Bruce Harrell officially announced his campaign for Seattle Mayor at a press conference March 16.

Harrell, a former city council member and longtime community leader, announced his campaign from outside Garfield High School in the Central District. Harrell a Seattle native, was raised near the school, where he graduated as valedictorian before attending UW where he also played football. Harrell received the 2007 UW Distinguished Alumni Award in Political Science and the 2008 Husky Legend Award.

Harrell was joined by a small number of family and supporters for the announcement.
 

Harrell explained his reasons for running in an Open Letter shared with the media. Some of his proposals are below.

He served on the Seattle City Council first in 2007 and was reelected in 2011 and again in 2015 after the city's switch to district representation.

Others running for Mayor include City Council President  M. Lorena González, Chief Seattle Club director Colleen Echohawk, Andrew Grant Houston, and Lance Randall. González issued a statement saying “I’m happy to welcome former Council President Bruce Harrell back to the campaign trail. Seattle’s next Mayor must be accountable to the people first and foremost, so I hope he’ll join me in pledging to take democracy vouchers, turn down all corporate contributions, denounce any corporate-backed independent expenditures, and refrain from funding his own campaign. I look forward to a healthy debate on how to lead Seattle into becoming a world class city with opportunities for everyone, not just the super rich.”

Harrell said, "Here are some bold ideas for recovery and equitable growth that harnesses the best of Seattle:

• Help Small and Minority Owned Businesses: Economic recovery will not happen overnight, and small businesses—especially those owned by women and BIPOC entrepreneurs, risk falling farther behind. We will protect short term, dedicated resources to help these businesses not only get back on their feet, but expand and take advantage of the opportunities ahead to create more jobs. The City of Seattle will establish new “business to business” partnerships to ensure that smaller businesses and BIPOC entrepreneurs enjoy the ancillary revenues and success of many larger businesses. I have direct expertise in developing these models. 

• Affordable Health Care for All: No one in our city should live without access to health care. Cities like San Francisco have developed basic coverage models that provide access to those at risk of falling through the cracks of a costly, cumbersome, and racially inequitable system. Employees of small businesses, gig economy workers, young people, and anyone experiencing homelessness or economic disruption all deserve quality care. Let’s come together and build a system that shows our commitment to what we may call “Healthy Seattle.” Where the Affordable Care Act and county health services fall short, particularly in the areas of preventative health and post-COVID trauma and mental isolation illnesses, “Healthy Seattle” may be critically important for the survival of our most vulnerable Seattle residents and lower wage workers.  

• A Smarter Approach to Invest in Better Neighborhoods: Seattle is divided into 7 Council districts, but we have yet to change our core neighborhood investment strategy. I will explore appropriating  real resources—$10 million dollars would make an impact—in each of the 7 districts to provide  Councilmember with the opportunity to work directly with their communities to invest in specific  localized priorities: small business recovery; homelessness solutions; parks and open space;  cleanliness; pedestrian and public safety strategies or cultural facility preservation. Each district  has unique needs, and each Councilmember will work collaboratively with City departments to  meet those unique needs working closely with community.   

• A Seattle Jobs Center: Seattle must win the emerging jobs war. Using all available commercialized online job boards, state sponsored employment ads, executive search materials and every means to help employ every possible employee, and making sure we provide resources to re-tool and re-train job applicants seeking work, we will explore making sure Seattle is the facilitator of employing every available job applicant. Some employers have phenomenal programs for supporting returning military veterans or previously incarcerated residents. Seattle will provide a user-friendly infrastructure and be known as the city that values and promotes jobs, jobs and jobs. Our educational strategies will be closely aligned with our Seattle Jobs strategy. 

• Revitalize Arts, Culture and Nightlife: Few sectors of our economy have been as hard hit as our city’s dynamic—and critical—arts, music, food and nightlife economy. Let’s re-imagine how we support these critical nonprofits and businesses—from preservation of historic buildings and venues, to exploration of sustainable revenue to support organizations that advance equity, inspire and teach, and provide a stage for the next Quincy Jones, Macklemore, or countless other creative voices in our community.