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WASHINGTON SHOULD HOST DNC PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE

Democratic Party Chair Podlodowski and Seattle Mayor Durkan Asking DNC To Hold West Coast Debate In WA

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | April 15, 2019

SEATTLE, WA: State Democrats are petitioning the Democratic National Committee (DNC) to host its third presidential primary debate in Washington State.

The DNC is already planning debates in Miami, Florida (June 26/27, 2019) and Detroit, Michigan (July 30/31, 2019). Now it’s time to plan a west coast debate in Washington State.

Democratic Party Chair Tina Podlodowski, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, STG Executive Director Josh Labelle are urging the DNC to consider Seattle’s Paramount Theatre as the site for a Democratic Presidential Debate in 2019 or 2020.

In their February letter to DNC Chair Tom Perez they wrote, “This would be historic, as the Pacific Northwest has never hosted such a debate. It’s time to bring that streak to an end.”

Democrats are asking Washingtonians to put more power behind this ask by signing a public petition to the DNC, which Podlodowski will hand deliver on April 25 when she’s in Washington, DC.

Tina Podlodowski says, “For the last few months, I’ve been advocating for the DNC to host a primary debate in Washington. Our state has a national reputation for innovation and leadership on issues like marriage equality, clean energy, and minimum wage. We are a gateway for international trade with the 4th largest port in North America, we have the third highest union density in the country, we are the world headquarters for Microsoft, Amazon, REI, Costco, and Starbucks, and we have centuries of rich cultural heritage from the Nisqually Tribe to Nirvana.

We are often the first adopters of ideas that sweep the nation, and there’s no better place than Washington State for the DNC to host a presidential primary debate.”

Last week Podlodowski invited each of the declared Democratic presidential candidates to visit Washington, saying “Presidential candidates typically come to Washington for our generous donors, great food, and gorgeous views. Now is your chance to stay for the votes, because our state’s Democrats just moved our state primary vote to March 2020.”

State Democrats recently changed the state’s democratic nominee selection process from caucus to primary. Washington’s vote-by-mail primary will be a week after Super Tuesday, on March 10, 2020. Washington State has more than 4.3 million registered voters, and in every Presidential Election since 1988 we have voted overwhelmingly for the Democratic candidate.