Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan Won’t Run For Re-Election

SEATTLE (AP) – Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan says she won’t run for re-election following a term beset by the pandemic and policing protests.

Durkan made the announcement Monday in a video message to supporters, saying she wanted to focus on recovering from the pandemic other challenges.

Durkan, a longtime lawyer and former U.S. attorney in Seattle, is in her first term in office.

In her message, she said Seattle has led in making COVID-19 testing free citywide, imposing a moratorium on evictions and on protecting small businesses, immigrants and workers.

But she has also been criticized over the Seattle Police Department’s response to protests over the summer when officers sometimes used tear gas, pepper spray and other less-lethal weapons indiscriminately.