One week post-election, Democrats will maintain control of the Senate regardless of the outcome of the Georgia run-off, and our state, regional, and local elections are mostly decided. And while votes are still being counted in places like California, it’s likely Republicans will have the slimmest of majorities in the House of Representatives.
Congratulations to all the candidates who won their races, as well as those who ran successful ballot measures. Thank you for your willingness to serve your community.
By now, everyone has read the various takes on the election results – the waves that did or didn’t materialize, and the predictions that turned out to be right or wrong. Instead of giving my take on who’s up and who’s down and why, I want to focus on key issues.
Jobs and the Economy
Economic pressures and uncertainties persist, and they showed up in every election conversation. The thing on my mind is jobs. We’ve all seen the recent headlines about a number of our leading tech companies making difficult decisions around layoffs and hiring. A changing environment for the kinds of jobs that can generate personal prosperity – as well as drive the regional economy – is important to pay attention to.
At the same time, it’s important to round out our regional economic picture with a reminder that our economy is diverse and robust with some industries still seeing job growth, like professional and business services and financial activities. It is also important that we take actions to continue this job growth across industries, from maritime to life sciences – as we know that tech jobs are far from the only well-paying jobs in our community. We aren’t immune to hard times, but if we are intentional and play our cards right as a community, I have confidence in both our broader economy, and in the tech industry’s ability to navigate uncertainty, reposition, and get ready to grow again.
And, the key is intention. It’s time to talk about how much our businesses contribute to our community, and how important those contributions are. Jobs generate personal prosperity and drive the economy – including generating tax revenue that funds our governments. The business community also contributes civically through volunteering, charitable giving, and more recently, even creating assets like affordable housing.
But the most important way our businesses contribute is by doing what we do best – innovating our life-changing gadgets, serving us an unforgettable meal at our restaurants, completing our tax forms, nurturing and caring for our kids, building and flying our airplanes, and ensuring we’re equipped with outdoor gear to take advantage of the best Pacific Northwest hiking, kayaking and biking. The region is better, more vibrant, and more desirable because of the contributions our businesses make by doing what they do.
So what does it all mean, as it relates to the election results? Economic concerns dominated headlines and debates, and voters are going to continue to expect our elected leaders to talk about how they plan to grow and retain jobs and strengthen our economy. And that means enacting smart policies that deliver growth across all areas of our economy, and at the same time recognizing and avoiding policies that undermine economic growth.
The Issues
We know the three most-pressing issues in Seattle are homelessness, addressing public safety, and creating more housing that is more affordable. One of the biggest takeaways from the research we have done on these issues is that the voters are largely aligned on both the issues and the solutions.
So what does it mean, as it relates to the election results? Voters are progressive and they want to see progress on these issues. And rhetoric that seeks to intentionally divide us on the issues, or policy positions that push toward the extreme or unworkable – are not likely to be embraced.
Government Policy and Budget
As for being intentional about job growth and playing our cards right – this is a place for governments to lead.
As our local and regional governments come to the close of their budget deliberations, I would remind leaders budgets are a clear reflection of priorities and should not be static, investing in the same things at the same levels as in years past. Rather, budgets should change over time to reflect greater investments in the things that are most important to the people they serve – not everything is equally important every year.
Before casting final votes to approve their budgets for next year, leaders must ask themselves:
- How will our decisions impact our employers’ job creation and ability to attract talent, as well as impact our entrepreneurs starting up new efforts?
- Is this decision aligned with what we’ve heard from the voters in terms of solutions and making meaningful, visible progress on the biggest issues?
- Have we pushed ourselves enough to do the hard thing of prioritizing investments – not just relying on the last dollar or the next dollar to solve our problems?
According to a study done by our partners at the Downtown Seattle Association, the city has financially recovered from the pandemic, moved several of their costly programs – like maintaining and expanding parks – to be funded by levy lid lifts, and has nearly $300 million in new revenue from the payroll expense tax. The city’s general fund and adjacent revenues are growing at a rate higher than population growth and inflation.
We, as a community, are well-positioned to make progress on the most-pressing issues. If we don’t, I think there will be a pretty clear “so what” as it relates to election results in the coming years.
With clarity, Rachel
Rachel Smith
President and CEO