Tanya Woo
Tanya Woo | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Seattle City Council from District 8 | |
| Assumed office January 24, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Teresa Mosqueda |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Randall Wo-Eng |
| Residence | Rainier Beach, Seattle |
| Alma mater | University of Washington (BA) |
Tanya Woo is an American politician from Seattle, Washington. She was appointed to the city-wide District 8 seat on the Seattle City Council in January 2024.
Early life and education
[edit]Woo's family immigrated to Seattle in 1887 from China and owned multiple businesses in the Chinatown–International District, Seattle.[1] Woo's father bought the historic Louisa Hotel in 1963 [2] and Woo took over the redevelopment of the hotel after a devastating fire in 2013.[1]
Woo has a bachelor’s degree in Communications from the University of Washington.[1]
Community activism
[edit]In 2021, Woo began volunteering for Chinatown International District Community Watch (CIDCW), which was created after anti-Asian crimes, such as robberies, assaults, and vandalism, occurred in the CID during the COVID-19 pandemic.[3] CIDCW provides resources and supplies to homeless individuals in the CID, do community clean-ups, and provide self-defense classes to senior citizens.[4]
In September 2022, King County, Washington released a plan to expand an existing homeless shelter in the SoDo, Seattle neighborhood and part of the CID neighborhood. The proposed expansion included 150 additional shelter beds, tiny homes, expanded support services, a sobering center, and reserved spaces for RVs.[5]
In response, Woo wrote an op-ed in the local International Examiner newspaper stating that the proposed expansion "...follows a long history of policies that have been forced on the CID, starting with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. This is systemic racism." [6] Community organizers, included Woo, organized a rally of primarily senior citizens against the expansion.[7]
In October 2022, King County executive Dow Constantine announced that the SoDo Homeless shelter expansion would be halted, citing community feedback against the expansion.[8]
Seattle city council
[edit]2023 election
[edit]In February 2023, Woo announced a run for Seattle City Council District 2, against incumbent Tammy Morales.[9]
In the August 2023 Primary Election, Morales came in first with 52% of the vote, Woo came in second with 42.5%, both moving on to the November primary.[10]
In the November General Election, Morales won 50.65% of the vote to Woo's 49.1%, with a narrow margin of 403 votes.[11]
District 8 appointment
[edit]In January 2024, Teresa Mosqueda vacated her seat for Seattle City Council District 8, representing the entire city of Seattle, after being elected to King County Council District 8.[12] 72 people, including Woo, applied for the vacant seat,[13] and in a 5-3 vote the Council voted to appoint Woo to the seat.[14] The appointment would last for ten months, until the November 2024 election and whoever won that election would only serve until the end of the term and would have to run for reelection in November 2025.
In June 2024, Woo announced that she would recuse herself from a controversial Gig Worker Wage Bill after recommendations made by the Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission over potential conflicts of interest due to her husband and father-in-law owning a BBQ restaurant that uses food delivery apps.[15] She supported and voted in favor of the "Stay Out of Drug Areas" (SODA) zone legislation sponsored by councilmember Robert Kettle, and proposed amendments to increase the size of the Little Saigon SODA zone.[16][17]
2024 special election
[edit]In March 2024, Woo announced that she would run in the November 2024 special election to remain on the city council.[18]
In the August 2024 Primary Election, Woo came in second with 38% of the vote, and Alexis Mercedes Rinck, the assistant director of policy planning and state operations at the University of Washington, came in first with over 50%.[19] During a September debate, Woo promoted many of the legislation passed by the current council, including the recently passed SODA legislation, and policies supported by Mayor Harrell.[20] Woo criticized Rinck for supporting policies similar to the previous council, while Rinck criticized Woo, and the city council, for not funding key services and ignoring constituents.[20][21]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Bray, Lauryn (October 2, 2023). "Meet the District 2 Seattle City Council Candidates: Tanya Woo". South Seattle Emerald. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Hamlin, Andrew (May 26, 2022). "Louisa Hotel: History and mystery in plaster". Northwest Asian Weekly. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Okikawa, Emi. "Chinatown-International District Community Watch: Empowering the community to protect themselves and each other". Seattle Parks Foundation. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Robinson, Chetanya (January 20, 2022). "Chinatown-ID night watch group promotes community safety for unhoused and housed residents". International Examiner. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Leon, David (September 26, 2022). "Homeless shelter expansion proposed on "S" site in CID". Urbanize Seattle. Urbanize Media LLC. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Woo, Tanya (September 8, 2022). "Opinion: Systemic racism in lack of community outreach for Chinatown-ID shelter expansion". International Examiner. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Krieg, Hannah. "Chinatown Protests "Homelessness Megaplex"". The Stranger. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ King, Angela (October 17, 2022). "Homeless shelter expansion plans halted for Chinatown-International District". KUOW. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ "Tanya Woo announces campaign for Seattle City Council". King5. February 16, 2023. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ "King County Official Results August 2023 Primary" (PDF). King County Elections. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ "King County Official Results November 2023 Election" (PDF). King County Elections. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ "Seattle City Council seeks applicants for vacant seat". King5. January 4, 2024. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Cohen, Josh. "72 people applied for the Seattle City Council's vacant seat". Croscut. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Trumm, Doug (January 24, 2024). "Seattle Council Appoints Morales Challenger Tanya Woo to Fill-In Council Seat". Urbanist. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Barnett, Erica C. (June 6, 2024). ""I Will Accept Whatever You Think is Best": Woo Says She'll Recuse Herself From Gig Worker Wage Vote". Publicola. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ Nerbovig, Ashley (September 19, 2024). "Seattle City Council Passes Unpopular Exclusion Zones, Reinstated Prostitution Loitering Laws". The Stranger. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ Cohen, Josh (September 17, 2024). "Seattle enacts controversial drug, prostitution 'stay out' zones". Cascade PBS. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ Kroman, David (March 13, 2024). "Tanya Woo launches race to retain seat on Seattle City Council". Seattle Times. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ "King County August 2024 Primary Results" (PDF). King County Elections. Retrieved August 18, 2024.
- ^ a b Radoc Cabahug, Jadenne (September 18, 2024). "5 takeaways from the Seattle City Council Position 8 debate". Cascade PBS. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ Krieg, Hannah (September 19, 2024). "Tanya Woo Shadowboxes Old City Council on Debate Stage". The Stranger. Retrieved September 25, 2024.