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Mamdani-style candidate living off parents’ money could ouster incumbent Dem mayor
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An inexperienced, far-left radical mayoral candidate, who has conceded that financial support from her parents has allowed her to run her campaign in the expensive city of Seattle, is on track to take down the incumbent Democratic mayor who has worked in city politics for almost two decades.
Katie Wilson, a self-proclaimed «socialist,» is out front of incumbent Bruce Harrell by just under 100 votes as of Tuesday, according to the latest election results from Seattle’s King County. The lead has ping-ponged back-and-forth between the two candidates since last week’s Tuesday general election.
The race was held alongside a slate of other top races around the country, including gubernatorial races for New Jersey and Virginia, as well as the New York City mayoral race. The elections were largely seen as a win for Democrats and, in particular, for the far-left faction of the base, which saw local socialist candidates, like Mamdani and others, come away with victories.
Wilson, who has been likened to Mamdani, could become the latest self-described socialist to win elected office if she maintains her lead. However, unlike many of the other socialist candidates who won their elections last week, but similar to Mamdani, Wilson will end up in a post charged with leading one of the country’s largest metropolitan areas. Seattle’s metropolitan residency is among one of the largest in the United States with over 4 million residents.
LEFTWARD LURCH: SECOND SOCIALIST LEADER READY TO RULE ANOTHER ICONIC AMERICAN CITY
Progressive activist Katie Wileson (left) and incumbent Democratic Party Mayor of Seattle Bruce Harrell (right) are battling in a razor-tin election to be Seattle’s next mayor. (Katie Wilson Campaign/Getty Images)
«Yes, I am a socialist,» Wilson said earlier this year. «I’m not out here waving a socialist flag, because I’m not a super ideological person. I’m also not sure that label will help me in the general election. But yes, I’m fine with being called a socialist»
Wilson, like Mamdani, has proposed the idea of implementing government-run grocery stores. She has also refused to commit to reducing Seattle’s growing tent encampments, which have long been a growing problem for the city. Instead, Wilson has proposed moving the encampments on a «case-by-case» basis. Meanwhile, Wilson also pledged to «Trump-proof» the city of Seattle.
The far-left candidate is juxtaposed to a more established and experienced politician in Harrell, who was a member of the city council beginning in 2008 before eventually becoming mayor. Much of Harrell’s attacks targeting Wilson, who describes herself as a policy nerd, have hinged on her lack of experience.
«She’s really not even qualified to do the job. She hasn’t had the experiences,» Harrell said of Wilson during an interview leading up to last week’s elections.
«The fact of the matter is, while my opponent has ideas, she hasn’t done anything,» Harrell added during a debate before the election as well. «She has no experience or training or ability to manage a budget. And what we think the voters will see is that running a major city like Seattle is a big job. And she’s advancing some plans, like our 4,000 emergency housing, or shelter units, that just can’t be done in how she’s describing it. So you’ll see the weakness in her platform – just complaints with no solutions.»
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In response to criticism about her alleged lack of experience, Wilson has acknowledged that she is «an outsider» in the sense she has not held elected office before. However, Wilson has contested that she is «an outsider who comes with an insider’s knowledge and experience.»
Far-left Democratic candidate Katie Wilson (right) has been compared to Zohran Mamdani. Both have proposed implementing city-run grocery stores if elected. (Rashid Umar Abbasi for Fox News Digital; Reuters/Chris Helgren; Katie Wilson for Seattle )
Wilson’s background includes the operation of a small nonprofit called the Transit Riders Union, for which her work has included advocating for policies around minimum wage increases, better access to public transit and affordable housing. Prior to her establishment of the Transit Riders Union in 2011, Wilson worked several jobs in various unrelated industries, including as a barista, boatyard worker, apartment manager, lab technician, baker, construction worker, and legal assistant.
«These early experiences grounded her in the everyday realities of working people and shaped her lifelong commitment to improving people’s lives,» Wilson’s campaign website says of the candidate’s work history.
Prior to moving to Seattle in 2004, just four years before Harrell was elected to Seattle’s city council, Wilson lived in upstate New York. After graduating from high school in Binghamton, Wilson studied physics and philosophy at Oxford University thanks to financial assistance from her parents living in New York. Wilson ultimately left Oxford debt-free, Wilson credits to her parents. However, she also left without a degree, dropping out just six weeks before her graduation.
MAMDANI’S MOTHER IN UNEARTHED 2013 INTERVIEW: ‘HE IS NOT AN AMERICAN AT ALL’
Meanwhile, the financial assistance from Wilson’s parents living in New York continues for her today, she says, crediting them with allowing her to live in a city as expensive as Seattle.
«They send me a check periodically to help with the childcare expenses,» Wilson told Seattle’s PubliCola, noting daycare for her kids cost about $2,200 per month. Wilson did not share precisely how much her parents contribute, pointing out that she does not keep track. However, when pressed for more details, Wilson reportedly said the money comes in every few months.
The Seattle skyline is pictured from a Washington State Ferry in Seattle, Washington. (REUTERS/Jason Redmond)
«Before I decided to run for office, my husband and I were just kind of juggling our kid back and forth,» Wilson continued about the childcare costs her parents assisted with. «We didn’t have her in daycare because it’s so expensive. But then when I decided to run, we’re like, we really need childcare.»
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Wilson began getting paid a full-time paycheck from her Transit Riders Union nonprofit in 2019, seven years after it was founded in 2011. Tax records show that Wilson brought in $72,669 in 2022 for 55-hours of work. There are no records of Wilson’s salary for 2023 or 2024, reportedly due to the fact the nonprofit changed tax preparers recently, according to PubliCola. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does not require nonprofits to disclose salaries of employees making under $100,000 per year.
Wilson reported earning between $60,000 and $99,000 in a financial statement to the city upon declaring her candidacy for mayor. Wilson also reported income «less than $30,000» from PubliCola, The Urbanist and The Stranger, respectively, for work as a «columnist» for the left-wing online news outlets.
Wilson’s campaign did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment on this article.
2025 2026 elections coverage,elections state and local,elections,seattle,socialism,democratic party
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A government shutdown, big or small, is usually a front-and-center issue for lawmakers — but the most recent partial closure could be put on the back burner as Congress returns to several issues in Washington.
Senate Democrats and the White House are still at odds over funding the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), as the shutdown dragged into its tenth day. Neither side is budging, with the most recent concrete action coming early last week.
Trump, who proved pivotal in striking a funding truce with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., in January, was not directly involved in recent negotiations.
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President Donald Trump has not had any «direct conversations or correspondence» with congressional Democrats recently. (Evan Vucci/The Associated Press )
Trump has not had any «direct conversations or correspondence» with congressional Democrats recently, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said, noting that the White House and its representatives have been handling the dialogue.
«But, of course, Democrats are the reason that the Department of Homeland Security is currently shut down,» she said. «They have chosen to act against the American people for political reasons.»
Senate Democrats offered a counter to the White House’s own counterproposal, which quickly was rejected as «unserious» by Leavitt. It’s a peculiar instance, given that this is the third shutdown during Trump’s second term, and neither side appears to be in a particular rush to end it.
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Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and his caucus have not relented in their position as DHS enters its tenth day of being shut down. (Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told Fox News Digital that there’s «some room for give and take» in the negotiations, but remained firm in the GOP’s positioning against requiring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents from getting judicial warrants, unmasking or other reforms sought by Democrats that could increase risks for agents in the field.
«I felt like, you know, the last offer the White House put out there was a really — it was a good faith one, and it was clear to me that they’re attempting, in every way, to try and land this thing so we can get DHS funded,» Thune said.
Funding the agency will be a top priority for the upper chamber, but they’ll be delayed because of winter storms descending on the East Coast. The weather has caused the Senate to delay a vote on the original DHS spending bill until Tuesday night, ahead of Trump’s State of the Union address.
There are other issues that could get in the way of hashing out a deal, including a possible conflict with Iran and Trump’s desire to move ahead with tariffs without congressional approval.
GOP WARNS DEMOCRATS USING DHS SHUTDOWN TO STALL SENATE VOTER ID PUSH
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., warned that Senate Democrats were trying to tie up Republicans from hitting the campaign trail ahead of the pivotal 2026 midterm cycle. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
Trump told reporters Friday that he was «considering» a limited military strike against Iran, which already has riled up some in Congress, who are demanding that lawmakers get a say on whether the U.S. strikes.
Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said in a statement that he has a war powers resolution to block an attack on Iran filed and ready, and challenged his colleagues to vote against it.
«If some of my colleagues support war, then they should have the guts to vote for the war and to be held accountable by their constituents, rather than hiding under their desks,» Kaine said.
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On the heels of the Supreme Court’s ruling to torpedo his sweeping duties, Trump is considering bypassing Congress to move ahead with another set of global 10% tariffs.
That comes as some Republicans are quietly celebrating the end of the duties, and others are open to working with the administration on a path forward for trade policy.
On tariffs, a Republican aide told Fox News that the GOP was «waiting to see what POTUS does next.»
«The State of the Union should be interesting,» they said.
politics,senate,government shutdown,homeland security
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Following the reported killing of major cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as El Mencho, multiple American tourists vacationing in Puerto Vallarta told Fox News Digital they unexpectedly found themselves in the middle of a violent cartel retaliation.
As airlines canceled flights and authorities issued shelter-in-place orders, stranded visitors reported cars set ablaze, suspected cartel members blocking major roads, and stores ransacked by looters — scenes some witnesses said made parts of the popular resort city feel like «a war breaking out in the streets.»
Witnesses said they were forced to evacuate their rooms, manage with limited hotel food, and even venture outside in search of meals while waiting for Mexican authorities to regain control of the city.
Staying at an Airbnb near a main road, Eugene Marchenko, 37, of Charleston, South Carolina, told Fox News Digital he woke up to blaring horns and saw six cars completely engulfed in flames just outside his balcony. He and his wife, who had arrived in Mexico only a day earlier, were forced to evacuate for several hours, fearing that a nearby fuel tanker, also ablaze, could explode.
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«I looked down and they’re completely engulfed in flames,» Marchenko said. «It was six cars in total that burned and one fuel tanker.»
He said he watched a neighbor’s video showing men he believed to be cartel members forcing people out of their vehicles, then pouring gasoline and setting the cars on fire.
«They told the people to leave,» Marchenko said. «Then they were taking the gas and pouring the gas on the vehicle and waiting until everybody was clear before they were setting it on fire.»
Later in the afternoon, Marchenko ventured out to find food and said he saw pharmacies and corner stores completely burned down, adding that younger crowds had broken into nearby buildings to loot beer and cigarettes.
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Vehicles appear to carry multiple armed forces in Puerto Vallarta. (Fox News Digital)
Videos obtained by Fox News Digital show a helicopter hovering above his building, circling as if searching for someone, while Mexican armed forces and armored vehicles moved through the streets below.
Public transportation and Ubers had come to a complete halt, Marchenko added, saying that even if flights resume, he is unsure how they would reach the airport.
Despite the chaos, Marchenko noted that no one appeared to panic.
«There’s definitely not any panic from almost nobody here,» he said. «I think it’s interesting, almost everybody was just annoyed more than anything.»
SOCCER MATCHES POSTPONED AFTER MEXICO KILLS CARTEL LEADER ‘EL MENCHO’ NEAR WORLD CUP HOST
A plume of smoke rises in Puerto Vallarta on Feb. 22, 2026. (Fox News Digital)
Adriana Belli, 49, another visitor from Miami, told Fox News Digital that she had planned to spend over a week in Mexico to attend a wedding in Guadalajara and celebrate a friend’s birthday in Mexico City.
Belli said the sudden outbreak of violence was especially shocking, noting that she had spoken with American tourists staying at her Marriott resort who insisted the area was extremely safe after visiting Puerto Vallarta for 24 years.
She added that guests who had gone to the airport were under lockdown and were managing with the limited food available.
«A lot of the other tourists who had early morning flights were actually able to get to the airport, but they are now locked down in the airport and unable to leave,» she said. «So what we heard from other guests is they are just sort of surviving off of granola bars.»
A fuel tanker was set ablaze near a gas station in Puerto Vallarta on Feb. 22, 2026. (Fox News Digital)
Another source staying at a separate resort told Fox News Digital that restaurants and room service had been shut down. Guests were brought to the lobby for what was described as «the last bit of food.»
He added that this was the first trip where he and his wife were away from their 4-year-old son, and that he had to call home to tell family members where to find their will.
«This is the first time we’ve ever been away from him. My wife was saying, ‘We’re never leaving him again,’» he said. «I had to call my mom today and, you know, just tell her, ‘Look, here’s where my will is. We just created this. I don’t want you to panic, but I may need you to stay a couple days extra with my son.’»
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He added that, despite the area appearing like a war zone, he is remaining optimistic that the authorities will restore order in the coming days.
Mexico’s Defense Department said Sunday that Oseguera was killed in a military operation. The news reportedly triggered widespread unrest and uncertainty across multiple states as Mexican authorities worked to stabilize the region.
location mexico,mexican cartel violence,world,latin america
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