If you haven’t already, now is the time to make sure you are registered to vote in the 2020 elections. Local elections are crucial to participate in—make sure you vote! Of course, part of voting is being informed, and this guide is here to help you who to figure out who to follow on social media for Tacoma’s 2020 election season.
From multiple seats on the Pierce County Council to the Pierce County Executive, the direction of Pierce County (which is pretty evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats) will be decided once again. Denny Heck (Congressman from the 10th District) is stepping down, and so far, former Tacoma Mayor Marilyn Strickland is in the running for his seat.
While they get very little coverage, these local elections are incredibly important to the day to day lives of people living in Tacoma and Pierce County.
Here are some folks to start following to stay on top of the local elections:
Podcasts
Crossing Division
“Let’s Talk About What We Expect and Hope to See in Tacoma in 2020!”
Billed as “Tacoma’s Talk Show,” Crossing Division has had multiple hosts and covers a range of topics relating to life in Tacoma. In this episode Evelyn and Joe Lopez talk about what we can expect from the 2020 election season here in Tacoma.
You can follow Evelyn Lopez on Twitter here.
Want to hear more about the ethics of journalism, campaign finance laws, and those Tacoma Weekly endorsements? Then this week’s Crossing Division podcast is for you! Thanks @seanrobinson1e4 and @nate_bowling !https://t.co/YRw4WSjIK5 pic.twitter.com/BYPFdq7B7v
— Evelyn Fielding Lopez (@True_Tacoma) September 20, 2020
Pierce County Auditor
Pierce County Auditor Julie Anderson does not fool around when it comes to maintaining public confidence during elections. The Auditor’s office has an excellent online communications strategy throughout election season and most importantly on election nights.
To keep up during all the exciting moments follow the Pierce County Auditors office here:
- Pierce County Auditor’s Office Facebook
- Pierce County Auditor’s Office Twitter
- Pierce County Auditor Julie Anderson Twitter
- Pierce County Auditor Instagram
View this post on Instagram
People We Love to Watch Talk Tacoma Politics on Twitter:
There are tons of politicians with accounts on Twitter, but honestly, unless it’s Tacoma election season most of them don’t spend very much time there.
Here are some local politicos who are the exception to that rule, as well as politically active Tacomans who always seem to be moving the conversation forward:
Laurie Jenkins – Speaker of the House of Representatives
I’m new to the job but already have some ideas on how I want to approach it. https://t.co/vVRdaflllr
— Laurie Jinkins (@lauriejinkins2) August 16, 2019
Derek M Young – Pierce County Councilman
This is incorrect for at least WA. In person registration is allowed all the way up to election day. Online deadline is October 26th. No excuses, every adult citizen can vote. https://t.co/kkI8KpXeLE
— Derek Young (@DerekMYoung) October 4, 2020
Bruce Dammeier – Current Republican Pierce County Executive (up for re-election)
Ryan Mello – Former Tacoma City Councilman now running for Pierce County Council
Thank you for taking this to the finish line @DerekMYoung. We made good progress and it’s time to do the hard work of working together as a region to implement this plan, spread prosperity throughout the region and build communities worthy of our kids. https://t.co/HYGJn8Llm9
— Ryan Mello (@RyanMelloTacoma) September 24, 2020
T’wina Nobles – CEO of @tacurbanleague (running in a tight race for the 28th Legislative District)
Tomorrow marks 30 days until the election!!! Quote tweet & share why you’re supporting T’wina ?? #Flipthe28th #TeamTwina pic.twitter.com/SQJWPQE1Gv
— T’wina Nobles for WA State Senate (@twinaforsenate) October 3, 2020
Chris Karnes – Transportation advocate
The Planning Commission and Human Rights Commission have joined hands ? to create a Housing Equity Task Force.
We’ll be using Minneapolis, Portland as models for changes to zoning to support social equity and reduce displacement.
cc: @UrbanistOrg— Chris Karnes ???️? (@TacomaTransit) December 19, 2019
Silong Chhun – Came to Tacoma as a refugee from Cambodia, now a leading local voice
https://t.co/6A1ByLdPGJ #NewProfilePic pic.twitter.com/9W1mwFTNxp
— ?????? (@thefakeSilong) October 2, 2020
Erik Hanberg – Tacoma writer, Founder of Channel253 Podcast Network, MetroParks Commissioner
Twelve years ago, I started my first National Novel Writing Month. (#NaNoWriMo). In high school and college, I wrote a novel a year or so, but after graduating I lost the habit. So from 2002 to 2007, I probably barely wrote 50 pages. NaNoWriMo is what changed that for me.
— Erik Hanberg (@erikhanberg) November 1, 2019
Evelyn Lopez – Local lawyer who is deeply engaged with local civics
Crossing Division, Tacoma’s Talk Show! It’s 2020 in Tacoma, and we have some BIG issues to talk about! Join us.https://t.co/pTBHoxUy6j pic.twitter.com/2p2eWgmEtL
— Evelyn Fielding Lopez (@True_Tacoma) January 4, 2020
Nate Bowling – Former Tacoma High School Teacher, Nerdfarmer Podcast Host, currently teaching abroad
Today in US Government & Politics:
Student: Mr. Bowling, when it comes to US politics, what’s your bias?
Me: Pessimism
Student: *Long pause* That checks out— nate bowling (police violence is state violence) (@nate_bowling) October 5, 2020
The News Tribune – Tacoma’s Newspaper
The public can comment on the proposed sale during hearings this week. https://t.co/WUEHpyhUmE
— Tacoma News Tribune (@thenewstribune) October 5, 2020
KNKX FM – Tacoma’s NPR Affiliate
The Puyallup Tribe plans to sue Electron Hydro and its backers over violations of the Clean Water Act and the Endangered Species Act. @KNKXBellamy has details on the lawsuit facing the Pierce County dam owner. https://t.co/SQSC1bNZFR
— KNKX Public Radio (@knkxfm) October 5, 2020
Channel 253 – Tacoma podcasting network
https://twitter.com/Channel_253/status/1210253154295537665?s=20
Melissa Santos – Political Reporter at Crosscut
Craig Sailor – News Tribune Reporter
To write this story I spent some time imagining what it might have been like to see this monster flying over Tacoma. https://t.co/hOo13hYA6f
— Craig Sailor (@crsailor) January 6, 2020
Will James – KNKX Reporter
If you’ve ever walked past someone on the street who appears chronically homeless and wondered, “How does someone come back from that?”
Jayson Chambers is the answer
When @KariPlog asked me to pick a 2019 story to highlight, I picked his
— Will James (@OtherWillJames) December 30, 2019
Sean Robinson – Journalist at large in Tacoma
At PLU, I have liberal students and conservative students. I work to make sure they feel free to speak their minds without fear of slagging from peers. I recently told one strong writer that @DouthatNYT is the best conservative columnist in the country:https://t.co/LDH4E3lBvp
— Sean Robinson (@seanrobinson1e4) October 3, 2020
Kari Plog – Online Editor for local NPR affiliate KNKX
https://twitter.com/KariPlog/status/1311145909074288641?s=20
Florangela Davila – News Director Seattle-Tacoma KNKX
Ashley Gross – Youth and Education Reporter for KNKX
Twitter for the Pierce County Dems (Pretty much a ghost town)
Twitter for the Pierce County Republicans (Fairly active, ghost town recently)
This is by NO MEANS a complete list of who to follow on social media if you want to keep up with the 2020 Tacoma elections—literally every time we publish lists like this, someone tells us several great people we forgot. If you think we forgot someone great, please let us know and we will add them. Hopefully it’s a great start.
Everyone’s list is different, but following these folks will put you on the path to being more engaged and informed in what’s happening.
Click here to read our blog post that’s all about “Who to Follow on Twitter When You’re New to Tacoma.”
