Seattle City Council District 5 · Nov 3, 2026
Nilu Jenks
Candidate for City Council District 5
Nilu Jenks is running for Seattle City Council District 5 in the Nov 3, 2026 election, against Julie Kang.
Voting period starts; ballots mailed · Fri, Oct 16, 2026
Political and Partnerships Director at FairVote Washington, which works on voting reforms. She has served as PTA Advocacy Chair at John Rogers Elementary School and as a Learning Coach for English Language Learner students at Mercer Middle School.
- Endorsed by
- King County Democrats; the 32nd, 36th and 46th District Democrats; Washington Conservation Action; Working Families Party; PROTEC17, UFCW 3000 and IBEW 46; Councilmembers Alexis Mercedes Rinck, Dionne Foster, Joy Hollingsworth and Eddie Lin; and others, as listed in her voters' pamphlet statement King County Elections
- How the press groups them
- The Seattle Times reported that Jenks describes herself as being in the "progressive lane." The Seattle Times
- Campaign website
- www.neighborsfornilu.org
Council President Joy Hollingsworth is listed as an endorser on Nilu Jenks's campaign site. Nilu Jenks campaign site
Where Nilu Jenks stands: positions on the record
Surveillance cameras2 sourced positions
as reported by The Seattle Times editorial board; not a direct quote
Told The Seattle Times editorial board she would vote to turn off the closed-circuit cameras on Aurora Avenue North, citing concerns about federal immigration enforcement.
Forum answerThe Seattle Times editorial board
At a KUOW debate, argued that CCTV cameras do not prevent crime and urged voters to weigh the trade-offs for civil liberties.
“I strongly suggest people think about the trade-offs or civil liberties”
Forum answerKUOW · Sep 24, 2026
Aurora Avenue / SOAP1 sourced position
At a KUOW debate, disagreed with keeping the Stay Out of Areas of Prostitution (SOAP) ordinance, saying it has not worked.
“It didn't work”
Forum answerKUOW · Sep 24, 2026
CARE responders1 sourced position
Says she will champion solo dispatch of CARE crisis responders to appropriate calls, so they are not waiting for police clearance.
“Champion true solo dispatch for appropriate calls so CARE teams aren’t sitting on the sidelines waiting hours for police clearance.”
Own statementNilu Jenks campaign site
Police2 sourced positions
Says she will push to hire and allocate more detective and investigation capacity in the Seattle Police Department.
“Push to hire and allocate more detective and investigation capacity within the Seattle Police Department.”
Own statementNilu Jenks campaign site
as reported by KUOW; not a direct quote
KUOW reported that she sees promises to hire more police officers as futile, noting that past hiring promises were not met.
Forum answerKUOW · Jul 31, 2026
Aurora Avenue1 sourced position
At a Lake City Business Alliance forum, said closing streets near Aurora shows the city should have acted sooner.
“The fact that we’re closing streets on Aurora is a sign of failure to that community.”
Forum answerThe Seattle Times
Housing1 sourced position
Says she will champion 1,000 new affordable housing units in District 5, using public land, zoning flexibility and nonprofit developers.
“Nilu Jenks will champion the creation of 1,000 new units of affordable housing in her district.”
Own statementNilu Jenks campaign site
Food access2 sourced positions
After the Lake City Fred Meyer closed, says she will back local grocery stores, food co-ops and expanded farmers markets.
“supporting local grocery stores, community-owned food co-ops, and expanding farmers markets”
Own statementNilu Jenks campaign site
as reported by The Seattle Times; not a direct quote
Said the city should better support corner stores and farmers markets, and the state should offer tax incentives to keep grocery stores open.
Forum answerThe Seattle Times
Elections1 sourced position
Says she will work to make sure Seattle's switch to ranked choice voting in 2027 goes smoothly.
“She will ensure Seattle successfully implements Ranked Choice Voting in 2027”
Own statementNilu Jenks campaign site
Immigration1 sourced position
Lists protecting immigrant communities from federal overreach among her priorities.
“protect immigrant communities from federal overreach”
Own statementKing County Elections
Past candidacies1 sourced position
Ran for Seattle City Council, District 5, in 2023 (lost in the August primary, with 18.84% of the vote).
Own statementKing County Elections · Aug 15, 2023
Also running for City Council District 5
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