Hacks & Wonks
Washington state's 2025 elections saw progressives win across multiple cities and legislative districts, with people-powered campaigns and bold ideas beating out establishment moderates. Listen in to the Hacks & Wonks 2025 Post-Election Roundtable from Tuesday, November 11, 2025, as the strategists who saw it coming explain what pundits missed! Panelists: Stephen Paolini, Principal at Bottled Lightning Collective Lexi Koren, Communications Consultant with PowerHouse Strategic Crystal Fincher, Executive Director of KVRU and Hacks & Wonks Host As always, a full text...
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Robert Cruickshank discuss: 🤩 Katie Wilson elected mayor! 🌊 Progressive wave across region and state 👀 What to watch out for next 🏫 Role of Stranger school board endorsements ⚔️ Looking forward to legislative session As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Robert Cruickshank, on Bluesky at .
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Robert Cruickshank discuss: ⚾ Mariners! 💸 Seattle wastes homelessness money ⛔ SPOG undermining popular CARE team 🚫 Seattle School Board rejects cop at Garfield 🗳️ Use dropboxes to vote! As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Robert Cruickshank, on Bluesky at .
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Melissa Santos discuss: WA/CA/OR vaccine alliance Cell phones in schools Firefighter immigration raid = inside job Harrell pushes light rail extensions despite shortfall Autonomous vehicles pilot starts As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Melissa Santos at .
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Amy Sundberg, public safety reporter for The Urbanist and publisher of Notes from the Emerald City, joins Hacks & Wonks to discuss how Seattle's City Council is poised to expand the city's surveillance pilot program before collecting any evaluation data on its effectiveness, raising concerns among privacy advocates about potential federal access to the data amid heightened immigration enforcement. The expansion, scheduled for a final council vote on September 9 at 2:30 p.m., would install new cameras in three areas and tap into Seattle Department of Transportation's existing network of...
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Robert Cruickshank discuss: 🧊 Spokane blocks warrantless ICE action 🥡 $15m Uber Eats settlement 🛒 UFCW 3000 backs Wilson 🚲 Biker hit where safety upgrades were cancelled 🏫 School board updates 🪧 Protests against Microsoft use by IDF As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Robert Cruickshank, on Bluesky at .
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Hacks & Wonks hosted a 2025 Post-Primary Roundtable on Tuesday, August 12, 2025 to dig into the 2025 primary results - what they mean, how they happened, and what's next - with the people who actually do the work of winning (and sometimes losing) campaigns in Seattle and King County. Listen to the roundtable as a podcast or watch the ! By bringing together a panel of seasoned local political consultants who've been in the field, in the strategy rooms, and on the phones - not just pundits looking at numbers from a distance - they cut through the noise and spin to give insights not found in...
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Erica Barnett discuss: ⛪ Christian nationalist rally moves to new park 🤑 Police execs take bonus meant for officers 🛡️ Trump admin targets sanctuary cities – 📮 -- and vote-by-mail 🕵️ Tacoma ICE facility must open for inspections As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Erica Barnett, on Bluesky at and on .
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and David Kroman discuss: 💰 Seattle B&O tax overhaul proposal 📉 Seattle budget forecast 👁️ Seattle surveillance expansion ⚖️ Tacoma minimum wage initiative sues city ⚔️ MGP challenger in CD3 🗳️ Election results update As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, David Kroman at .
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On this week-in-review, Crystal Fincher and Josh Cohen discuss: ❤️🩹 A Hacks & Wonks update 🗳️ Primary election results! 👀 Seattle: Mayor, City Attorney, City Council seats 💵 Seattle Democracy Vouchers 🥊 King County: Executive, D5 Council seat 🤓 Takeaways As always, a full text transcript of the show is available at . Follow us on Bluesky at . Find the host, Crystal Fincher, on Bluesky at and find today’s co-host, Josh Cohen at .
info_outlineOn this Hacks & Wonks week-in-review, Metro News Columnist and Opinion Editor for The News Tribune, Matt Driscoll, co-hosts with Crystal. They begin by diving into the impact of the leaked draft of the Supreme Court opinion to overturn Roe v. Wade, frustration with the response from many elected leaders, more rights that are on the chopping block, and–now more than ever–the importance of local government. The impact of Roe v. Wade being overturned on the LGBTQ+ community sparks a discussion on Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier’s actions to block pride flags from flying across the county. Crystal and Matt wrap up the show by discussing the harm that the War on Drugs has inflicted for decades and how I-1922, an initiative to replace the failed War on Drugs with proven approaches that address substance use disorder through prevention, outreach, and recovery services, would reduce that harm.
As always, a full text transcript of the show is available below and at officialhacksandwonks.com.
Find the host, Crystal Fincher on Twitter at @finchfrii and find today’s co-host, Matt Driscoll, at @mattsdriscoll. More info is available at officialhacksandwonks.com.
Resources
“Think tossing Roe doesn’t affect WA? Try again. State must protect abortion, other rights” by Matt Driscoll from The News Tribune: https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/matt-driscoll/article261030217.html#storylink=cpy
“What the overturning of Roe v. Wade could mean for same-sex marriage rights” by Christine Pae from KING5: https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/roe-v-wade-same-sex-marriage-rights-united-states/281-38d7431a-b267-4b90-957e-5e6a4512da4c?ref=exit-recirc
“Democrats Want Your Vote, Socialists Want Your Feet on the Street” by Hannah Krieg from The Stranger: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2022/05/04/72555229/democrats-want-your-vote-socialists-want-your-feet-on-the-street
“Slog AM: Seattle Public Schools Changes Sexual Harassment Policies, King County to "Explore Proposals" to Fund Abortion, and How to Vaccinate a Tiger” by Hannah Krieg from The Stranger: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2022/05/05/72596019/slog-am-seattle-public-schools-changes-sexual-harassment-policies-king-county-to-explore-proposals-to-fund-abortion-and-how-to-vaccinate
“Why Justice Alito’s Draft Opinion to Overturn Roe Makes No Fucking Sense” by Will Casey from The Stranger: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2022/05/03/72401871/why-justice-alitos-draft-opinion-to-overturn-roe-makes-no-fucking-sense
“End of Roe v. Wade looms large in Idaho, where women are likely to seek abortions in Washington” by Jim Brunner from The Seattle Times: https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/end-of-roe-v-wade-looms-large-in-idaho-where-women-are-likely-to-seek-abortions-in-washington/
“Will Pierce County buildings ever fly the Pride flag? Not at this rate, and it’s shameful” by The News Tribune Editorial Board from The News Tribune: https://www.thenewstribune.com/opinion/article260828227.html#storylink=cpy
“Legalize drug possession in WA? Initiative should be a no-brainer, but expect a fight” by Matt Driscoll from The News Tribune: https://www.thenewstribune.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/matt-driscoll/article261098197.html#storylink=cpy
“New Poll Suggests Most of Washington Wants to End the War on Drugs” by Rich Smith from The Stranger: https://www.thestranger.com/slog/2022/05/02/72070084/we-want-to-end-the-war-on-drugs
“Could WA be the next state to decriminalize drugs? Voters might get to decide in November” by Shauna Sowersby from The Olympian: https://www.theolympian.com/news/state/washington/article260900057.html#storylink=cpy
“WA introduces ballot measure to decriminalize drug possession” by MyNorthwest Staff from MyNorthwest: https://mynorthwest.com/3460600/wa-ballot-measure-legalize-drug-possession/
“Measure to decriminalize all drugs rolls out in Washington state” by Paige Browning from KUOW: https://www.kuow.org/stories/measure-to-decriminalize-all-drugs-rolls-out-in-washington-state
“WA Ballot Measure to Decriminalize Drugs Has Early Poll Lead” by Ben Adlin from Filter: https://filtermag.org/washington-drug-decriminalization-polls/
Transcript
Transcript will be uploaded as soon as possible.