Mike O'Brien (Seattle politician)
Michael J. O'Brien (born March 2, 1968) is an American politician and former member of the Seattle City Council who represented District 6 in northwest Seattle.[3] He was first elected in 2009 to a different, city-wide council seat.[4] He was the leading proponent of the opt-out list for the Yellow Pages.[5] He was the only opponent of the proposed deep bore tunnel under downtown Seattle on the city council.[6] He was chair of the local chapter of the Sierra Club before running for office. In this capacity, he was one of the leading opponents of the 2007 Roads and Transit ballot measure.
Mike O'Brien | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Seattle City Council | |
| In office January 3, 2016 – January 3, 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Nick Licata |
| Succeeded by | Dan Strauss |
| Constituency | District 6 |
| In office January 3, 2010 – January 3, 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Richard McIver |
| Succeeded by | Tim Burgess |
| Constituency | Position 8 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 2, 1968 Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Spouse | Julie O'Brien[1] |
| Children | 2[2] |
| Residence | Seattle, Washington |
| Alma mater | Duke University (BS) University of Washington (MBA) |
Early life and career edit
Mike O'Brien was born in Seattle and raised in the Eastside suburb of Clyde Hill.[7] He holds a bachelor's degree in economics from Duke University and a M.B.A. in finance from the University of Washington, where he also earned a certificate in environmental management.[8][9] O'Brien joined Seattle-based corporate law firm Stokes Lawrence as chief financial officer in 1998, where he met lawyer and neighborhood activist Mike McGinn, who would become O'Brien's friend and mentor.[9]
Political activism edit
O'Brien was invited by McGinn to the Seattle chapter of the Sierra Club as a volunteer treasurer, despite his previous lack of interest in politics.[9] O'Brien became politically involved with the group and was elected as political chair of the Seattle chapter and chair of the Washington state chapter. During the 2007 election, O'Brien served as the group's spokesperson in the debate over the Roads and Transit proposition, which would have bundled Sound Transit projects with road expansion and was opposed by the Sierra Club.[9] The ballot measure was defeated and a transit-only version, Sound Transit 2, was proposed for the following year with the support of the Sierra Club.[10][11] Mike O'Brien was a representative of the Sierra Club on the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Project Stakeholder Advisory Committee in 2008.[12] During the 2008 campaign, O'Brien left Stokes Lawrence to be a full-time volunteer for the Sierra Club and was encouraged to run for office by McGinn and others in the environmental community.[9] O'Brien is currently on the board of directors and is the treasurer of the Sierra Club.[13]
Political career edit
Position 8 edit
In February 2009, O'Brien announced his candidacy for a city council seat that incumbent councilmember Richard McIver planned to not run for.[14] During the August primary for Position 8, O'Brien advanced with 35 percent of votes and was set to run against second-place finisher Robert Rosencrantz.[15] O'Brien won the general election with 58 percent of votes and was sworn in on January 1, 2010, alongside newly elected mayor Mike McGinn.[16][17]
District 6 edit
O'Brien ran for the newly created District 6 position for the Seattle City Council, primarily covering Ballard, Fremont and Green Lake. He won the primary and defeated Catherine Weatbrook in the November general election.[18]
During his term as the District 6 councilmember, O'Brien attracted criticism for his positions on transportation, housing, homelessness, policing, and taxes.[19]
At an after-party event following a gala for the Nordic Museum on May 5, 2018, O'Brien was reportedly asked to leave and subsequently forcibly removed by members of the Pacific Fishermen Shipyard (where the event was being held). O'Brien has attracted criticism from the group for his position on the extension of the Burke-Gilman Trail in Ballard.[20]
Facing unfavorable polling results and opposition from groups like the Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, in February 2019 O'Brien announced he would not seek reelection to the Seattle City Council.[21][22][23]
Other ventures edit
After his retirement from the city council, O'Brien and a former legislative aide founded their own HVAC company that focuses on installation of heat pumps to replace heating and cooling systems that use fossil fuels.[24]
Electoral history edit
2009 election edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 42,619 | 34.48% | |
| Nonpartisan | Robert Rosencrantz | 25,602 | 20.71% | |
| Nonpartisan | Jordan Royer | 19,207 | 15.54% | |
| Nonpartisan | Bobby Forch | 15,444 | 12.49% | |
| Nonpartisan | David Miller | 14,644 | 11.85% | |
| Nonpartisan | Rusty Williams | 5,602 | 4.53% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 488 | 0.39% | |
| Turnout | 146,568 | 38.60% | ||
| Registered electors | 379,721 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 103,435 | 57.76% | |
| Nonpartisan | Robert Rosencrantz | 75,157 | 41.97% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 484 | 0.27% | |
| Majority | 28,278 | 15.79% | ||
| Turnout | 216,573 | 57.73% | ||
| Registered electors | 375,164 | |||
2013 election edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 74,372 | 58.88% | |
| Nonpartisan | Albert Shen | 43,053 | 34.08% | |
| Nonpartisan | David Ishii | 8,137 | 6.44% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 753 | 0.60% | |
| Turnout | 144,306 | 34.95% | ||
| Registered electors | 412,847 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 117,011 | 66.84% | |
| Nonpartisan | Albert Shen | 57,434 | 32.81% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 607 | 0.35% | |
| Majority | 59,577 | 34.03% | ||
| Turnout | 215,550 | 52.50% | ||
| Registered electors | 410,572 | |||
2015 election edit
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 12,403 | 59.08% | |
| Nonpartisan | Catherine Weatbrook | 4,680 | 22.29% | |
| Nonpartisan | Jon Lisbin | 2,751 | 13.10% | |
| Nonpartisan | Stan Shaufler | 1,107 | 5.27% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 53 | 0.25% | |
| Turnout | 21,451 | 31.74% | ||
| Registered electors | 67,591 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Mike O'Brien | 18,830 | 61.29% | |
| Nonpartisan | Catherine Weatbrook | 11,802 | 38.41% | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in | 91 | 0.30% | |
| Majority | 7,028 | 22.88% | ||
| Turnout | 33,741 | 49.42% | ||
| Registered electors | 68,273 | |||
References edit
- ^ Barnett, Erica (24 February 2014). "Mike O'Brien Rising". SeattleMet. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
- ^ "About Mike O'Brien". Retrieved 22 February 2019.
- ^ . Seattle.gov. Archived from the original on 2019-05-23. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
- ^ . Your.kingcounty.gov. Archived from the original on 2018-12-14. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
- ^ Krueger, David (2011-05-05). "Seattle cracks down on yellow-pages deliveries | The Seattle Times". Seattletimes.nwsource.com. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
- ^ Grygiel, Chris (2011-05-16). "City Council rift over viaduct tunnel resolution - Strange Bedfellows — Politics News". Blog.seattlepi.com. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
- ^ Westneat, Danny (November 19, 2008). "Green fever colors the future of roads". The Seattle Times. p. B1. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Spratt, Gerry (October 1, 2009). "City Council candidate Q & A: Mike O'Brien". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ a b c d e Barnett, Erica C. (November 18, 2009). . Publicola. Seattle Met. Archived from the original on June 22, 2010. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Garber, Andrew (November 7, 2007). "Huge roads-transit plan gets trounced". The Seattle Times. p. A1. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Lange, Larry (November 5, 2008). "Sound Transit's package is passing; I-985 falling short". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. p. A14. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ "ALASKAN WAY VIADUCT REPLACEMENT PROJECT Final Environmental Impact Statement" (PDF). Appendix A: WSDOT. July 2011. p. A2-4. Retrieved 21 February 2019.
- ^ "Board of Directors". 18 September 2019.
- ^ Heffter, Emily (March 2, 2009). . The Seattle Times. p. B1. Archived from the original on May 8, 2009. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Perry, Nick; Heffter, Emily (August 19, 2009). "Bagshaw, O'Brien leading easily". The Seattle Times. p. A6. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ a b c "2009 Election Report" (PDF). Seattle Ethics and Elections Commission. SEEC. January 21, 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
- ^ Heffter, Emily (January 4, 2010). "New Seattle mayor takes charge; council hires own lobbyist". The Seattle Times. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ "Low voter turnout for primary elections; Mike O'Brien leads District 6 with 58% votes". My Ballard. Retrieved 2016-01-08.
- ^ Kroman, David (May 9, 2018). "The most divisive man in Seattle". Crosscut.com. Retrieved May 9, 2018.
- ^ Beekman, Daniel (May 7, 2018). "Seattle Councilmember Mike O'Brien shoved out of Nordic Museum after-party". The Seattle Times. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
- ^ Barnett, Erica (January 9, 2019). "Campaign Crank: O'Brien Robopolls, Pedersen Hits Delete, and Rufo Writes His Own Company a Check". The C is for Crank. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
- ^ Kroman, David (February 13, 2019). "Mike O'Brien is the fourth Seattle City Councilmember not seeking re-election". Crosscut. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
- ^ "O'Brien: Will Not Seek Re-Election". Council Connection. City of Seattle. February 13, 2019. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
- ^ Garland, Alex (August 3, 2023). "From City Hall to Clean Energy: Mike O'Brien's Journey From Climate Legislator to Clean Energy Installer". South Seattle Emerald. Retrieved August 3, 2023.
- ^ "Elections Results - Primary and Special Election" (PDF). King County Elections. August 20, 2013. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
- ^ "Elections Results - General and Special Election" (PDF). King County Elections. November 26, 2013. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
- ^ "Elections Results - Primary and Special Election" (PDF). King County Elections. August 17, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2019.
- ^ "Elections Results - General and Special Election" (PDF). King County Elections. November 24, 2015. Retrieved February 21, 2019.