The Alliance Endorsed Jessyn Farrell for Seattle Mayor, Dow Constantine for King County Executive and Councilmember Lorena González

Seattle, WA – The Alliance for Gun Responsibility Victory Fund today announced its endorsement of three additional candidates, including Jessyn Farrell for Seattle Mayor.

Farrell has a strong history working on gun violence prevention efforts in the state Legislature. She sponsored a total of eight gun responsibility bills during the past two legislative sessions and has emerged as a proven and strategic leader in gun violence prevention.

“It’s honestly exciting to have so many mayoral candidates in Seattle who embrace gun violence prevention policies and programs. We feel confident that Seattle will continue to lead gun violence prevention efforts in our state and in our country,” said Renée Hopkins, CEO of the Alliance for Gun Responsibility. “Given our unique experience with Jessyn’s strategic partnership in continued legislative progress, we are proud to endorse her for Seattle Mayor. She is proactively running on the issue of gun violence prevention, has a vision for how Seattle can further reduce gun violence by using data to inform policy and ensuring that laws passed at the state level are implemented at the local level.”

The Alliance also endorsed King County Executive Dow Constantine, who is running for re-election, and Seattle City Councilmember Lorena González for re-election to the Seattle City Council. Both have a strong history of working to reduce gun violence at the city and county level.

In 2013, Constantine issued an executive order directing the King County government to take a public health approach to gun violence, issuing in a new era of holistic, data-driven policy. Under his leadership, the King County Child Death Review Committee closely examines each child firearm-related death in the county and makes recommendations for prevention at every level. The county also supports safe storage efforts with its LOK-IT-UP program and works to keep crime guns off the street. Lastly, Constantine’s leadership has been instrumental in the effective enforcement of firearm laws, including universal background checks and protection orders.

Councilmember Lorena González was first elected to the Seattle City Council in 2015 and has a proven track record as a gun violence and domestic violence prevention champion. During her first term, she helped secure $400,000 of funding in the city’s budget to support sexual assault and domestic violence prevention measures, including legal navigators at King County Superior Court. She also supported Seattle’s adoption of mandatory reporting of lost or stolen firearms. Lost and Stolen Ordinances have aided in the tracing of gun crime and homicide for law enforcement and allow police to prosecute robberies and return stolen property to the lawful owners.

The Alliance also recently announced its endorsement of Pete Holmes for Seattle City Attorney. Under Holmes’ leadership, the City Attorney’s Office has been instrumental in fully implementing gun responsibility policies in Seattle.

“Meaningful change happens at every level of government. Given our hostile national political climate, local action is more important than ever,” Hopkins said. “One of our top priorities is to support candidates who want to drive that meaningful change in their communities. We need more proven gun responsibility champions in office in order to pass and implement critical policy at the city and county level.”

You can see all the Alliance’s 2017 endorsements here.

This is the third year that the Alliance has endorsed candidates who support commonsense laws that balance gun rights with responsibility. In 2016, Victory Fund endorsements supported the successful election of over 40 candidates, many who ran on gun responsibility issues. The Victory Fund endorsed 31 incumbent legislators and Governor Inslee for re-election and eight candidates, who won in open seat elections in 2016. The fund also endorsed two candidates who successfully beat incumbents: Senator Lisa Wellman in the 41^st legislative district and Representative Kristine Reeves, who now serves the 30^th legislative district.

About the Alliance for Gun Responsibility

The Alliance for Gun Responsibility works to end the gun violence crisis in our community and to promote a culture of gun ownership that balances rights with responsibilities. Through collaboration with experts, civic leaders, and citizens, we work to find evidenced-based solutions to the crisis of gun violence in our community. We create innovative policy, advocate for changes in laws, and promote community education to reduce gun violence. Learn more at www.gunresponsibility.org and follow us at @WAGunResponsib.

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See all 2017 endorsements here