In the week since Katie Wilson officially became Seattle’s mayor-elect, there have suddenly been a lot of think pieces about her from the national press.

Editorial boards at the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal have taken a certain “doom mongering” stance on another socialist winning office. The President of the United States added his two cents, and called her a communist.

Wilson’s election is making waves in a year when both democrats and democratic socialists scored high profile wins across the country.

But let’s be honest: national reporting is usually scant here in the PNW, and pretty late to the game. KUOW listeners – many of them, have been clued into this race for weeks if not months.

What we haven't heard is the inside story of the Wilson campaign – how the team took a newcomer to electoral politics – a policy wonk, whose style she herself has called “pretty dumpy” – and got her elected mayor.  

And what does the future look like for progressives in a city with a historically fickle electorate?

Two key figures from the Wilson campaign team joined Soundside to share their view on how it all went down.

GUESTS: 
Katie Wilson campaign manager Alex Gallo Brown
WinPower strategies political consultant, and Katie Wilson’s consultant, Jake Simpson

RELATED LINKS: 
Trump threatens Seattle’s World Cup, calls Mayor-elect Wilson ‘communist’ - Seattle Times
Seattle’s coming socialist experiment - Washington Post
Seattle Elects Mamdani West - Wall Street Journal
Katie Wilson is the new mayor but confronts the same challenges - Seattle Times

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

In the week since Katie Wilson officially became Seattle&rsquo;s mayor-elect, there have suddenly been a lot of think pieces about her from the national press.
Editorial boards at the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal have taken a certain &ldquo;doom mongering&rdquo; stance on another socialist winning office. The President of the United States added his two cents, and called her a communist.
Wilson&rsquo;s election is making waves in a year when both democrats and democratic socialists scored high profile wins across the country.
But let&rsquo;s be honest: national reporting is usually scant here in the PNW, and pretty late to the game. KUOW listeners &ndash; many of them, have been clued into this race for weeks if not months.
What we haven't heard is the inside story of the Wilson campaign &ndash; how the team took a newcomer to electoral politics &ndash; a policy wonk, whose style she herself has called &ldquo;pretty dumpy&rdquo; &ndash; and got her elected mayor. &nbsp;
And what does the future look like for progressives in a city with a historically fickle electorate?
Two key figures from the Wilson campaign team joined Soundside to share their view on how it all went down.
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li>Katie Wilson campaign manager Alex Gallo Brown</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.winpowerstrategies.com/about-us">WinPower strategies</a> political consultant, and Katie Wilson&rsquo;s consultant, Jake Simpson</li>
</ul>
RELATED LINKS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/politics/trump-threatens-seattles-world-cup-calls-mayor-elect-wilson-communist/">Trump threatens Seattle&rsquo;s World Cup, calls Mayor-elect Wilson &lsquo;communist&rsquo; - Seattle Times</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/11/16/seattle-socialist-mayor-katie-wilson-mamdani/">Seattle&rsquo;s coming socialist experiment - Washington Post</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.wsj.com/opinion/seattle-katie-wilson-mayor-democratic-socialists-of-america-zohran-mamdani-new-york-9284589f?gaa_at=eafs&amp;amp;gaa_n=AWEtsqdPi5s8yBgPDlIKkIpNErNkzIoI7MY1_HdiXgj-sIRPOqpZG_Vnb_Qt3NfyQds%3D&amp;amp;gaa_ts=691cd69c&amp;amp;gaa_sig=EezqRJiX9Wd50-9t_rFZxj83ru82cFxhi3Y1zfFD7yz6ckIH2snecu9fzY_oUVyfhgOEOlQNK4Y1oxMbC9mrpg%3D%3D">Seattle Elects Mamdani West - Wall Street Journal</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/editorials/an-ambitious-new-seattle-mayor-confronts-the-same-challenges/">Katie Wilson is the new mayor but confronts the same challenges - Seattle Times</a></li>
</ul>
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to <a href="http://kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes">kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes</a>
Soundside&nbsp;is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Soundside

The inside story of the Wilson campaign – how the team took a newcomer to electoral politics and got her elected mayor.  

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