Press Release

POLL: Seattle voters oppose Trump, but can’t go back on quality-of-life progress in Seattle

  New poll shows Seattle voters overwhelmingly see the U.S. on the wrong track, while right-track ratings for city of Seattle tick upward

SEATTLE – On April 29, the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce released its latest findings from The Index, where voters indicated strong concerns around the direction of the country, while urging the city of Seattle to continue improving quality of life.

The eighth installment of The Index, the first of 2025 and the first since President Donald Trump took office, shows Seattle voters believe progress is finally being made on important quality-of-life issues like public safety, and they want to maintain that progress in the face of chaos at the federal level.

Voters are more optimistic about the progress being made on the recovery of downtown Seattle, including the progress on reducing the number of homeless encampments. Voters are more likely to say they would feel safe visiting downtown during the day and night, which is critical for our local and regional economy.

Voters want leaders to stand up to the Trump Administration by joining lawsuits when the federal government overreaches, but they don’t want the dysfunction at the federal level to distract the city from focusing on the basics. When asked if they prefer city leaders to resist the Trump/Musk agenda – even if it means taking our attention away from homelessness, drug markets, and public safety, or if they believe that the city shouldn’t go back because we are finally making progress on critical local issues, 59% of voters indicated a preference for city officials to focus on local issues and keep our city moving forward.

Voters are also concerned about what the new federal administration could mean for our local economy. Voters overwhelmingly want city leaders to protect local jobs and small businesses, and incentivize businesses to create family wage jobs so our local economy stays resilient in the face of national economic uncertainty. Voters understand businesses are closing or leaving Seattle for nearby cities because the cost of doing business has gotten too high – and they want that to change.

“Voters and business owners in Seattle are on edge around the uncertainty and chaos we’ve experienced since President Donald Trump took office, but they are also clear that we can’t take our eye off the ball here at home,” said Rachel Smith, president and CEO of the Seattle Metro Chamber. “We cannot risk going backwards as a city, compounding the problem locally, after making important progress on public safety, addressing homelessness, and closing open-air drug markets.”

Key data points from The Index 8:

  • The Index quality-of-life rating for Seattle continues to steadily increase, reaching 4.75 – the highest it has been since research began, and surpassing the previous high from fall 2024’s Index (4.66).
  • Homelessness is the top issue facing Seattle according to 39% of voters, and concerns about homelessness and cost-of-living are largely unchanged, while concern about public safety dropped 10 points.
  • On addressing public safety, half (48%) of voters agree the city of Seattle has made meaningful progress, and 40% agree there has been meaningful progress on shutting down open air-drug markets.
  • More voters indicated they would feel safe visiting downtown Seattle, with 85% indicating they feel safe during the day and 45% feel safe at night, up 20% and 15% since fall 2021, respectively. When asked how frequently voters visit downtown compared to last year, 23% said they visit more often.
  • Seventy-four percent of voters agree the city of Seattle should streamline permitting to make it easier and faster to build new housing.
  • Eighty-one percent of voters believe it’s important for city leadership to protect local jobs and small businesses in this uncertain economic environment by lowering the cost to start and run a business in Seattle.
  • City leadership should aggressively stand up to the Trump Administration according to 72% of voters, including joining lawsuits against the administration when there is overreach by the federal government.

“We can and should oppose the Trump Administration when there is overreach or when its activities don’t align with our Seattle values,” Smith said. “At the same time, we need leaders to continue to make progress on our top priorities here at home and not let the mayhem of what is happening federally distract from making progress on quality-of-life issues. Let’s continue to focus expertise, time and resources on streamlining permitting, building more housing, protecting our local jobs and small businesses, and continuing an all-of-the-above approach to improving public safety.”

Polling was conducted by Fulcrum Strategic and EMC Research, which interviewed 700 Seattle voters across each council district from April 13–20, 2025. In-depth data and cross tabs can be found at www.seattlechamber.com/theindex.

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About the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce
The Seattle Metropolitan (Seattle Metro) Chamber of Commerce is the regional business advocacy organization that engages the innovation and entrepreneurship of its 2,500 members to promote inclusive economic prosperity. Founded in 1882 by local business leaders, the Chamber today is an independent organization representing a regional workforce of approximately 750,000. For more information, visit www.seattlechamber.com.

Media contact: Jillian Henze, APR
Cell: 425-785-6731
jillianh@seattlechamber.com