The deadline to turn in your ballot is next Tuesday, November 6, a.k.a. Election Day. (And you don’t need a stamp… for real this time.) Need help making sense of it? Grab your ballot and a cup of coffee — and let’s do this democracy thing. 💪

The Guides

» The King County Voters’ Pamphlet: You got this one at home when you received your ballot. Accidentally recycled it? Check it out on the King County Elections site. If you scroll down and click “My voter guide” on the left, you can add you name, birthday and house number to get a personalized guide for races on your ballot.

» Crosscut’s procrastinator’s guide: Here’s a handy overview of the platforms for each candidate and initiative. Plus it rounds up what other regional news outlets have endorsed.

» The Seattle Times voter guide: This one’s a guide created by Times journalists independently of the Times’ editorial board, a.k.a. the group of folks who write endorsements. The journalists’  guide describes initiatives and candidate platforms and includes links for further reading.

The Endorsements

Here’s how some local orgs and media outlets recommend you vote…

• The Seattle Times’ editorial board (from the center)
• The Stranger’s election control board (from the left)
• The 770 AM KTTH Voters Guide (from the right)
• The Progressive Voters’ Guide (from the left)
• Seattle Transit Blog (from fans of better transit)
• The Urbanist (from fans of these urban principles)

The Initiatives

There are four statewide initiatives up for vote this year. Here are the details:

The carbon fee: Last week, we explained how to help you decipher the fee proposal, also known as Initiative 1631, which would charge polluters for the carbon they put into the atmosphere. (Some of you weighed in with your thoughts about it here.) Three more helpful places to check out: Crosscut’s and The Seattle Channel’s debate between the “yes” and “no” campaigns and a high-profile endorsement in favor of the carbon fee, from The New York Times.

The grocery tax: In January, Seattle began taxing sugary drinks like soda. Lots of people weren’t fans, including reps with Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo, and they want to prevent future taxes on grocery items in Washington. Learn more at The News Tribune, The Seattle Channel, and Seattle Times columnist Danny Westneat.

The gun restrictions: If passed, Initiative 1639 would enact some of our country’s strictest gun laws, including raising the age requirement to buy a semi-automatic weapon to 21 and requiring more background checks. Here’s more reading from The Seattle Times and KUOW and a video from The Seattle Channel.

Police accountability: This would update the way we prosecute cops who use deadly force, like in the prominent local killings of Charleena Lyles, Tommy Le, and Che Taylor. Check out Crosscut and The Seattle Channel for debates between the plan’s supporters and opponents.

Not sure how to turn that ballot in? Here’s all you need to know, including where to submit your ballot and where to get a new one. Once your ballot’s in, you can track it using this handy tool. Happy voting, Seattle.

Speaking of political endorsements… Crosscut asked a few local politicos and journalists if local media endorsements even matter anymore. Their answers make you think about a part of local elections we don’t dive into very much. “Oftentimes,” says Republican consultant Alex Hays, “this notion that an endorsement doesn’t help or matter is offered by the people who lost the endorsement.” (Crosscut)

Killed over a broken window. A man in Licton Springs is facing a murder charge after he allegedly fatally shot a 26-year-old named Daniel Alberto. Police say the suspect — John Thomas Davis — thought Daniel broke one of his apartment windows, was “fixated on exacting consequences,” and was saying he “might have to take matters into his own hands” when it comes to crime in his neighborhood. Why? Because John thinks that people living homeless are behind an uptick in crime in the area, and he’d felt “significant animosity” toward Daniel and the homeless community, police said. (The Seattle Times)

Congrats, strange version of Seattle. The travel gurus at Lonely Planet put Seattle on their global list of the top 10 cities to visit in 2019. Which is cool. Then they spent half the time hailing the way Amazon’s transformed our city center (hardly the local consensus) and implied that the underground tunnel that’s set to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct already did. Which is… weird. 🤔 (Lonely Planet)

That bad, huh? Yesterday we asked the singles among you if you buy this popular podcast’s conclusion that Seattle is the worst city in the country to find love. And most of you — 60 percent! — said yes. Is there hope for us yet? We think so. Check out Seattle’s “Not Creepy Gathering For People Who Are Single And Want To Fall In Love.” The next one’s coming up November 8. It’s a start, right?

GO F***ING VOTE

There are nice ways and not-so-nice ways to tell people to do things. In this clip, Sub Pop Records CEO Megan Jasper curses like a sailor while she you tells you to get off you a** and vote. It’s part of KEXP’s get out the vote campaign that packs a f***ing punch. We wouldn’t word it quite this same way, but we’re right there with her in spirit. As reader Tim Hay put it, “We cannot be lazy!” 🇺🇸

Own that civic duty, all. And have a good one. — The Evergrey