TACOMA—The Greater Seattle Korean Association (GSKA) held a candidate forum for Tacoma and Pierce County on Wednesday, Oct. 29. The candidates were mostly on their best behavior — with only two noted criticisms lobbied at an opponent during the roughly two-hour forum — keeping in theme with the event’s “One Heart, Many Voices” message.
“Greater representation and the opportunity for our voices from the various communities to be heard directly by the candidates was the most important reason why we held this forum,” GSKA Vice President Sam Sim said. “We had eight candidates participate and over a dozen ethnicities represented at this forum.”
The forum was held at the Asia Pacific Cultural Center in Tacoma to a packed house and was a collaborative effort between APCC, GSKA, Tacoma Community House, and Asia Pacific Islander Coalition of Washington. With so many different ethnicities and languages, interpreters were present in the crowd, with many in the audience using phones and tablets to also provide live translations. Food was provided at the event, donated by Sim’s wife, Christine, from their Bothell restaurant Teriyaki, etc!
“This event was deeply meaningful because it marked the first time in over 30 years that the [Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander] and communities of color came together for a town hall and candidate forum in Tacoma and Pierce County,” Sim said. “Our goal was to ensure that our diverse voices were heard directly by the candidates and to strengthen civic engagement across all communities. Representation matters and this forum was an important step toward building understanding, unity and a stronger collective voice.”
The primary concerns brought up during the Q&A mirrored the main talking points from the majority of candidates: affordability and safety. These sentiments can be felt in Snohomish County, and, honestly, throughout the United States.
After the peak of inflation in 2022 of 9.1%, the downward trending graph of inflation to the current rate of 3% may seem more manageable, but it doesn’t tell the full story of consistently rising prices. Food prices in particular have been relentless, up 18.2% since January of 2022. These issues, as well as concerns about United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), largely dominated the discussion at the Tacoma forum.
Another major topic was the importance of voting in local elections. Current Tacoma Councilmember and incumbent Sandesh Sadalge stated that while voting on the “national level” can “feel like it doesn’t count,” he stressed that “on a local level, it absolutely does.” Sadalge and other candidates emphasized that many local elections see small turnouts and margins of two or three digits to decide the winner and that local policymakers often have the most direct impact on day-to-day life.
“One of the ways that you can have your voice heard is through voting,” incumbent Tacoma City Councilmember Joe Bushnell said. “People have fought, bled and died for this right that we have in this country and we need to make sure that we’re upholding that by continuing to vote. A healthy democracy has a healthy electoral base that’s voting year after year after year. Vote in every election. Your vote does matter.”
While Tacoma mayoral candidate Anders Ibsen also agreed that voting was important, his messaging did deviate.
“I think instead of shaming people for not voting, I think the better question is; ‘How can we be worthy of you voting more?’” Ibsen said. “What can we do to make politics and elections and government more relevant to you to prove that these things can actually work when you get involved?”
During the forum, the only candidate-pointed criticisms were incredibly minor. Tacoma City Council candidate Silong Chhun critiqued his opponent, Sadalge, for coming to Washington “to capitalize on the weed business” and later calling Sadalge a “liar” after Sadalge commented on how he and the rest of the Tacoma City Council moved to close loopholes for city agencies to work with ICE. So overall, it was a civil evening of discussion.
This civility is a stark contrast to mailers and ads circulating some of the races, like ReachOut’s Washington’s attacks on Pierce County Council District 5 incumbent Bryan Yambe. The editorial board of “The News Tribune” in Tacoma recently removed their endorsement of Yambe while still choosing to not endorse his opponent, Terry Wise. While explaining their decision, they, too, mentioned the “mudslinging and extreme statements made by the campaign and supporters of… Wise.” However, none of this was on display during the “One Heart, Many Voices” candidate forum.
While the candidate forum was a GSKA event, the organization’s spearhead of the event, Sim, has started a new endeavor called the Reach Foundation.
“The mission of the Reach Foundation is to empower new and emerging next-generation leaders by educating them on how to become more engaged in civic participation and community involvement,” Sim said. “Ultimately, the goal is to support candidates — regardless of their background, ethnicity, or community — by equipping and empowering them with the tools, knowledge, and encouragement they need when they decide to run for office.”
Author: George Ftikas Jr.
