Seattle council member has backed away from police defunding

It's a terrible year to be running as an incumbent for City Council in Seattle, where private polling shows the body has a favorability rating in the low 20% range, according to City Hall insider Tim Ceis.

The city is in a very different place than it was three years ago at the peak of the "defund the police" movement in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. At the time, incumbents Andrew Lewis, Tammy Morales and Dan Strauss signaled support to halve the police budget.

That proved unpopular and was among the factors that led to the 2021 electoral successes of Mayor Bruce Harrell, City Attorney Ann Davison and at-large City Councilmember Sara Nelson.

Ceis, a former deputy mayor and now a partner at CBE Strategic, said in an interview that some council incumbents face less blowback than others as the next election nears.

https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2023/06/01/seattle-city-council-election-police-defunding.html