Seattle’s Democracy Vouchers program appears set for continuation, as early ballot returns put a measure renewing the program in the lead.
Proposition 1 was poised for passage with 56% of votes counted Tuesday night. It would mean Seattle holds onto the first-in-the-nation public campaign-financing program for another decade.
Voters created Seattle’s Democracy Voucher program in 2015. It gives every Seattle voter $100 in taxpayer funds to donate to candidates in each election. The program was pitched as a tool to empower ordinary voters and fight big money in politics in the wake of the controversial Citizens United Supreme Court ruling.
Proposition 1 will renew the property tax levy that funds the program for another decade, raising $4.5 million annually. The new levy will pay for the voucher program and related outreach and education. The city is also planning to create a new advisory committee that will look into ways to improve the program.
While the vouchers haven’t removed big money from politics, research suggests the program has led to a more diverse and representative pool of donors and candidates.
Proposition 1 was supported by Mayor Bruce Harrell and other local elected officials, and most of the candidates running for office this year used the vouchers in their campaigns. The levy didn’t generate an organized opposition campaign. Ari Hoffman, a local conservative radio host, wrote the opposition statement in the voters’ pamphlet, arguing that the voucher program is “inefficient, under utilized and fails to curb big money’s influence.”
The program has been broadly popular with candidates in Seattle, but most voters don’t use it. In the 2023 election, just 4.7% of voting age Seattle residents used their vouchers. The participation rate is somewhat limited, as candidates using the voucher program have to agree to a spending cap. Still, supporters of the program acknowledge that more work is needed to educate voters about the program.
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