Initiative 135’s lead widened slightly after King County Elections released a new batch of votes Wednesday afternoon, following Tuesday’s special election.
The tally grew to nearly 54% of voters in favor of creating the Seattle Social Housing Developer, and 46% of voters saying “no.”
So far, 119,434 votes have been counted with an estimated 40,000 remaining, showing a nearly 25% voter turnout during the odd-year special election. Elections officials predict a 33% voter turnout.
King County Elections officials said they’ll release another batch of votes Thursday afternoon.
The proponents of the measure declared victory Tuesday night, not waiting for the results to be finalized.
Initiative 135 asks voters to create a new public development authority to build “social housing,” an affordable-housing model that’s been more widely used in Europe, and is slowly gathering steam in the U.S.
If passed, the initiative will establish the social housing developer, who will be able to develop, own, acquire and maintain social housing in Seattle. The initiative defines “social housing” as mixed-income, permanently affordable housing, where tenants have a say in how it’s run.
Seattle’s social housing developer would create housing for people earning up to 120% area median income.
Leaders behind the initiative say that they intentionally left out a funding mechanism from the initiative’s language to prevent it from being tossed out by the courts, but if approved, the developer will immediately be able to apply for grants and philanthropic dollars.
The developer will also be able to issue bonds in exchange for low-interest loans.
The only funding item included in the measure asserts that, if passed, the city of Seattle would be required to provide startup funds, estimated at about $750,000, for the first 18 months to pay for office space and two staff members.
Initiative 135 was the only measure on Seattleite’s ballots. A $253 million Enumclaw School District bond was the only other measure in Tuesday’s special election in King County. That is currently failing with 75% of Enumclaw voters saying “no.”
