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Her platform closely mirrors other radical left figures such as New York’s Zohran Mamdani. Wilson has proposed government-run grocery stores and has declined to commit to clearing Seattle’s tent encampments, saying she would address them on a “case-by-case” basis. She has also pledged to “Trump-proof” the city.
Harrell, a fixture in Seattle politics since 2008, has repeatedly criticized Wilson’s lack of experience and questioned her ability to manage the city.
“She’s really not even qualified to do the job. She hasn’t had the experiences,” Harrell said before Election Day. “The fact of the matter is, while my opponent has ideas, she hasn’t done anything. She has no experience or training or ability to manage a budget.”
Harrell also slammed Wilson’s housing proposals, calling them unrealistic. He described her platform as “complaints with no solutions,” warning that the ideas simply “can’t be done in how she’s describing it.”
Wilson concedes she is “an outsider” without prior elected office, but insists she brings valuable “insider’s knowledge and experience.”
Her background is unorthodox. She heads the Transit Riders Union, a small nonprofit advocating higher minimum wages, affordable housing, and improved public transit. Previously, she held a variety of jobs, including barista, boatyard worker, baker, construction worker, lab technician, and legal assistant.
“These early experiences grounded her in the everyday realities of working people and shaped her lifelong commitment to improving people’s lives,” her campaign website states.
Originally from upstate New York, Wilson attended Oxford University to study physics and philosophy, funded by her parents. That financial support continues to this day. She told PubliCola that her parents “send me a check periodically to help with the childcare expenses,” with daycare running about $2,200 a month.
“Before I decided to run for office, my husband and I were just kind of juggling our kid back and forth,” Wilson said. “We didn’t have her in daycare because it’s so expensive. But then when I decided to run, we’re like, we really need childcare.”
According to tax filings, Wilson began earning a full-time salary from her nonprofit in 2019, making $72,669 in 2022 for 55 hours of work per week. She reported to the city that her income ranges between $60,000 and $99,000, in addition to less than $30,000 from freelance columns for various left-leaning outlets.
