Here’s who leading in Tacoma’s at-large, other city council races
Latasha Palmer was leading in the race for at-large Position 6 on the Tacoma City Council on election night.
Palmer held the lead with 52.02% (12,912 votes) of the vote compared to Johnston’s 47.37% (11,757 votes). Neither candidate has served on the council before. Palmer is a small business owner and a board member of the Hilltop Action Coalition, and Johnston is the director of Court House Square and a property manager.
The first round of election results aligns with the two candidates’ fundraising dollars – Palmer raised $79,961.22 as of Nov. 4 to Johnston’s $60,834.92, according to the state’s Public Disclosure Commission.
Pierce County reported voter turnout in the race for the at-large seat at 19.29% on election night.
Palmer’s priorities include addressing homelessness and creating jobs for Tacoma residents. Johnston’s priorities include improving public safety in Tacoma and opportunities for economic development.
Palmer’s win comes in an odd-numbered election year that has the potential to change the Tacoma council’s character. Five of the nine positions on the council could see new faces in 2026, which comes as the city gears up to hire a new permanent city manager and police chief.
The newly elected council members will earn $67,445.11 a year in 2026.
Pierce County officials will continue to release results gradually until the election is certified on Nov. 25. Here’s the latest on the rest of the city council races that The News Tribune is tracking:
District 2
In the District 2 race between incumbent Sarah Rumbaugh and newcomer Ben Lackey, Rumbaugh appears to have maintained her seat with 65.16% of the vote compared to Lackey’s 34.28%.
Rumbaugh earned 4,011 votes and Lackey earned 2,110. Pierce County officials reported voter turnout in the race for District 2 at 22.7% as of election night.
Rumbaugh plans to focus on addressing homelessness, domestic abuse, community safety and expanding Tacoma’s tree canopy, according to her website.
The race for District 2 was contentious – Lackey openly criticized Rumbaugh’s leadership, saying he’s running because of her. The News Tribune also obtained documents late last month revealing that Lackey, who ran on a platform that included plans to reopen a closed trail managed by the city, had been expelled from Parks Tacoma events and properties for a year.
Rumbaugh and Lackey were the only two candidates who filed paperwork to run for the seat, and as such did not appear on the August primary ballot. Rumbaugh by election day raised $37,345.17 for her campaign. Lackey opted for mini reporting, meaning he raised and spent less than $7,000 for his campaign and as such was not required to report his contributions and expenditures to the state.
District 4
Sandesh Sadalge had earned the majority of the vote with 1,830 votes or 53.9% on Tuesday, compared to his opponent Silong Chhun’s 1,523 votes or 44.86%.
Sadalge, also the incumbent, said he plans to focus on issues like affordable housing and preventing crime, while Chhun has said he hopes to prioritize protecting immigrants and strengthening tenant protections. The results align with their performance in the primary – Sadalge led with 40.48% of the vote to Chhun’s 36.21%.
Voter turnout on election night in District 4 as of election night was 14.03%, according to the county.
Sadalge raised $58,208.89 by Nov. 4, pulling ahead of Chhun’s $40,474.07.
Sadalge’s campaign for the seat comes after he told The News Tribune when appointed to the job last summer that he wasn’t interested in running again this year. Prior to his appointment, Sadalge worked for Noble Farms Cannabis, a cannabis producer. Chhun works as a digital media specialist for the Washington State Office of the Attorney General.
District 5
Joe Bushnell earned the majority of the vote Tuesday with 68.24%, making him the apparent winner given the steep advantage over his opponent Zev Cook’s 30.81%.
Bushnell, also the incumbent, planned to focus on public safety and addressing housing affordability and homelessness. Cook, who is backed by the Tacoma Democratic Socialists of America, planned to prioritize raising Tacoma’s minimum wage and building more affordable housing.
Voter turnout in District 5 as of election night was 13.07%. Bushnell earned a total of 2,157 votes to Cook’s 974.
The District 5 race unexpectedly caught the attention of financial interests outside Pierce County before the August primary. A political action committee largely funded by donors from cities like Mercer Island and Seattle spent about $30,000 on text messages and mailers supporting Bushnell and opposing Cook, criticizing Cook’s “rhetoric against Zionism.”
Bushnell and Cook ultimately emerged from the primary with 53.15% of the vote and 32.75% respectively, but Cook has consistently out-raised Bushnell – with $60,032.35 to his $57,537.03 as of election day.
This story was originally published November 4, 2025 at 8:38 PM.
