Council Vacancy

Why is There a Vacancy on the Seattle City Council?

Councilmember Cathy Moore (District 5) resigned her seat on the Seattle City Council, effective July 7, 2025.

The City Charter gives the City Council 20 calendar days to fill a vacant Council position. This 20-day period begins July 8, the first day of the vacancy, and ends on July 28.

From the date of the appointment, the newly appointed councilmember will serve until the 2026 General Election results are certified by King County Elections and the newly elected councilmember representing District 5 takes the oath of office.

Important Dates

Dates subject to change

Scheduled City Council Meetings to Discuss Candidates
Thursday, July 17 at 9:30 a.m.
Tuesday, July 22 at 1 p.m.

Community Forum
Monday, July 21 at 5:30 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Hosted by Unified Outreach

Auditorium, Room LB 1207, first floor
Library Building at North Seattle College
9600 College Way North
Seattle, WA 98103

Parking available. Use the closest large parking lot to the Library Auditorium. Parking is also available at the two visitor parking lots on the west side of the campus between 97th and 95th street.

Anticipated City Council Vote on Appointment
Special City Council Meeting, Monday, July 28 at TBD

Applicants

Finalists for District 5 Vacancy

Other Applicants for District 5 Vacancy

Community Groups Interested in Hosting the Vacancy Public Forum

Applications and Qualifications

Noted below are the minimum requirements for filling the Council vacancy, as determined by Ordinance No. 125479.

Application Period:
Opens: 8 a.m. on Wednesday, July 2
Closes: 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 9

Completed applications must be received by the City Clerk before 5 p.m. on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, in order for an application to be accepted. Applications received at 5:00 p.m. or later will be considered late and will not be forwarded to Council for review.

Applications may be submitted by email at CouncilVacancy@seattle.gov or in person at Seattle City Hall, City Clerk's Office, Floor 3. An application is considered complete if it includes all the required attachments as described below.

Applicants must submit the following to the City Clerk:

Resume
Cover letter
Completed financial interest statement form (must include name and address used to register with King County Elections)

The City Charter requires applicants to be:

A citizen of the United States
A qualified elector of the State of Washington
Able to read and write the English language
A registered voter of the City of Seattle, and residing in the district represented, for at least 120 days prior to and including the date of the filing the declaration of candidacy, which is determined by verifying an active voter registration status with King County Elections at the address provided by the applicant on the financial interest statement.

Any additional qualifications may be determined by the Council. The approved applications will be posted on the Council Vacancy page by July 11, 2025.

The dates and formats of meetings and forums, and the procedure to vote for candidates will be determined by the Council.

Please note: Information provided by applicants for the vacant Council seat and community entities is considered a public record and may be subject to public disclosure. For more information, see the Public Records Act, RCW Chapter 42.56. To learn more about how we manage your information, see our Privacy Statement.

Additional Information

Read the "Meetings and Public Forum" section of this page above for information about upcoming meetings regarding the council vacancy.