". . . Public service as an elected official is a high calling and we need to elect the very best and capable citizens to conduct public business on our behalf. In my nearly thirty years around City government, Margaret stands out as a City Councilmember for her hard work, her brains and common sense, her integrity and courage, her absolute dedication to stewardship in the broad public interest, and her focus on realistic solutions to problems. And, she works with her Council colleagues, the Mayor, County and Regional partners to craft enduring, not sound bite, solutions.

"By comparison to much of the politics of today, Margaret . . . is trustworthy, she listens genuinely, she respects you and me and cares what we think, she is passionate and consistent in advancing the public interest, she can make deals to get things done without ever compromising her integrity, she doesn’t shy from controversy, and she is up to the hard work it takes to make good and lasting decisions. Here are a few specific examples of Margaret’s work on the Council that demonstrate her combination of talent, character, and passion that I so respect:

• “In the early 1990’s, Seattle’s downtown retail core was literally dying from business closures and a huge increase in crime and drug trafficking. I was the Pike Place Market Director at the time and dealt with the realities of the deterioration on a daily basis. Margaret chaired the City Council’s Public Safety Committee and she, Mayor Norm Rice, and City Attorney Mark Sidran acted swiftly and in unison to enact controversial civility standards that worked to set new standards for acceptable public behavior, to add bicycle and emphasis patrols in the downtown to rapidly respond to the drug problems, and addressed resources for the homeless through increased transitional housing and day services. Margaret was a crucial player in the public responses that helped turn the decline of the downtown around.
• “In the mid-1990’s, as Chair of the City Council Utility and Environmental Management Committee, Margaret studied hard and became extremely knowledgeable about the complex world of public power and the energy industry, from a local, regional, and national perspective. Margaret was a very early and one of the lone voices that understood the dangers of California-style deregulation and fought off measures to implement similar deregulation in Washington State. While City Light could not escape the regional impacts of the California debacle, it would have been far worse is Washington had adopted California’s deregulation approach.
• “Environmental stewardship became a hallmark of Margaret’s tenure as Chair of the Utility and Environmental Management Committee. Under her leadership, the City’s Environmental Management Office was established to help businesses and residents alike conserve energy and their record is reflected in reduced bills and managed growth for thousands of City Light customers. And, Margaret turned the spotlight for environmental stewardship on the City government and introduced requirements to make the City a practitioner of what we preached.
• “Over the past three years, Margaret has chaired the Water and Health Committee. Her leadership led to resolution of decade long disputes with suburban cities to whom Seattle supplied water and we moved from fighting with each other to combining our efforts to ensure a robust water supply and effective salmon recovery programs.
• “In these extremely difficult budget times for State, County, and City funding, Margaret was the glue for the City’s partnerships with suburban cities and the County to make public health and community clinics a top priority in city and state budgets. Because of her perseverance, hard work, and collaboration, critical core services to those with no health care coverage was salvaged.

"This is not political rhetoric; these are accomplishments of which I have personal knowledge and that are well documented. Margaret is the real thing, the ideal we talk about when we sometimes lament the state of political affairs.”

Shelly Yapp, Member, UW Board of Regents
Development Director, Seattle Center

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