Progressive Zappone tops Spokane primary as Savage eyes November election

(The Center Square) – After securing over 50% of Tuesday’s vote, Spokane City Councilmember Zack Zappone sat down with The Center Square on Friday to discuss his reelection bid ahead of November.

As the incumbent, Zappone will face Christopher Savage, who has run for that seat three times in the past. According to Spokane County Elections, Zappone won the Tuesday primary with 8,107 votes, or 51.3% of the total, while Savage received the second most, 4,550 votes, which is 28.79% of the total.

Election officials finished counting ballots, but the county won’t certify the results until Aug. 19; until then, the exact figures are subject to change. Regardless, Zappone currently leads the race by 3,557 votes, so Savage must win over some of the third candidate’s supporters if he hopes to close the gap.

District 3 voters will decide between Zappone’s existing track record and Savage’s promises of change on Nov. 4; residents can listen to and read about The Center Square’s recent interview with Savage here.

“I teach at the same school that my grandpa graduated from and that I graduated from, and I ran for office from the very beginning for one simple belief,” Zappone said. “That if you work hard, you should be able to get ahead, and that everyone in Spokane, everyone in our country, deserves a fair shot.”

Zappone aligns with the Spokane City Council’s progressive majority, along with four other members, and Savage would likely team up with the other two, who make up the council’s conservative minority.

Zappone and the majority recently ushered through an overhaul of the city’s homelessness response, largely proposed by Mayor Lisa Brown, which they're now facing an investigation over. While the overhaul has been criticized by many business owners, Zappone argues that the policies offer a multifaceted approach to the crisis, though they also offer ways to avoid enforcement.

The incumbent views jail as a last resort and favors policies that prioritize getting people into housing, contrary to President Donald Trump, who recently issued an executive order rebuking the housing-first approach and calling for increased enforcement.

He noted that enforcement is essential, but also emphasized the jail’s lack of capacity as it regularly enters a red-light status. Zappone argued that citations are enforcement, as homelessness offenses don’t usually result in incarceration unless the person has outstanding warrants; however, even then, some individuals are often released and then go on to reoffend, creating a costly cycle for taxpayers.

“The reality is we don’t have places and facilities for people to go if they’re violating that,” Zappone said. “You can arrest them, take them to jail, and then [the] jail will say, ‘Thank you so much. You’re not actually as dangerous as someone else that we need to have in here, so go back on the street.’”

When it comes to increasing the housing supply for low- to middle-income families aiming to buy their first home, he’s supported land-use reforms and boosting density in the city’s core. Savage mentioned he would like to annex land from the county, but Zappone argues there’s enough vacant land in town.

Zappone and the majority recently passed a new ordinance aimed at addressing unlawful camping and criminal behavior on vacant properties. It allows the city to require property owners to pay for private security on their own dime, striking a chord with some developers and property managers downtown.

“Everybody has to pay for that criminal activity with police response, code enforcement, cleaning it up and other things,” Zappone said. “It’s really not fair to all the taxpayers who are taking care of their properties and ensuring that there’s not criminal activity on there.”

While the law doesn’t apply to the city-owned properties, he argued that the new citywide camping ban covers municipal and public property. Not all residents and business owners may agree with him on public safety, but Zappone led Tuesday’s race with a considerable margin ahead of November.

The incumbent views himself as a champion of multimodal transportation infrastructure, addressing the opioid crisis, homelessness outreach and affordability, despite supporting higher taxes; however, Savage still has a chance amid growing frustration and distrust among conservatives ready for fresh leadership.

“There’s still more work to do,” Zappone said. “I believe I have the experience to know how to hit the ground running and keep growing, moving on those things where my opponent will be learning about it.”