Meet the six candidates vying to succeed De'Sean Quinn as the next Councilmember from King County's 5th District

This is a year of profound change in King County. With longtime Executive Dow Constantine having stepped down to run Sound Transit, Councilmembers Claudia Balducci and Girmay Zahilay are energetically vying to become the county’s new leader. Yet, at the same time, another open seat race for a county-level position in South King County has been unfolding off of the radars of many political observers.

The 5th District encompasses communities like SeaTac, Renton, Des Moines, Kent, Tukwila, and Normandy Park. It is home to about 250,000 people. It also includes the state’s largest airport and Boeing’s massive factory in Renton, where 737s are made.

Ever since Dave Upthegrove became our new Commissioner of Public Lands after a hard-fought race in which he almost didn’t make the November ballot, his position has been held by De’Sean Quinn. Quinn — who has a background in municipal politics as a Tukwila City Councilmember — opted not to run to retain the position.

With the seat open, six candidates have decided to run. It appears that each candidate is a Democrat or is at least aligned with the party on a range of issues, though the candidates diverge with respect to their priorities, experience, and ideas. Let’s look at the candidates vying to become the next Councilmember for the 5th District.

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https://www.nwprogressive.org/weblog/2025/08/meet-the-six-candidates-vying-to-succeed-desean-quinn-as-the-next-councilmember-from-king-countys-5th-district.html