Got Ballot?

Seattle friends, please consider voting for these people for Seattle School Board. The Board is coming into a time of shrinking enrollment, a new governance system that weakens the Board oversight and closing schools.

D1 - DEBBIE CARLSEN (the incumbent, Liza Rankin, talks a good game but she sides with staff most of the time; she is not an effective leader). Debbie is bright and would bring non-profit experience and diversity to the Board.

D2 - Hard to say because of the lackluster campaigns from both candidates (there are only 2 so they were not in the primary). The incumbent, Lisa Rivera Smith, is bright but easily cowed and this is a time for strength. Her opponent, Christina Posten, is a former SPS principal/teacher, very bright but also somewhat scattered.

If I were voting, it would be a reluctant vote for Lisa Rivera Smith.

D3 - VOTE FOR BEN GITENSTEIN. He is a fantastic choice - bright, knowledgeable, with leadership skills in place. His opponent, Evan Briggs, does not know the district and is an acolyte for the person currently holding this position, Chandra Hampson. This is the same Hampson who sued the district over an independent investigation finding that she harassed, bullied and intimidated two senior staffers. Anyone aligned with Hampson is not to be trusted.

VOTE BEN!

D6 - You don't really have a choice here as the leading candidate, GINA TOPP received nearly 80% of the primary vote. She works in King County and is very bright and thoughtful. That said, she's a dark horse in terms of what she thinks about SPS. She has a "I want to be a team player" attitude which is great but we need people who will stand up and be counted (when it counts).

Comments

Anonymous said…
"bright but easily cowed" is such an apt description of Lisa Rivera Smith.

Seattle voter
10/22/23, 11:29 AM
Anonymous said…
I'm not super excited about any of the candidates, to be honest--but I just DO NOT understand the support and endorsements for Evan Briggs. She clearly has no relevant experience or qualifications to potentially oversee a large district like SPS while the other candidates all have some form of experience within larger institutions/organizations. And I get that she's gonna be championed by Chandra Hampson supporters, but I still don't understand the reasons for all this fawning endorsements from places like Progressive Voters Guide and The Stranger. I must admit I'm pretty concerned that the general voting public who do not have personal stakes in SPS or follow SPS-related education issues/debates (progressive and young but childless voters, for example) will simply assume that she's got the "right" kind of politics and vote for Briggs regardless.

--Another SPS Voter
10/22/23, 3:12 PM
Amanda F said…
I think the Progressive Voters Guide largely follows the views of its "partners". So if the Stranger and another source like one candidate, that's whom they're going to recommend. The Stranger likes a certain type of progressive candidate--one who will talk a lot about DEI, and who was for extended school closures. They have a very particular view of SPS, especially in the last few years.
10/23/23, 6:04 AM
HowzIt Going said…
The Stranger and Progressive Voters guide are running the district into the ground. Ignore their recommendations!
10/23/23, 9:00 AM
Anonymous said…
Agree Amanda, and shame on a town that “follows the science” and other such ideological drivel. At this point incumbents need to prove why, over the last four disastrous years, they have earned the right to stay at the table.

Next
10/23/23, 9:07 AM
Anonymous said…
the only thing i want to know is candidates position on school closures, which isn't mentioned.
10/27/23, 6:34 PM
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