Here's how The News Tribune decides when to do candidate endorsements
No, I'm not telling you who The News Tribune editorial board is endorsing in the 2025 Tacoma mayoral race. But we've heard from quite a few Tacomans asking where that endorsement was during the primary election. So as Opinion Editor, I'm here to explain what our plan is, and to promise to make our process more clear going forward.
The short version is this: this newspaper's editorial board will issue an endorsement for the 2025 mayoral race in October, on or before the day you receive your general election ballot in the mail. While the election results aren't certified yet, the current frontrunners from the primary election are Anders Ibsen and John Hines. In all likelihood, the board will be choosing between those two candidates.
And here's the why. The editorial board makes decisions each year about which races to offer endorsements for in the primary election, and which to leave for the general. If we've already endorsed a candidate in the primary, we won't revisit that race for the general election.
There are simply too many races to consider in one go. The editorial board is currently made up of two News Tribune employees and three community volunteers, and we have to use our time wisely. That requires a judgment call on when to endorse in a given race.
Sometimes it's easy to spot when the editorial board should endorse in a primary or a general election. Some races skip the primary, such as the Tacoma City Council District 2 race, which only has two candidates. And some have a more manageable number of candidates in the primary, allowing the board to have a meaningful conversation on each candidate's stances.
Others present more of a conundrum.
The board this year decided to save the Tacoma mayoral race endorsement for the general election. There were pros and cons for both options, and we understand that many voters would have liked some guidance when choosing among six candidates for an open seat in the mayor's office.
To arrive at a choice in October, the editorial board will pose questions to both mayoral candidates. We hope that diving deeper with two candidates will offer more insight into their visions for the city's government, and the differences between them. That's harder to get at in a six-person panel interview.
There's still value in vetting the primary candidates. With this in mind, the editorial board did go through the endorsement process with all six candidates running for the at-large Tacoma City Council Pos. 6. What's more, our news team covered mayoral candidate forums and reported on the race during the primary campaign season.
Going forward, the editorial board will aim to be transparent about what readers can expect leading up to primaries and general elections.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Tacoma creates labor task force after workers bill of rights misses ballot deadline
The Tacoma City council voted Aug. 12 to start a task force charged with reviewing labor standards in Tacoma. The move came after the council missed the deadline to get a citizen's initiative seeking to improve working conditions in Tacoma on the November ballot. The council made their decision in a 7-1 vote, a rare split for a council that often makes decisions with unanimous votes. Council member Sandesh Sadalge was absent. Council member Olgy Diaz was the sole dissenting voice, saying that she feels the process was rushed and that she didn't understand how the task force would address concerns about the workers bill of rights. The newly-approved task force will consist of 15 people appointed by members of the council and the mayor. They will suggest recommendations to improve labor policy in Tacoma. The council's approval also directs $50,000 to be directed to support the task force's work. Mayor Victoria Woodards first proposed the task force at the council's Aug. 8 special meeting, saying that conversations about the workers bill of rights raised concerns and questions about labor standards in Tacoma that she hopes the task force can address. Diaz expressed doubts. 'I have a lot of pause about the mayor bringing this forward in such a rushed timeline,' she said at the meeting. 'We really need to be more transparent with folks about what the goal of this is and what that $50,000 is going to be used for and who that's going to go to. I don't know who would convene this, what kind of consulting process there's going to be.' The vote comes after controversy around the proposed workers bill of rights in Tacoma. Organizers with Tacoma For All, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 367 and the Tacoma Democratic Socialists of America had since February been gathering signatures to get the measure on the ballot. The proposal seeks to improve working conditions in Tacoma and set a $20 minimum wage. They delivered the signatures to city officials in late June, and city and county officials validated the petition by July 10, leaving Tacoma's City Council with 30 days to decide whether to approve it directly or to send it to the ballot. While council members have in recent weeks expressed support for the sentiments behind the measure, they also expressed concern about the logistics involved with implementing the measure. In the special meeting on Aug. 8 they voted unanimously to send it to the ballot – three days after the county's deadline to do so. Just before the council's Aug. 12 meeting, Tacoma for All, UFCW Local 367, and the Tacoma DSA filed a lawsuit against the city, Pierce County and County Auditor Linda Farmer alleging that they did not act with 'reasonable promptness' to get the item on the November ballot. The suit also called for a judge to put the item on the ballot despite missing the deadline. The council's on the task force was met with a mixed response from people at the meeting. Activists criticized the decision, some making the case that the task force is an effort from the city to get an alternative to the workers bill of rights on the table. Ty Moore, co-executive director with Tacoma For All, said it was similar to the council's efforts to propose an alternative measure to the tenants bill of rights which appeared on the ballot in 2023. The council is using the task force to prepare an alternative measure to the workers bill of rights, he said. The same activists in 2023 sued the city, Pierce County and county auditor, alleging that the city violated its charter when the council put an alternate renters' rights measure on the ballot that year. A judge ruled in favor of the activists, and voters eventually approved the tenant bill of rights. 'There is a right to initiative for a reason – it's because when voters disagree with the council, they should be able to exercise their right,' Moore said at the meeting. 'Voters did everything right and you failed in your obligation to sustain democracy in this city. Shame on you. ' Members of the business community expressed support for the decision, saying it will broadly represent workers and business owners in conversations about labor standards in a way that the workers bill of rights didn't. 'It's far better than Measure 2, that had been proposed without consulting stakeholders that really have a stake in the game,' Rose Gundersen of the Washington Retail Association said at the Aug. 12 meeting. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Here's how The News Tribune decides when to do candidate endorsements
Let me start by saying, I should have published this column over a month ago. Journalists hate missing deadlines, so it pains me to realize this information is overdue. No, I'm not telling you who The News Tribune editorial board is endorsing in the 2025 Tacoma mayoral race. But we've heard from quite a few Tacomans asking where that endorsement was during the primary election. So as Opinion Editor, I'm here to explain what our plan is, and to promise to make our process more clear going forward. The short version is this: this newspaper's editorial board will issue an endorsement for the 2025 mayoral race in October, on or before the day you receive your general election ballot in the mail. While the election results aren't certified yet, the current frontrunners from the primary election are Anders Ibsen and John Hines. In all likelihood, the board will be choosing between those two candidates. And here's the why. The editorial board makes decisions each year about which races to offer endorsements for in the primary election, and which to leave for the general. If we've already endorsed a candidate in the primary, we won't revisit that race for the general election. There are simply too many races to consider in one go. The editorial board is currently made up of two News Tribune employees and three community volunteers, and we have to use our time wisely. That requires a judgment call on when to endorse in a given race. Sometimes it's easy to spot when the editorial board should endorse in a primary or a general election. Some races skip the primary, such as the Tacoma City Council District 2 race, which only has two candidates. And some have a more manageable number of candidates in the primary, allowing the board to have a meaningful conversation on each candidate's stances. Others present more of a conundrum. The board this year decided to save the Tacoma mayoral race endorsement for the general election. There were pros and cons for both options, and we understand that many voters would have liked some guidance when choosing among six candidates for an open seat in the mayor's office. To arrive at a choice in October, the editorial board will pose questions to both mayoral candidates. We hope that diving deeper with two candidates will offer more insight into their visions for the city's government, and the differences between them. That's harder to get at in a six-person panel interview. There's still value in vetting the primary candidates. With this in mind, the editorial board did go through the endorsement process with all six candidates running for the at-large Tacoma City Council Pos. 6. What's more, our news team covered mayoral candidate forums and reported on the race during the primary campaign season. Going forward, the editorial board will aim to be transparent about what readers can expect leading up to primaries and general elections.
Yahoo
07-08-2025
- Yahoo
Worker's bill of rights likely to appear on Tacoma ballot, but timeline is unclear
Tacoma residents are likely to vote on a 'Worker's Bill of Rights,' though the timeline to do so is unclear. Organizers with the United Food and Commercial Workers Union 367 chapter and the Tacoma Democratic Socialists of America submitted signatures for the ballot initiative to city officials in late June. The initiative includes language that would, among other things, set a $20 minimum wage and increase protections for workers in Tacoma. City and county officials validated the signatures by July 10, leaving the initiative in the hands of the City Council for another 30 days, according to the city charter. The council has until Aug. 9 to approve the initiative outright, in which case it wouldn't appear on the ballot. It also could vote to reject the measure or could choose not to take any action. In either of those cases, the council would be required to submit the proposal to voters. Council has met in three study sessions since the petition was validated to discuss the contents of the initiative and the legal implications if it were to be implemented. Though they haven't made a decision, council members have signaled they are unlikely to approve the initiative outright – meaning it would go to voters instead. Mayor Victoria Woodards said at the council's Aug. 5 study session that she asked city staff to schedule a special meeting for Friday, Aug. 8, to discuss the measure one last time, so the council can take action before the 30 day timeline ends. The agenda for the meeting includes a resolution calling for a special election on Nov. 4, 2025, with the Worker's Bill of Rights, also called 'Initiative 2' to be placed on the ballot. Woodards said she doesn't plan to bring forward legislation at the meeting to adopt the initiative outright, and no such legislation was on the agenda for the meeting as of Aug. 6. 'I want to be clear with my colleagues, I am not planning to bring forward legislation that allows us to adopt it – there are just far too many changes and far too many concerns that I have to be able to do that,' she said at the council's Aug. 5 study session. Interim city manager Hyun Kim said at the Aug. 5 study session that implementing the initiative could cost the city at least around $1.5 to $2 million each year to create an employment standards division with a few employees who would be responsible for enforcing the initiative, as the city continues to contend with a budget deficit. Council has the option to put forward an alternate initiative, but Kim told The News Tribune that doing so would require additional processes that would take more time and might not be possible given how close the November election is. 'We hope to know more after Friday morning's special council meeting,' Kim said in a statement. Pierce County elections manager Kyle Haugh told The News Tribune that the city of Tacoma missed the Aug. 5 deadline to submit the initiative to appear on the ballot for the Nov. 4 general election, which means voters may not decide on the measure in 2025. The Tacoma city charter states that the City Council 'shall submit the proposal to the people at the next Municipal or General Election that is not less than ninety (90) days after the date on which the signatures on the petition are validated' – which, after Nov. 4, 2025, will not take place until 2026. When asked whether the initiative would appear on the November ballot, the city said in a statement that Pierce County determines what goes on the ballot. The council will vote on the item as a 'special election' to align with state law, since general elections are reserved for issues that occur on a repeating basis, including elections for office, the statement read. The proposed initiative has been a significant topic of discussion at candidate forums for the upcoming Nov. 4 general election, as mayoral candidates largely expressed support for the ideas behind the initiative but not the actual initiative itself. Members of Tacoma's business community turned out to the council's July 22 meeting to speak against the measure. 'You've been hearing from Tacoma businesses through emails, phone calls, public testimony, raising serious concerns about Measure 2. The chamber shares those concerns.' Andrea Reay, CEO of the Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber of Commerce, told the council at its July 22 meeting. 'As written, Measure 2 creates real challenges for our local economy.' Activists who helped draft the initiative and collect signatures have said their goal is to address the rising cost of living in Tacoma. 'Some people think that by raising the minimum wage, then the cost of everything is going to go up, but the truth of the matter is, we're chasing the cost of living. We're not ahead of it. We haven't been ahead of it in a long time,' UFCW 367 president Michael Hines told The News Tribune earlier this year. Solve the daily Crossword
