Seattle Socialist Kshama Sawant announces bid against WA Rep. Adam Smith
The Brief
Kshama Sawant, former Seattle City Councilmember, announced her run for U.S. Congress against 30-year incumbent Adam Smith in Washington's 9th District.
Sawant criticizes Smith's support for military actions, labeling him a "warmonger," and highlights her advocacy for progressive policies like Seattle's $15 minimum wage.
The election is scheduled for November 3, 2026.
SEATTLE - Former socialist Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant announced Monday she is running for U.S. Congress against 30-year incumbent Adam Smith.
Sawant held a press conference Monday announcing her bid for Washington's 9th Congressional District, looking to unseat Adam Smith, who has represented the district in Congress since 1997. Smith has comfortably beaten every challenger in his last 15 elections, often by close to 100,000 votes.
Kshama Sawant is a socialist and served on the Seattle City Council from 2013 to 2023. Before that, she unsuccessfully ran for the Washington State House of Representatives in 2012 against Frank Chopp.
Sawant helped push through Seattle's minimum wage hike, which went up to $15 an hour in 2015. She also pushed for rent control, a "millionaires tax" and expanding public transit.
After announcing she would not seek reelection in 2023, Sawant turned her attention to the labor group Workers Strike Back, which she co-founded, with the goal of turning it into a national labor movement.
Adam Smith is the incumbent representative for Washington's 9th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Before then, Smith won two terms as a Washington State Senator in 1990 and 1994. Smith is a Democrat and is a ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Sawant is running against Smith, characterizing him as a "warmonger," and claims he "has never met a war that he didn't like." Sawant points to his vote in favor of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq, as well as military operations in Kosovo, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen and Ukraine, and his enthusiastic support for Israel's multi-year retaliatory bombing campaign in Gaza after Hamas' 2023 invasion.
What they're saying
"We should not be surprised. Both Democrats and Republicans have been purveyors of endless brutal wars throughout their history," said Sawant at her press conference Monday. "The Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Congress spent more than $14 trillion on war since 9/11. A third to one half of this money is pocketed by military contractors, who in turn fund the campaigns of their favorite Democrats and Republicans."
The next election will be held on Nov. 3, 2026.
The Source
Information in this story comes from Kshama Sawant's office and previous coverage from FOX 13 Seattle.
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