Spokane City Council candidates discuss public safety goals ahead of election

SPOKANE, Wash. — In four weeks, Spokane will pick who they want to fill three City Council seats. Candidates discussed their plans to address Spokane’s public safety and homelessness issues.

For many voters, public safety is a key factor in their decision-making process in this election.

Some candidates support more law enforcement, while others focus on social services. The consensus among all six candidates is that they don’t believe the city’s current approach is working.

The debate centers largely around Proposition 1. In 2023, about 75% of Spokane voters backed Proposition 1, which aimed to ban camping citywide with few exceptions. However, the state Supreme Court said most of it couldn’t be enforced, and the City Council did not reinstate it in June.

District 1

District 1 incumbent Johnathan Bingle emphasizes law and order, advocating for Proposition 1’s enforcement.

“What the city of Spokane really needs to do is it really needs to establish a culture of, you know, law and order,” Bingle said.

Challenger Sarah Dixit questions the use of Proposition 1 as a solution, favoring the development of new evidence-based approaches.

“We know that criminalizing and putting people in jail isn’t a long-term solution in terms of getting to the root cause. So I believe in looking at things that are evidence based and data driven.” Dixit said.

District 2

In District 2, Kate Telis proposes empowering more social workers while expressing reservations about Proposition 1’s application.

“If we allow social workers and people with lived experience to actually make the first point of contact. I think we’re going to have more success,” Telis said.

Her opponent, Alejandro Barrientos, supports enforcing existing laws and sees Proposition 1 as a tool to achieve better pubic safety.

“A lot of that starts with enforcing, the laws that we already have in place. And by giving people the options of getting the services that they need,” Barrientos said.

District 3

District 3’s Zack Zappone advocates for a balanced approach, integrating the intentions of Proposition 1.

“We need both compassion and connecting people to services. And we need law enforcement. And, jail is an option of last resort,” Zappone said.

Christopher Savage emphasizes the need for police support and aligning the city’s approach fully with the objectives of Proposition 1.

“We need to make sure that we are supporting our police by giving them all the tools in their toolbox so they can be able to enforce properly and make sure our, city is safe and clean,” Savage said.

All candidates agree that immediate action is necessary and conversations alone are not enough.