2023 Spokane mayoral election

2023 Spokane mayoral election

November 7, 2023

Candidate Lisa Brown Nadine Woodward Popular vote 36,601 33,748 Percentage 51.74% 47.71%

Precinct results Brown:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Woodward:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Tie:      40–50%

Mayor before election Nadine Woodward Republican Elected Mayor Lisa Brown Democratic

The 2023 Spokane mayoral election was held on November 7, 2023, to elect the mayor of Spokane in the U.S. state of Washington. The election was officially nonpartisan. Incumbent Republican mayor Nadine Woodward, who ran for a second term, and former Senate Majority Leader Lisa Brown advanced to the general election as the top two candidates in the top-two primary on August 1, 2023. On November 10, three days after the general election, Lisa Brown was declared the winner.^[1][2]

Primary election

Candidates

Declared

• Tim Archer, former president of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 29^[3][4]
• Lisa Brown, former director of the Washington State Department of Commerce, former Majority Leader of the Washington Senate, and runner-up for WA-05 in 2018^[5] (Democratic)
• Patrick McKann, yurt builder and former wildlife biologist^[6][4]
• Kelly Stevens, pothole fixer^[7][4]
• Nadine Woodward, incumbent mayor^[8] (Republican)

Withdrawn

• Deece Casillas, comedian^[9]
• Keith Kleven^[3]
• Jonathan Legault, commercial real estate appraiser (Green)^[10]

Declined

• Breean Beggs, president of the Spokane City Council^[3]
• Natasha Hill, attorney and runner-up for WA-05 in 2022 (Democratic)^[3]
• Ben Stuckart, former president of the Spokane City Council and runner-up for mayor in 2019 (endorsed Brown)^[11]
• Amber Waldref, Spokane County commissioner^[3]
• Vanessa Waldref, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Washington^[3]
• Chud Wendle, businessman^[3]
• Zack Zappone, city councilor^[3]

Primary endorsements

Tim Archer

Organizations

• Spokane County Republican Party^[12]

Lisa Brown

Local officials

• Ben Stuckart, former president of the Spokane City Council and runner-up for mayor in 2019 (Democratic)^[3]

Organizations

• AFL–CIO Spokane Regional Labor Council^[13]
• Fuse Washington^[14]
• Spokane County Democratic Party^[12]

Nadine Woodward

Local officials

• John Nowels, Sheriff of Spokane County (Republican)^[15]

Blanket primary results by precinct

  Brown

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%
•   60–70%
•   70–80%

  Woodward

•   30–40%
•   40–50%
•   50–60%

  Archer

•   30–40%

  Brown/Woodward Tie

•   30–40%

Results

2023 Spokane mayoral primary election

Candidate		Votes	%
Lisa Brown		24,756	47.52
Nadine Woodward (incumbent)		19,072	36.61
Tim Archer		6,697	12.85
Patrick McKann		1,082	2.08
Kelly Stevens		438	0.84
Write-in		46	0.09
Total votes		52,091	100.00

General election

Candidates

• Lisa Brown, former director of the Washington State Department of Commerce, former Majority Leader of the Washington Senate, and runner-up for WA-05 in 2018^[5] (Democratic)
• Nadine Woodward, incumbent mayor^[8] (Republican)

Campaign

In August, Woodward appeared on stage at the same event as Matt Shea, a Republican former state legislator who was ousted from the party's caucus due to accusations that he belonged to a far-right militia group planning to overthrow the government. During his speech, Shea praised Woodward and endorsed her for re-election; when Woodward took the stage later, she thanked him for his support. This led the Spokane City Council to formally denounce Woodward. Woodward's campaign released a statement saying "I did not seek, nor do I accept any support from Matt Shea. I am opposed to his political views as they are a threat to our democracy, and I regret my public appearance with him."^[16][17]

Post-primary endorsements

Lisa Brown

Organizations

• EMILY's List^[18]

Nadine Woodward

State legislators

• Matt Shea, former state representative from the 4th district (2009–2021) and far-right extremist (Republican, endorsement rejected)^[19][17]

Local officials

• Ozzie Knezovich, former sheriff of Spokane County (2006–2022) (Republican)^[20]

Declined to endorse

Individuals

• Tim Archer, former president of International Association of Fire Fighters Local 29 and primary candidate^[21]

Results

2023 Spokane mayoral general election

Candidate		Votes	%
Lisa Brown		36,601	51.74
Nadine Woodward (incumbent)		33,748	47.71
Write-in		380	0.5
Total votes		70,729	100.00

References

1. "Lisa Brown elected mayor of Spokane | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
2. Producer, Noah Corrin, NonStop Local Digital (November 10, 2023). "Lisa Brown beats Nadine Woodward to become mayor of Spokane". NonStop Local KHQ. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
3. Dinman, Enry (December 4, 2022). "Who's running for mayor of Spokane in 2023, and who won't say either way". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
4. Sanford, Nate. "A yurt maker, a former firefighter and a pothole fixer: Meet the longshots running to be Spokane's next mayor". Inlander. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
5. Roley, Amanda; Celina, Van Hyning (March 2, 2023). "Lisa Brown announces run for Spokane mayor". KREM (TV). Retrieved March 7, 2023.
6. Frint, Morgan Ashley, Noah Corrin, Emily (July 25, 2023). "August Primary: Spokane mayoral candidate Patrick McKann's path to 2023 election". NonStop Local KHQ. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
7. "It's Candidate Filing Week; here's who is running in Spokane's big races". krem.com. May 16, 2023. Retrieved May 17, 2023.
8. Sorotsky, Brontë (July 26, 2022). "Nadine Woodward announces run for second term as mayor". KXLY-TV. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
9. Randrup, Jeremy (August 6, 2020). "Spokane comedian Deece Casillas tries to work past COVID to help people laugh". Inlander. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
10. Dinman, Emry (March 5, 2023). "'It's going to be a slugfest': Spokane mayor's race enters new phase". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
11. Demkovich, Laurel (February 13, 2023). "Is Lisa Brown running for mayor of Spokane? Longtime lawmaker leaving post as state commerce director". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
12. "Conservative third-place Spokane mayoral candidate Tim Archer says he's unlikely to endorse Woodward or Brown | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
13. "Labor Endorsed Candidates 2023 | Spokane Regional Labor Council, AFL-CIO". unionhall.aflcio.org. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
14. "Fuse's 2023 Primary Election Endorsements | Fuse Washington". fusewashington.org. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
15. "Spokane County Sheriff John Nowels Endorses Mayor Woodward for Re-election". MayorSpokane.com. March 23, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
16. "Spokane City Council formally denounces Mayor Woodward for appearance at Christian Nationalist event".
17. Sanford, Nate (August 23, 2023). "Spokane mayor says she didn't know Matt Shea would be at Christian nationalist concert headlined by Matt Shea's Christian nationalist buddy". Inlander. Retrieved August 28, 2023.
18. Chou, Lauren (August 16, 2023). "EMILYs List Endorses Lisa Brown for Mayor of Spokane, Washington". EMILYs List. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
19. "Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward addresses Matt Shea controversy". I don't want his endorsement
20. "Former Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich endorses Nadine Woodward for Mayor". NonStop Local KHQ. August 6, 2023. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
21. "Conservative third-place Spokane mayoral candidate Tim Archer says he's unlikely to endorse Woodward or Brown | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.