Seattle voters face Aug. 4 primary with city contests and District 5 special election

Seattle voters are scheduled to take part in Washington’s primary election Tuesday, Aug. 4, a contest that will narrow candidate fields for the November general election in hundreds of races statewide.

Several Seattle contests are on the ballot, making the primary an early test of voter preferences in the city’s 2026 election cycle. The election will determine which candidates advance; it is not a final determination of who will hold the offices at stake.

Seattle contests are part of a statewide primary

Washington’s Aug. 4 primary includes hundreds of races across the state. In Seattle, the ballot includes city races, according to a local election guide published ahead of Election Day.

The results and turnout will provide the first major measure of voter preferences in Seattle’s 2026 cycle. But no final turnout figures, vote totals or advancing candidates were established in the available information before ballots are counted and results are posted.

For voters, the immediate consequence of the primary is that it will set the November fields in the contests covered by the election. Seattle’s choices therefore help determine which candidates remain in contention for city and regional offices in the general election.

District 5 special election heads toward November

One Seattle race is the City Council District 5 special election, which follows the resignation of Cathy Moore. The Aug. 4 primary is scheduled to identify the candidates who will move on to the district’s general election on Nov. 3, 2026.

The District 5 race is distinct from a completed election: voters are selecting finalists at the primary stage, with the council seat to be decided in November. The available source packet does not provide a complete official list of District 5 candidates or every Seattle contest on the ballot.

Where voters can find official information

King County Elections is the official county system providing election information for Seattle voters and administering election results. Its election-information materials also identify a Seattle-related levy measure under which collection would begin in 2026 if voters approve it.

The packet does not establish whether that levy measure is among the specific Aug. 4 contests, so voters should rely on King County Elections for their ballot information and official results.

After the primary, official results will show turnout, vote totals and the candidates advancing to November. For the District 5 special election, the next scheduled election date is Nov. 3.