SPOKANE, Wash. — Challenger Lisa Brown beat incumbent Spokane Mayor Nadine Woodward to earn a first mayoral term for the former Commerce director and long-time Spokane politician. The victory capped an election season filled with bitter disagreements between Brown and Woodward in debates and on social media.
The Spokesman-Review called the race on Friday, at which point Lisa Brown led Woodward with 33,220 votes to 30,456.
“I’m very grateful to have been chosen by the voters to be the next Mayor of Spokane,” Brown wrote in a statement. “Thank you to the volunteers and everyone who believed in our vision of a better way. I’m ready and excited to get to work for the city that we love.”
Brown left her job as director of the Washington State Department of Commerce in March, announcing a run for mayor of Spokane shortly after. Prior to working for Commerce, Brown was a longtime state legislator from Spokane.
Woodward was first elected mayor in 2019, beating then-Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart. She campaigned then on a platform of mitigating homelessness and addressing crime. Both increased over her first term in sync with national trends, but she attributed those issues to state-level policy.
Brown will face challenges addressing a growing homeless population, worsening affordability and a dramatic rise in fentanyl addiction, among other issues.
Results will be officially certified Nov. 28.
