A Political Earthquake in Everett
Socialists secure three council seats as voters reject party lines, sparking talk of a new political era.
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Tuesday's city election brought unexpected results that have left Everett buzzing. In a race where voters defied traditional party allegiances, the final tally put Republican Hassel in the mayor's office with 2,429 votes, besting Democrat Gillespie's 2,079 and Socialist Salter's 2,062. The resulting council is a curious mix: three Socialists, three Republicans, and one Democrat. Political observers are calling it a 'great aggregation of political freaks,' yet the outcome signals that the Socialist movement has officially arrived as a force in Everett politics. Furthermore, the city's women exercised their new right to vote with little fanfare, participating in numbers that left election officials impressed by the lack of spoiled ballots. Meanwhile, the 'water proposition' passed handsomely, serving as a clear message to the Stone-Webster interests that the public is no longer content with the status quo.
“The one great, big fact that has at last loomed large on the political horizon is that the meek and lowly followers of 'Gene Debs are going to have a hand in the future making of political pies in old Everett.”
This 1911 election captures a pivotal moment when the Socialist party briefly held legitimate governing power in local Pacific Northwest politics. Today, the skepticism toward the 'old administration' and the use of the 'recall whip' remains a staple of the civic dialogue in Everett's growing, changing electorate.
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