PERSON: Katie Wilson
Employer
City of Seattle
Position
Mayor
Biography
Katherine Barrett Wilson (born July 12, 1982) is an American politician and activist, who is the mayor-elect of Seattle. Wilson is the co-founder and executive director of the Transit Riders Union, a group that focuses on improving public transportation and workers’ rights. In August 2025, Wilson placed first in the primary for the 2025 Seattle mayoral election, and advanced to the general election with incumbent mayor Bruce Harrell, later winning the election.
Wilson was raised in Binghamton, New York, by her parents, Anne Barrett Clark and David Sloan Wilson, both evolutionary biologists. She graduated in 2000 as salutatorian from Binghamton High School before studying physics and philosophy at Balliol College of Oxford in England. She withdrew from Oxford six weeks before she was scheduled to sit for the examinations in the final honours school for her degree and moved to Seattle in 2004. She worked several jobs after moving, including working in boat repair, construction, and as an office assistant.
In fall 2011, Wilson co-founded the Seattle Transit Riders Union (TRU), a nonprofit 501(c)(4) focused on improving public transportation in Seattle and King County, where she has been a paid, full-time employee since 2019. Tax records show she earned almost $73,000 from the nonprofit in 2022. She also served as Executive Director and the group’s board president, an unpaid position. The TRU is an organization that campaigns and lobbies for progressive causes.
The organization was formed after a proposed 17% cut to King County Metro and an elimination of the fare-free zone in downtown. In 2014, Wilson and the TRU successfully lobbied King County for the creation of the ORCA Lift program, which provided reduced fares for low-income individuals. The TRU previously campaigned for increases to the minimum wage in Burien, SeaTac and Tukwila, as well as greater renters’ rights, and better public transport.
In 2020, Wilson played a role in the creation of Seattle’s JumpStart tax, a payroll tax on private employers to fund affordable housing. She was critical of Mayor Bruce Harrell for proposing redirecting JumpStart funds to balance the city budget instead of affordable housing projects. Wilson was also a member of Harrell’s Seattle Revenue Stabilization Workgroup, which explored and recommended additional progressive revenue to address the city’s budget deficit. For several years, Wilson was also a member of the board of the Economic Opportunity Institute.
Wilson has written policy columns for Cascade PBS and The Stranger.
>> Wikipedia
Wilson was raised in Binghamton, New York, by her parents, Anne Barrett Clark and David Sloan Wilson, both evolutionary biologists. She graduated in 2000 as salutatorian from Binghamton High School before studying physics and philosophy at Balliol College of Oxford in England. She withdrew from Oxford six weeks before she was scheduled to sit for the examinations in the final honours school for her degree and moved to Seattle in 2004. She worked several jobs after moving, including working in boat repair, construction, and as an office assistant.
In fall 2011, Wilson co-founded the Seattle Transit Riders Union (TRU), a nonprofit 501(c)(4) focused on improving public transportation in Seattle and King County, where she has been a paid, full-time employee since 2019. Tax records show she earned almost $73,000 from the nonprofit in 2022. She also served as Executive Director and the group’s board president, an unpaid position. The TRU is an organization that campaigns and lobbies for progressive causes.
The organization was formed after a proposed 17% cut to King County Metro and an elimination of the fare-free zone in downtown. In 2014, Wilson and the TRU successfully lobbied King County for the creation of the ORCA Lift program, which provided reduced fares for low-income individuals. The TRU previously campaigned for increases to the minimum wage in Burien, SeaTac and Tukwila, as well as greater renters’ rights, and better public transport.
In 2020, Wilson played a role in the creation of Seattle’s JumpStart tax, a payroll tax on private employers to fund affordable housing. She was critical of Mayor Bruce Harrell for proposing redirecting JumpStart funds to balance the city budget instead of affordable housing projects. Wilson was also a member of Harrell’s Seattle Revenue Stabilization Workgroup, which explored and recommended additional progressive revenue to address the city’s budget deficit. For several years, Wilson was also a member of the board of the Economic Opportunity Institute.
Wilson has written policy columns for Cascade PBS and The Stranger.
>> Wikipedia
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