Joe Mallahan, former business exec and 2009 candidate, announces new bid for Seattle mayor

May 08, 2025 / 11:39 am

A new competitor has emerged against Bruce Harrell in Seattle’s 2025 race for mayor.

Former T-Mobile executive and 2009 mayoral candidate Joe Mallahan announced Thursday that he’s campaigning once more, joining a pool of seven total challengers to Harrell’s seat.

Mallahan highlighted homelessness, public safety, and the cost of living as key issues, saying the city’s current leadership has been too slow to address them.

“Modest improvements aren’t enough,” Mallahan said in a statement announcing his campaign.

“I’ll lead from the frontlines,” his statement continued. “I’ll show up — on the streets, in neighborhoods, and inside City Hall— to bring urgency and accountability to every corner of city government.”

Mallahan also pointed to a recent string of controversies surrounding Harrell, including the firing of former Police Chief Adrian Diaz and the alleged mistreatment of women working for the city.

“The mayor has badly mismanaged the police department and has actively worked against the will of the voters of Seattle to address our homelessness crisis – refusing to take material steps to launch social housing development in Seattle,” he said. “Even worse, sexual harassment and marginalization of women at City Hall has seemed to become pervasive in Bruce Harrell’s administration.”

Mallahan lost the 2009 mayoral race to former Mayor Mike McGinn by roughly 7,200 votes. Then regarded as a newcomer, Mallahan had been endorsed by The Seattle Times’ editorial board as “a deliberative businessman with a community-organizing background who understands politics well enough to learn the job.”

Harrell’s other challengers include Joe Molloy, a homelessness advocate and resident of the communal encampment known as Tent City 3, and longtime public transit and labor activist Katie Wilson.

The candidates will face-off during the Aug. 5 primary. The general election will take place on Nov. 4.