City of Everett

Megan Dunn, the program director for the Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides, is running for re-election to Snohomish County Council from District 2. Prior to being elected to the council in 2019, Dunn led the successful effort to create districts for the Everett City Council and served on the Everett Community Streets Initiative Task Force, which helps address homelessness in downtown Everett.

Dunn ran in 2019 for Snohomish County Council to continue her work on community-building and environmental sustainability. She's met her campaign promises by using pandemic recovery funding for district organizations that are committed to helping neighbors - the Interfaith Family Shelter, Everett Recovery Café, and Madres de Casino Road's meal program.

She's focused on voting for policies that would best uplift people experiencing homelessness and poverty. Dunn was one of three council members who voted to convert two hotels into low-barrier shelters for people experiencing homelessness. She correctly noted that putting up barriers like drug testing would have put 20 million federal dollars at risk of being lost and likely would have prevented the shelter from being built. 

Dunn faces a challenge from Georgia Fisher, a precinct committee officer for the Snohomish County Republican Party and district chair for the 21st Legislative District Republicans. In addressing the opioid and drug epidemic, she wants to see more and more people arrested for addiction, sending more people in crisis to jail. Much of her campaign platform follows a familiar path for conservatives this year, with promises to support business and pour even more funds into police, rather than address the root causes of the community's issues. For reference, the county already spends over 75 percent of its $288.5 million general budget on police and the criminal legal system. 

If elected, Dunn will continue to advocate for those that need it most in the county. She is by far the best choice in this race.

Demi Chatters is a working mom and progressive activist running for Everett City Council, Position 6. She is a longtime Everett resident who has served on the Everett Planning Commission and Snohomish County Human Rights Commission. She also volunteers with organizations that center youth, Black, and LGBTQ+ communities.

Chatters' platform prioritizes housing stability, workers' rights, accessible green spaces, and a public safety approach that relies on social supports over policing. She points to several concrete ways she will work towards her goals, including increasing zoning for affordable middle housing options, requiring fair wage and working condition agreements on city-funded projects, increasing transit routes, creating mini-parks, and expanding the Community Outreach and Enforcement Team that allows social workers to respond to emergencies.

Chatters' leading opponent, conservative Scott Bader, was an obstacle to progress on important city reforms during his time on council. Bader supported inflating the police budget by $6 million while cutting funding for other social support programs that we know actually keep our communities housed and healthy.

The other two candidates, Brian Hennessy and Bill D. Wheeler Jr., do not appear to be running competitive campaigns as of early July. Wheeler Jr. is a conservative Republican who was convicted in 2014 and sentenced to three years in prison for sexually exploiting a minor who worked for his notorious "sexpresso" stand business.

Chatters has earned the support of many progressive leaders and organizations. Because of her community involvement, dedication to racial justice, and concrete plans for progress, she is by far the best choice for Everett City Council, Position 6.

Judith Martinez is challenging Judy Tuohy for the Position 7 seat on the Everett City Council. Martinez has worked for the Snohomish County Public Utility District for over six years to deliver Snohomish residents safe and reliable utilities. She is an IBEW Local 77 union member and an active community leader, volunteering with Everett Public Schools, the local Boys & Girls Club, and the Downtown Everett Association Flower Program. Martinez believes that as an immigrant and working mother with strong community ties, she represents an important voice for the council.

Martinez is running on a progressive and detailed platform to make Everett a more affordable, prosperous, and equitable place to live. If elected, she wants to strengthen the relationship between the council and residents through open communication, engagement, and accessibility. Her top policy priorities include creating more living wage jobs, addressing the housing crisis, and protecting our environment so that Everett is a safe place to live for generations to come. 

Martinez is the best choice for Everett City Council, Position 7 because of her impressive list of endorsements and broadly progressive platform.

Charles Adkins is running for Everett School Board in the Director-at-Large Position 5 seat. Adkins grew up on the Yurok Indian Reservation and remains an enrolled member of the nation today. There, he attended one of the last standing federally run Indian boarding schools, which existed to erase Indigenous culture and language. Adkins experienced homelessness as a child which eventually brought him to Cocoon House in Everett. Now, he works as a legislative policy analyst for the Tulalip tribes and previously served as the health policy director of the Children’s Alliance. He also holds a number of volunteer leadership roles in local community organizations and has served as a Democratic precinct committee officer.

Adkins’ extensive background in policy leadership and community advocacy, and his singular experience in an American public school, position him strongly to better the school district for all students. He has a detailed and exceptionally progressive platform with policy ideas such as partnerships between local youth homelessness resources and the school district, advocating for healthy and safe work environments for teachers and staff, and strengthening the relationships between Everett public schools and local tribes including through the curriculum. In this race, Adkins has been endorsed by an incomparable number of progressive leaders, community organizations, unions, and Democratic groups.

Adkins faces three challengers in this race: Janelle Burke, Roman Rewolinski, and Ryne Rohla. Janelle Burke runs the WakeUp SnoCo blog which hosts a variety of opinion pieces that range from critiquing the “fragility” of elected women to spotlighting community events. Despite boasting a more progressive-sounding campaign statement in the local voters guide, Burke serves as a precinct committee officer for the Republican party. She lacks a campaign website as of mid-July and has not demonstrated strong progressive and community leadership in this race.

Navy veteran and accountant Roman Rewolinski is a first-time candidate who has worked in biotech, finance, and professional services. He lacks community leadership experience and offers a thin platform that emphasizes fiscal decision-making without specific policy suggestions. Rewolinski’s notable endorsement in this race is from his former union.

Also in this race is Ryne Rohla, an economist in the Washington State Office of the Attorney General and professor in the subject at Washington State University. Rohla is running to invest in public education in order to improve economic mobility in our community. He wants to bring his expertise in economics to focus on raising competency scores for Everett students. Unfortunately, Rohla has not offered progressive solutions for helping all students achieve their greatest potential and seems to offer a less holistic approach to raising scores.

We recommend Charles Adkins in this race. His strong progressive values, policy expertise, and community relationships make him the best choice for Director-at-Large Position 5 on the Everett School Board.