, each resident will have up to three minutes to express their views on whether Councilmember Sawant should or should not be recalled and removed from office.
Background:
The question on the ballot is not simply a matter of a re-do of the election. It is a determination by the voters as to whether Councilmember Kshama Sawant should be removed, but should she be removed for cause. The State Supreme Court has concluded that the voters should decide whether Councilmember Sawant actually committed one or more of the three acts listed below, and if so, were the actions sufficiently egregious as to warrant removal from office. The three alleged acts are:
1. Use of City Resources To Support a Ballot Initiative and Failure To Comply with Public Disclosure Requirements Related to Such Support.
2. Disregarding State Orders Related to COVID-19 and Endangering the Safety of City Workers and Other Individuals by Admitting Hundreds of People into City Hall on June 9, 2020, When It Was Closed to the Public.
3. Leading a Protest March to Mayor Jenny Durkan’s Private Residence, the Location of Which Councilmember Sawant Knows Is Protected under Confidentiality Laws.
Request for Questions
The organizing committee would appreciate any questions you feel should be asked of the committees at the candidate forum which address the allegations above. In making this request we ask that you confine your questions to how to determine whether Councilmember Sawant committed these actions, and whether they warrant removal from office. This forum is not about the Councilmember’s political philosophy, legislative record, or future political agenda.
Please send your questions by email to jimsanders@gmail.com, or leave hard copy in Skybox 202 by Friday, October 29th.