New Tacoma City Council takes shape with early election results. Here’s who leads

Tacoma City Council will gain three new members, and early election results posted Tuesday show who’s in the lead for the roles.

There were 15,500 ballots left to count in-house along with Tuesday’s ballot drop box collections and mail-in ballots headed to the county elections office. The next round of results is scheduled to drop 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Kiara Daniels was leading Brett Johnson in the race to represent all of Tacoma in the At-Large Position 6 seat. Current Council member Lillian Hunter is not running for reelection.

Daniels had 57.91 percent of the votes, or 11,861 votes, while Johnson had 41.8 percent of the votes, or 8,562 votes.

Daniels was born and raised in Tacoma and is the business and community development coordinator for Spaceworks Tacoma, a program of the Tacoma/Pierce County Chamber of Commerce. There, she connects Black business owners with resources in the community.

Daniels said in an interview with TV Tacoma on Tuesday night following the results that she’s excited for the work ahead and is ready to collaborate. She spoke about her work on the city’s Community Police Advisory Committee and how it was her role to have the difficult conversations.

“I really look forward to being on a Council and being on a body that is ready and is as passionate about Tacoma as I am and that is ready and willing to do the work right alongside me,” she said.

Johnson is an Air Force veteran and worked as an air traffic controller stationed in Afghanistan. He’s now the owner for Wane & Flitch, a custom-made furniture company in southeast Tacoma.

Reached by phone Tuesday night, Johnson said he hoped that the results would have been a little bit more competitive but that he’s not giving up and will look to see how the results of the next few days pan out.

“(My) supporters have been fantastic .... and we’ll be strategizing how to be a voice in the city, whether we win or lose,” he said.

In District 2, Sarah Rumbaugh is leading by 63.84 percent of the vote, or 3,238 votes. Kelly Blucher has 35.51 percent of the vote, or 1,801.

District 2 represents parts of downtown Tacoma, the Port of Tacoma and Northeast Tacoma. Current Council member Robert Thoms did not run again due to term limits.

Rumbaugh runs a consulting firm in Tacoma and serves on the City of Tacoma Human Rights Commission, the board of Associated Ministries of Pierce County and as a board member at Temple Beth El.

Rumbaugh told The News Tribune on Tuesday that she feels elated by the results.

“I feel like I ran a really great race and the race that I ran is who I am, and I think voters knew that,” Rumbaugh said.

Rumbaugh added that her opponent called and conceded. When asked what her first order of business would be as a council member, Rumbaugh said that she wants to continue her focus on her priorities that she campaigned on in her race — housing, homelessness, supporting local businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic — and to also bring awareness to the impacts of child sexual assault.

Blucher is a mom of three and works as the community engagement manager at Goodwill for the Olympics and Rainier region and is an active member of the Tacoma-Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness.

Reached by phone Tuesday night, Blucher said that she felt amazing despite being behind in the votes.

“I was a candidate that came out of left field and I stayed authentic, I stayed true,” Blucher said, adding that she’s never going to stop representing Tacoma.

In District 4, Catherine Ushka is leading Israel James McKinney in the race to represent Tacoma’s Eastside and South End neighborhoods.

Ushka, the incumbent, has 65.98 percent of the vote, or 1,850 votes. McKinney had 33.10 percent of the votes, or 928 votes.

Ushka was elected to City Council in 2017 and previously served as a member of the Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors. She currently chairs the city’s Community Vitality and Safety Committee.

Ushka told The News Tribune on Tuesday night that she’s grateful for the outcome so far and thinks she’ll have a good team working with her moving forward.

“I‘m just honored by the confidence of the voters during this really challenging time,” she said.

McKinney currently works in public service for the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS). He has been involved with the Boys and Girls Club and the Air Force Reserves and is a leader at his local church.

In District 5, Joe Bushnell is leading Anne Artman in the race to represent the South Tacoma and South End neighborhoods. Current Council member Chris Beale decided not to pursue reelection.

Bushnell received 56.14 percent of the votes, or 1,477 votes. Artman received 43.22 percent of the votes, or 1,137 votes.

Bushnell, a Marine Corps veteran, works as the local government affairs coordinator for the Washington Hospitality Association. He’s also a Tacoma Public Utilities board member and board chair of the South Tacoma Neighborhood Council.

Bushnell told The News Tribune by phone Tuesday that he was a bit speechless.

“I’m really humbled to be honest,” he said. “... I definitely couldn’t have done it without the support of my family, the community — especially the Cambodian community, they have really rallied around me.”

Artman is the founder of the Tacoma Recovery Center, which supports individuals with behavioral health issues, homelessness and substance misuse and helps with employment services. She’s also on the board for the Hilltop Business Association.

Artman said Tuesday that despite being behind in the votes she’s not giving up yet and is looking forward to the results in the coming days.

“It is early and I’m optimistic,” she said.

This story was originally published November 2, 2021 at 8:25 PM.