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KUOW Blog

News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.

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  • The midterm election ... so far: Today So Far

    "So far" is generally the theme of the day after Election Day.

    This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 9, 2022.

    In the warmer months, there is an algae bloom that often shows up around Puget Sound. You'll see it along waterfronts, on ferry rides, and around docks. It appears red, and some years it coats the water far and wide. But after some time, when the sun goes down, the agitated water gives off an electric blue light. That's the impression I'm getting from the midterm election. Many were predicting a red wave to wash over the results, but with time, as waves of votes came in, there were more hints of blue than expected. So far, ultimate results are unknown. More votes are being counted, but it appears that the red wave didn't strike as strong as some hoped and others feared.

    The title of this newsletter, "Today So Far," is perhaps most apt for a day like today. "So far" is generally the theme of the day after Election Day. While some races can be called, there remains a lot of uncertainty around many others. We can only report on how things stand, so far. Only time will tell for how the Senate and House will look.

    Check out initial election results for key local races here. And here's a roundup of all KUOW's post-election reporting, so far.

    One thing I've noticed so far is that independents are said to have been the ones to swing election results. Independent candidates, however, haven't had as strong of an influence. From Oregon to Washington (and a bit beyond) all the independent candidates that Northwest News Network's Tom Banse profiled in the lead-up to the midterms have fallen short.

    For example, initial results show Independent Julie Anderson with 47% of the vote, trailing Democrat Steve Hobbs (50%) for secretary of state. Independent (and former GOP official) Chris Vance has 44% to Republican Phil Fortunato's 55% for state senator. Down in Oregon, Independent Betsy Johnson only has 9% of the vote for governor.

    I also found NPR's assessment intriguing, particularly the points about Trump-backed candidates and the abortion issue. Four states put the abortion issue up to voters. In three states, early results favor placing pro-abortion rights into state constitutions. In Kentucky, an effort to write anti-abortion language into the state constitution is failing.

    As for the Trump factor, the former president made more endorsements in 2022 than in previous election years. Some are making it through the general election and some are not. Either way, Republicans are not seeing their anticipated red wave, nationally. One analyst told NPR that the lack of Trump appeal with independent voters is a big reason why (there are those independents again).

    For a closer look at Washington's results, check out KUOW's Paige Browning on Seattle Now this morning.

    AS SEEN ON KUOW

    Continue reading »

  • Students, family react following Ingraham High School shooting

    School is canceled through Thursday at Seattle's Ingraham High School following Tuesday's shooting that left one student dead.

    Hundreds of parents stood in the cold outside Ingraham High School Tuesday morning, waiting to be reunited with their children. Deanna Meyerhoff was one of the first parents to arrive at the school after she got text messages from her son saying that there was a shooting inside.

    “So my son texted me," Meyerhoff said. "He said, 'School shooting.' That's all he said. I was like, 'Is it at Ingraham?' He's like, 'Yeah, there's a guy bleeding out outside my classroom.' And so I just was like, 'Oh my God,' and I jumped in the car.”

    RELATED: Student killed in shooting at North Seattle high school

    Ingraham senior Drevin Hiquiana said he was with friends when he heard the gunshots at IHS.

    "None of this should have happened," he said. "Like all unnecessary things happened. It was just all bad all over. I don't know."

    Senior Amerino Fennell told KUOW that he could hear the desperation in the voices of school officials as they announced over the intercom that the entire school was going into lockdown. He said officials need to do more to keep students safe.

    "How did the gun get into the school? Right?" Fennell said. "Nothing's being done. I mean ... we can't react to a shooting like this after the fact, like, it has to be done preemptively to prevent it from happening."

    About two dozen people attended a vigil Tuesday night at Haller Lake United Methodist Church.

    The student who was killed was shot inside a school hallway. Police have arrested one person accused of the shooting, and have recovered one gun that might have been used. Seattle Police say they are looking over security camera footage and interviewing students who were at the scene.

    Officials still have not released the name of the victim or the suspected shooter they have in custody.

    Continue reading »

  • Late voters find long lines in Seattle and Bellevue


    Voters in some locations across Seattle and Bellevue waited hours in frigid temperatures to register and cast their ballots Tuesday night.

    At the Lumen Field Event Center, voters stood in unusually long lines in blustery 38-degree weather. King County election officials confirmed two- to three-hour wait times on Tuesday.

    Other locations were busy, too. A voter waiting to drop off his ballot at the Ballard branch of the Seattle Public Library was exasperated at the long lines during the midterms, which historically have lower turnout than a general election.

    "It's typical for us to see about 50% of our turnout the day of the election and the day before, so pretty common for us,” said King County Elections Director Julie Wise. “But I think our vote centers are a little bit busier than we expected to see."

    Many of the issues were at county vote centers, where people can register, update records, or get help completing ballots. There’s also help for people with disabilities.

    Wise had words for the procrastinators: vote centers have been open since Friday and voters received ballots about three weeks ago.

    "If you do wait until Election Day, especially in a midterm or presidential (election), you are going to experience some wait time."

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  • Thousands of Snohomish County residents still without power

    Public utility crews have been working around the clock to restore electricity following last Friday's windstorm.

    While power is back for more 220,000 customers since then, crews are still working on a number of big jobs, according to Snohomish County PUD.

    “We’re seeing damage that some of our crews have never seen before,” said spokesperson Aaron Swaney.

    He says much of the damage involves multiple big trees tangled into poles and wires.

    Swaney says the first area of priority is critical infrastructure like hospitals, water pumps, and schools. Once power there is restored, residential customers are next.

    Some damage was easier to fix. But many situations are more complicated that require multiple crews.

    “First off, we have to bring in tree crews. They have to clear all that damage away and then the line crews can come in, they can reset the pole and then restring the wires,” Swaney said. “These jobs can take 10, 12 hours.”

    Mutual aid crews from other Northwest utilities are helping those efforts. Swaney says they hope to have power completely restored by Thursday.

    For customers who are still without power, there are cold weather shelters in Snohomish County that are open.

    Those who have generators are urged to keep those five feet away from the house, and make sure they’re in a well-ventilated area.

    Swaney said there are still a lot of downed wires in the area. He urged caution and instructed people to stay at least 30 feet away from the wires, just to be safe.

    Continue reading »

  • What's behind these election mailers?: Today So Far

    A deeper look at mailers and ads targeting the Seattle area.

    This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 8, 2022.

    All I wanted to do was play Words With Friends, but after every move I was reminded that we live in a world that pits white people and Asians against everybody else.

    At least, that's the world we live in if you go by the narrative America First Legal is promoting. AFL has been targeting Western Washington with advertisements delivered via smartphone games (like the one I was playing), and through physical fliers sent to Seattle-area mail boxes. The ads essentially state: left-wing politicians are against white people and Asians; affirmative action is a tool used to keep Asians from succeeding; Asian families will not succeed because of racists policies coming from Democrats and President Biden.

    The advertisements have come in the lead up to the midterm election. Oddly, they don't promote a candidate or issue on a ballot. Instead, they simply hype a political, race-based narrative fit for the culture war: target Asians with messaging that sours perceptions of Democrats. Just as with most "news," information, or headline that spreads fast while provoking strong, divisive emotions, a calculated effort is behind it all.

    The mailers sent to Western Washington have also caught the attention of University of Washington Researcher Sarah Nguyen, who studies misinformation in the Vietnamese community.

    "There are pictures of Biden and also ... news clippings coming from various sources, Fox News, saying how, very vaguely, Biden and the left have made it difficult for Asian-Americans to get job opportunities, to get into school opportunities, and basically get access to rights people have been fighting for ... when in fact, that is not the case," Nguyen told Seattle Now, noting that she saw this messaging echo through Vietnamese channels.

    "Within the community, there is a polarized view of many people thinking, 'Well I don't want to support affirmative action if it is going to only support Black and brown people, and Asians are seen outside of that.' Then there are others who see that is not the case, and kind of the fuller story that it's not just about race, but it's about the personal statement, it's a holistic idea that includes affirmative action."

    That level of nuance is not readily available through AFL's ads.

    America First Legal is an activist organization that considers itself as the other side of the ACLU coin. It uses legal action for Conservative causes. It formed in 2021 and quickly began filing lawsuits and public information requests, targeting the Biden administration and other government agencies, generally pushing hot button issues and divisive narratives. The group was founded by Stephen Miller, advisor to former President Trump. It's worth noting that Miller has been known to use news media to push narratives, and has also been known to favor white nationalist literature. Looking at AFL's website, it presents a professional facade, but as an online content producer, I can tell you that most of it is lifted from open-source photo libraries. I've used many of the same free, generic photos from Unsplash; anybody can. I suspect that similar stock footage was used for the video advertisements that were fed to my smartphone game.

    Let's take a closer look at some of the "news" stories that AFL puts in front of its audience.

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  • 1 student killed in shooting at North Seattle high school

    Update 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 8

    Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell confirmed that, “The student who was tragically shot has passed away ... the student is deceased," following a Tuesday morning shooting at Ingraham High School.

    Harrell made the announcement at a 2 p.m. press conference that also included statements from Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz, Seattle Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Brent Jones, and Congressmember Pramila Jayapal.

    “A tragedy has struck our community today," Jones said.

    “An Ingraham High School student was shot and killed this morning on campus in what was is believed to be a targeted attack," he said. "We have no reason to believe this was part of a bigger plan other than a targeted attack."

    The shooting took place inside a hallway at the high school, about 100 feet from any entrance, according to Chief Diaz.

    A suspect is in custody. Diaz reports that 911 calls came in around 9:55 a.m. and police officers arrived at the high school within four minutes.

    “Within four minutes we had a contact team already going into the school and trying to provide CPR to the victim. Another minute later, the Fire Department was called in as well,“ Diaz said. "An hour later we were able to take the suspect into custody … our harbor officers actually located the suspect and took him into custody with the King County Sheriff’s Department. We actually recovered a firearm, we don’t’ know if that firearm was used in the school, but we did recover a fire arm."

    Diaz said the arrest was made at a bus stop off 145th Street and Aurora Avenue North, about a mile away from campus. A firearm was found in the suspect's backpack.

    Meanwhile, at Ingraham High School, students were being reunited Tuesday afternoon with families following a campus-wide lockdown. All activities at the high school are suspended for Wednesday and Thursday.

    Diaz said SPD has recorded more than 660 shots fired so far in 2022, and has recovered even more guns.

    “This year we’ve recovered 1,000 firearms — 1,000 firearms," Diaz said. "That is unheard of. Even though we’ve been short-staffed, we’ve been recovering more firearms this year than when we had full staffing. We have a gun problem.”

    Chief Diaz also said guns have been recovered across various incidents, from domestic violence to road rage, drive-bys, and robberies.

    Original report

    Seattle Police reported a shooting at Ingraham High School Tuesday at approximately 10 a.m. Officials say the shooting took place inside the school.

    So far, police report a single victim who has life-threatening injuries, and say they have a suspect in custody. Police haven't said whether the victim was a student or staff member, and haven't provided details about the suspect.

    The school has been placed on lockdown as police and school officials work to set up a family reunification site at Meridian Avenue North and North 135th Street. They say they're also putting together a transportation plan for students who are unable to be picked up at the reunification site.

    Lakeside Middle School, a few blocks away from Ingraham, has also been placed on lockdown, according to a teacher at the school.


    Continue reading »

  • They're not 'soccer mom' voters anymore: Today So Far

    Election Day is tomorrow and some polls state that white suburban women are among the most influential blocks of voters. But this group is no longer the "soccer mom" voters of past elections.

    This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 7, 2022.

    Election Day is tomorrow. You have until 8 p.m. to turn your ballot into a drop box on Tuesday. KUOW reported this morning that about 32% of registered voters in Washington have turned in their ballots so far, which is down a few percentage points from the same time for the 2018 midterm election. The secretary of state, however, feels confident that there will be about 72% turnout in the end, which is on par with the last midterm.

    Like it or not, pollsters, campaigns, and political parties like to carve up voters into chunks. They divide us up by education levels, income, gender, ethnicity and so forth. I've talked about how formerly incarcerated people are able to vote this year. Political parties are also targeting Asian and Latino voters to give them an edge.

    Seattle Now reports that white suburban women voters are said to be among one of the more influential groups for this election. While this voting block isn't unheard of, let's be honest, you can't pin down a strict set of issues or way of thinking when it comes to any group that pollsters love to add up.

    "Things have changed a lot," Cathy Allen told Seattle Now. "When they were 'soccer moms,' which was another code word, they were very apolitical in their partisanship, but they were definitely good voters."

    Allen is a political consultant and an assistant teaching professor at the University of Washington and says we're talking about "a very unique group of people."

    "It's not just about women anymore, it's about white women who are working, white women who are home raising kids, it's about white women who are very engaged in what's going on in their local community, and it's white women who watch a lot of TV and get a lot of information online. They've changed dramatically, in terms of what is influencing the largest block of people who vote, which are women."

    Perhaps campaigns spend so much time targeting them because they are such a large voting group. If you go by the most recent poll from the Wall Street Journal, some of the messaging seems to be working — there appears to be a shift among white suburban women toward GOP congressional candidates.

    I'm going to point out that the Journal only surveyed 297 women, and it doesn't exactly say which suburbs they're from. The burbs outside LA are different than the burbs outside of Boise or Boston. Heck, Issaquah is different than Renton, or Lakewood, or Snoqualmie, or Camas, and so on.

    Democrats have been heavily pushing the abortion rights issue leading up to the election (they were asking my email inbox for money within minutes of the Supreme Court decision back in June). This may have been a miscalculation, however, if you're going by this poll, which states that the economy is top of mind for this voting block. Gas prices, grocery prices, and other costs are more immediate in the minds of these voters, and Republicans have always had good branding when it comes to economics (I'm not saying they are actually good at it, they just have good branding). According to Allen, however, that doesn't mean that the overturning of Roe v Wade hasn't had an impact this election season.

    "This year, we've seen a huge number of women register to vote," Allen said. "In some cases, in our five most Conservative, Republican states, what we've seen is 15% more women than men registering (to vote) ... and Roe v Wade is the reason they give as to why they are motivated to get more involved."

    Continue reading »

  • Frigid temps to chill Western Washington this week

    Cold weather shelters are extending hours, and more are popping up, as frigid weather moves into the Northwest this week.

    The Seattle area can expect high temps in the 40s, and low temps dipping into the low 30s, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service. It will be even colder in areas like Olympia or Puyallup.

    Snow levels will hover between 1,500–3,000 feet between Monday and Thursday. That will be well below many of the pass levels in the Cascade Mountains, however, there is not a lot of precipitation in the forecast, as of Monday. No major lowland snow accumulation is expected.

    Cold weather shelters

    • The Compass Housing Alliance says it will have extra beds ready to go by the middle of the week when temperatures are forecast to drop below freezing.
    • The Center at 210 Alaskan Way South (across from the Seattle ferry terminal) will be open between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily, and will offer overnight services between Tuesday and Thursday. Breakfast and dinner will be served.
    • The Salvation Army has a couple of day centers for adults: one at 4th Avenue and Jefferson; the other at the White Center Community Center (9050 16th Avenue SW).
    • The Elizabeth Gregory Home (1604 NE 50th Street) will be open for women, families and younger people.
    • Mary's Place Day Center (1830 9th Avenue) will be open for women, families and younger people.
    • Bellingham's downtown library will be open as a warming shelter.
    • Whatcom County will open an overnight warming shelter at Bellingham's Civic Field Athletic Complex (1355 Civic Field Way, Bellingham)
    • Snohomish County has a few warming shelters opening in Everett, Marysville, Monroe, and Snohomish.
    Continue reading »

  • In-person visits start up again at the King County Jail

    In-person visits are scheduled to begin again Monday for people being held at the King County Jail in downtown Seattle.

    It will be the first time the face-to-face visits have been allowed since the pandemic started, but critics and jail officials say that staffing shortages are still creating issues.

    “People are feeling very pleased with the fact that they can now see their loved ones in person," said Allen Nance, the new director of King County’s Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention. "And while we’ve maintained video visitation, it just isn’t the same.”

    With more than a fifth of corrections positions vacant, critics are skeptical that the jail can serve the needs of people held there.

    Molly Gilbert heads the union representing King County’s public defenders. She says the jail hasn’t had enough staffing to facilitate visits with defense lawyers. Now staff will struggle to accommodate family members as well.

    “When there isn’t staffing to bring people out, I just don’t know what that’s going to look like. So what I would be curious to know is how many visits are able to happen in a given week," Gilbert said.

    Michelle Helpenstell is the secretary for the King County Corrections Guild. In September she said she was working mandatory overtime five days a week, not able to go home between shifts, with a vending machine for meals.

    "It’s really nice vending machines, they have yogurts, boiled eggs, nicer food. But it does get old," Helpenstell said.

    Hiring is picking up this year, and corrections officers are pleased with a 15% pay bump in their latest contract.

    Read the full story about the King County Jail here.

    Continue reading »

  • 2022 Seattle cruise season exceeds pre-pandemic levels


    The Port of Seattle says the first full cruise season since the pandemic shut things down in 2020 was much better than expected.

    Seattle's cruise season kicked off in April and the last ship set sail in late October.

    “Cruise means big bucks for downtown workers and businesses, and boosts our city’s health and vibrancy,” said Jon Scholes, Downtown Seattle Association president and CEO. “The cruise industry reinforces downtown’s strengths while filling our waterfront with life and distributing a host of benefits to our community.”

    The Puget Sound Business Journal reports a total of 295 ships passed through Seattle between spring and fall of 2022. There were only 85 ships in 2021, and 211 in 2019.

    The Port says that 640,000 individual travelers hopped on a ship for trips between Seattle and Alaska alone. That is a 6% increase over 2019 levels.

    “More passengers means significantly more economic activity in our region,” said Maritime Managing Director Stephanie Jones Stebbins. “For local businesses that means more revenue for jobs and wages. The Port directs additional revenue right back into our community and maritime industries.”

    The Port further reports that hotel occupancy in downtown Seattle went up 67% in May, and 63% in June over pandemic levels.

    “This is due in no small part to the return of a full cruise season," said Tammy Blount-Canavan with Visit Seattle. "Passengers staying prior to and after Alaska cruises have been the key to survival for so many small businesses that make up the fabric of our culture and our community’s vibrancy.”

    The Seattle Southside Regional Tourism Authority reports similar results. It covers the area around Tukwila, SeaTac, and Des Moines. Hotels in this area saw higher revenues this year than in 2019, according to the Port. Seattle Southside Regional Tourism Authority CEO Mark Everton credits the location — between Sea-Tac Airport and the ships on the Seattle waterfront — along with access to light rail for the the good numbers.

    "The additional cruise guests in our region also boosted restaurant and retail spending," Everton said.

    Continue reading »

  • Turnout remains low heading into Tuesday’s midterm election

    With only a few days to go until Election Day, 68 percent of registered voters in Washington state have yet to return their ballots.

    At this point in the last midterm election in 2018, turnout in the state was about 6 percent higher than it is now.

    Campaign volunteers are busy knocking on doors, phone banking and sending out a final wave of ads over the weekend and into Monday.

    During the 2018 midterms, about 40 percent of all votes in Washington came in on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of election week. To be counted, ballots must be postmarked or physically returned by Tuesday.

    This year, the returns so far vary widely by age. While about 50 percent of retirement-age voters, those 65 or older, have turned in ballots, only 1 in 10 voters under the age of 35 had voted as of Friday.

    But experts say younger voters are also more likely to return ballots closer to the deadline and to use drop boxes on Election Day.

    Turnout also varies by county. For example, the typically red counties in the 8th Congressional District have higher turnout to this point than King County.

    King County favored Democrat Kim Schrier in 2020 and helped carry her to victory. Schrier won the 8th by more than 14,000 votes in 2020, reliant primarily on voters in King and Pierce counties.

    This year, Schrier is facing a new Republican challenger, Matt Larkin of Tacoma.

    With only a few days to go, election officials recommend that voters use drop boxes to make sure their ballots are accepted in time and counted.

    Drop boxes close at 8 p.m. Tuesday. People waiting to drop off their ballots will be allowed to complete the process if they’re in line by that deadline.

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