"Mary Bass Voted Off Seattle School Board"

Sable (The Sable Verity):

It’s the end of an era- Mary Bass, staunch advocate for marginalized children across Seattle, was decisively voted out of office Tuesday night- first returns show Kay Smith-Blum up 64% to Bass’ 35%.

I thought about writing a long, politically focused rehash of her career, but, I don’t really think there’s a point to that- and I’ve done it before.

Mary is cherished by those in Seattle who have needed her the most. As a Board member, she’s been controversial- she’s also been consistent in her messages, pushing for greater accountability and transparency while managing to make herself available to everyday students and families in need of help.

No matter how bad things got- no matter how badly people treated her behind closed doors and openly- Mary was always gracious, respectful- she was mostly always right about the issues too. When others wanted to sweep things under the carpet- Mary has been there to pull it back and remind all of us what is really going on under the surface.

It sounds like I’m writing about a person who has died, and thankfully that is not the case- but it is a death in the sense that it’s a loss. Her voice cannot be replaced.

In my observation, and this is just my opinion, her campaign this year lacked “umph”. Messages were consistent and she had her staunch supporters…but the spark just didn’t seem to be there.

Her opponent Kay Smith-Blum had more money, more manpower- maybe even more appeal. Bass has her fan club- she’s got haters too- all across the city. Smith-Blum became their candidate.

All things come to an end, so perhaps it was just time to move on- time for new blood. Perhaps…

Howie P.S.: I'm a Mary Bass fan, myself.