43rd District Democrats endorse ‘Tax the Rich’ upstart over ‘Millionaire Tax’ veteran state senator

Last week’s 43rd candidates forum at First Baptist

The core political organization of Washington’s 43rd District representing a swath centered from Capitol Hill to the University District threw its support behind the “Tax the Rich,” worker-focused upstart and turned on its most experienced leader Tuesday night.

The 43rd District Democrats voted to endorse labor leader Hannah Sabio-Howell in the meeting over State Sen. Jamie Pedersen, the current Majority Leader in the Washington State Senate, an architect of the Millionaires Tax, and a veteran lawmaker who has been part of 43rd District leadership for twenty years.

Tuesday’s vote followed a 43rd candidates forum last week on First Hill. The 43rd’s incumbents for the state House of Representatives have the support of district Dems with housing champion Rep. Nicole Macri facing a long-shot challenger and Rep. Shaun Scott’s time at the forum turned into a Q&A session as the Democratic socialist is running unopposed.

Sabio-Howell and Pedersen’s debate, on the other hand, drew spirited attention with cheers and a few whistles along the way.

“I’m running for state senate here in the 43rd Legislative District because I believe in a Washington where we could build our lives affordably,” Sabio-Howell said at one point. “The crisis of affordability is something that hasn’t been addressed by status quo leadership.”

Though Sabio-Howell’s answers about specific policies last week broke no new ground — she would, she said, push  “things that have been on the table that didn’t make it to the finish line” like expanding capital gains tax or close loopholes in the state’s B&O tax — Pedersen was forced to spend most of his time in the forum answering the blows to his decades of work in Olympia.

His messages of middle of the road stability apparently fell flat with the 43rd Dems group that has grown increasingly progressive — and more diverse and younger — in the years coming out of the pandemic.

“I’ve been proud to be in the middle of the middle housing bill, the transit-oriented development bill. It’s a balance always to try to decide how far we’re going to go,” Pedersen said at last week’s forum. “The reality is we’ve got to get 50 votes and 25 votes and the support of the governor.”

Sabio-Howell, meanwhile, is putting Pedersen — and the state’s core Democratic leadership — on notice that messages about layoffs and cutbacks over the state’s budget crisis are not welcome and a sign that embedded structures need change.

“A regressive tax code has meant that we as working people are asked to tighten our belts to absorb cuts to our social services while the biggest and wealthiest corporations in our state get wealthier and wealthier,” she said.

Sabio-Howell is a First Hill resident who most recently served as the communications director for Working Washington, a labor advocacy and workers’ rights non-profit organization. She has also previously worked for the Washington State Legislature as a legislative assistant and communications specialist for various state representatives and senators.

Sabio-Howell has described herself as a progressive community organizer running for the Washington Senate on a platform centered on ending corporate political influence and establishing services like universal childcare. Having spent years organizing alongside underpaid gig workers and agricultural laborers, she says she is championing aggressive housing reform and structural tax code overhauls to address the region’s deepening affordability crisis.

Pedersen lives with his family on Capitol Hill and is an experienced legislator first elected in 2007 who has represented Seattle’s 43rd District in the State Senate since 2014 and currently serves as the Senate Majority Leader. A champion for LGBTQ+ rights and progressive fiscal policy, he relies on his long track record of delivering milestone legislation such as the state’s capital gains tax and landmark gun safety measures to advocate for collaborative, systemic solutions to the state’s challenges.

Pedersen serves as the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for McKinstry, a Seattle-based construction, engineering, and energy-efficiency firm.

CHS reported here on the background of the unusual political tussle in the 43rd.

Sabio-Howell told CHS she believes the 43rd District needs a “fighter” who will act with urgency to address the affordability crisis. While acknowledging Pedersen’s 20-year legacy including marriage equality, and the capital gains tax, Sabio-Howell says Pedersen’s approach is too slow for the current pace of change and too influenced by corporate interests.

“Washington State could be the best place in the nation to build a life, but right now, particularly in the 43rd District, people can’t afford it,” Sabio–Howell told us in March.

Pedersen, meanwhile, says his experience and leadership is still needed in Olympia.

“I’m 57 — I’m not 80. I worked like crazy to get the job the first time, and I’m happy to do that again if I need to,” Pedersen told CHS. “I can just tell you 100%, we would not be passing a millionaires tax this year without my leadership because the other people who could potentially lead the chamber… that is not a risk that they would take.”

The endorsement of the 43rd District Democrats could be vital headed into what will likely be a low turnout August primary. Pedersen’s 20 years in Olympia and strong support in the city’s core Democratic donor class and among older LGBTQ communities and business owners is still be a major challenge to overcome.

Sabio-Howell will have help. Rep. Scott and Pedersen’s challenger are political allies and organized a “Tax the Rich” forum last summer.

Macri, meanwhile, has endorsed Pedersen — as have a phalanx of Democratic stalwarts including Gov. Bob Ferguson.

The summer primary is August 4th.

For more information about Sabio-Howell’s campaign, visit hannahforwashington.com.

For more about Pedersen, visit ppeopleforpedersen.org.

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