Daylight shines between Scully and Noble in the 32nd at candidate forum in Edmonds

32nd LD Candidates Danica Noble (left) and Keith Scully (right) prepare to debate at a candidate forum at the Edmonds Public Library. Photo by Oliver J Moffat 

By Oliver Moffat

Some voters in the 32nd district might be stumped filling out their ballots. Long time Shoreline city council member, Keith Scully, is running against Danica Noble, an antitrust attorney and PTA advocate for State Representative position 1 in the 32nd. 

Both candidates are Democrats, and on most issues, Noble and Scully are more likely to agree than disagree. But in closing arguments to voters at a recent candidate forum, some differences between the candidates emerged.

The two candidates faced off in a forum hosted by the local Democrats at the Edmonds Library on Saturday. Washington’s 32nd legislative district spans from Northwest Seattle, through Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace, and into Edmonds and Lynnwood. Noble and Scully are running for a legislative position previously held by longtime state Rep. Cindy Ryu who is running to unseat Senator Jesse Salomon, a race that has gotten much more media attention.

At the Edmonds forum, when asked about the most important issues local voters are facing, both Noble and Scully named education funding at the top of the list. And both candidates support the Millionaires Tax and say the state must do more to fix Washington’s regressive tax system. Both candidates have left-aligned positions on how to address the homelessness crisis.

Their overlapping positions have left some voters in the 32nd district undecided. But at the Saturday forum, some daylight – but not much – was visible between Scully and Noble. Noble repeatedly called for urgent action to regulate AI and hold Big Tech accountable. Scully, on the other hand, appeared to position himself as the more centrist of the two candidates.

Voters can read the complete version of this article with comments from the candidates as published in The Urbanist.

By now, voters have their ballots and Saturday’s forum will serve as the candidates closing arguments to voters: a video recording of the forum was posted online.