By Mark Edward Nero
Environmental consultant and marine biologist Fred Felleman has won the race to replace Bill Bryant on the Port of Seattle Commission, while incumbent Courtney Gregoire also was victorious in the battle for her seat.
Four people were vying for two seats in the Nov. 3 election. Results show Felleman with 56 percent of the vote in the election for the District 2 seat, while his opponent, Marion Yoshino, a former Normandy Park City Council member, received 43 percent.
In the race for the District 2 seat, Gregoire received 85 percent of the vote, compared to her opponent, a perennial candidate who goes by the name Goodspaceguy, who received 15 percent.
This was Gregoire’s second election: she was appointed to the commission in March 2013 and won in the general election that same year.
Felleman, however, has not held public office before. He holds a Masters of Science in Fisheries from the University of Washington and a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Michigan.
He campaigned on a platform of creation of well-paying jobs while protecting the working waterfront and the environment, plus spoke in favor of more transparency in the port’s operations.
“Thank you, King County voters, for putting your faith in me to increase the Port’s transparency and ecological integrity,” Felleman said in a message posted on his campaign website after his victory. “I look forward to working with the other Commissioners to that end, while creating good paying jobs in the face of global competition and climate change.”
