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Andrew Grant Houston. (Courtesy photo of agh4sea.com)
The Seattle mayoral candidate, who raised the most funds from Democracy tokens – far more than his opponents of the establishment – owes more than $ 20,000 in rents, according to the company that manages the apartment building he lives in.
For nearly $ 412,000, housing attorney Andrew Grant Houston surprised opponents and the media with his fundraising ability. Almost 85% of its fundraising comes from Seattle’s Democracy Voucher program. That’s far more than any other candidate, including front-runners Bruce Harrell and Lorena Gonzalez.
But when Houston raised money for a candidacy for mayor, which many still consider a lengthy candidacy, and even for campaign workers to collect vouchers, he skipped his rent. In fact, he stopped paying rent while employed by the Seattle City Council.
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Seattle mayoral candidate fails to pay rent
Houston stopped paying rent on its $ 1,695 per month rent on Capitol Hill just before the pandemic began. At the time, however, he was employed as an interim policy manager for Seattle City Councilor Teresa Mosqueda.
According to an April email from the property management company to Houston, the mayoral candidate was asked for the amount due at the time.
“I heard you were running for mayor and on the staff of Teresa Mosqueda,” read the email shared with the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “Our office recently received a press inquiry about your rental balance. Before we reply, we’d like to know if you plan to update your outstanding balance of $ 14,485. “
The property management company says he initially offered some small payments, but his debt has since grown to $ 20,828.
According to the state eviction moratorium, landlords are not allowed to evacuate tenants during the pandemic. The order expires in August.
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Houston turns it into an election pitch
Campaign communications director Dylan Austin admitted that Houston (nicknamed Ace) owes rent arrears. He didn’t want to confirm the amount.
“Ace is one of an estimated 200,000 Washingtoners arrears on rents totaling over $ 1 billion,” Austin emailed the Jason Rantz Show on KTTH. “Ace is the only candidate in this race who does not own a home and has a huge difference in personal wealth compared to any other top contender (some in the millions).”
Austin said Houston’s architecture firm suffered from the pandemic, “with the irony that it also had to renew his architecture license and other business expenses without getting that job.”
“Ace has the same lived experience as many Seattle residents who previously (and now) struggled in a pandemic to keep up with rising rental prices and affordability issues in our city,” said Austin.
Houston’s rent is average in Seattle, according to Apartment List.
“Ace is directly affected by the policies influencing our city government and will bring that perspective to the mayor’s office,” he concluded.
Political Implications
While some Seattle residents struggle to pay rent, they usually don’t run for mayor’s office.
While Houston uses this edition to highlight the struggles of life in Seattle, it poses significant political problems. It might come off as an opportunistic spin. Why didn’t Houston make this lived experience a campaign theme? If this separated him from the crowded field of wealthy and contactless candidates, it would not come out when voters received ballots.
While voters sometimes say they want candidates what they want, they rarely take a vote. Do you want to support a candidate who cannot pay his rent? Perhaps the pandemic has changed the dynamics here. But it doesn’t seem like a top quality voter seeks in a candidate.
And what about the optics of collecting so much money, paying advertisers to collect democracy vouchers, when you are so heavily in debt? Should Houston focus on running for mayor – a longshot according to the latest polls – rather than finding a job to pay off its debts?
Politics aside, you have a property management team waiting for a sizable rent that is overdue. They too have to pay bills. If Houston were to become mayor, would he treat all small businesses that way?
Did you like this opinion article? Then listen to the Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (or HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow @JasonRantz on Twitter, Instagram and Parler and like me on Facebook.
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