Seattle mayor Bruce Harrell to deliver State of City address

SEATTLE – Mayor Bruce Harrell is set to deliver his State of the City 2023 speech Tuesday afternoon, which will outline his vision for the city and priorities for his second year in office.

The Harrell City State Speech will begin at 12pm and be streamed live on KING5.com. The mayor is expected to discuss economic recovery, the housing crisis, public safety and police reform – all issues he campaigned for two years ago.

Harrell said in an exclusive interview with KING 5’s Jake Whittenberg and Mimi Jung last month that he is optimistic about the direction of the city.

Entering his second year in office, Harrell insists he is making progress in his efforts to hire more police and prevent crime in the city where he grew up.

Harrell’s goal is for the Seattle Police Department (SPD) to reach 1,400 officers. According to data from the city, Seattle had 1,315 officers in 2017, the highest total the city has had in the past seven years. As it stands, Harrell said in July 2022 that department personnel are at “crisis levels.”

The drop in officer numbers comes as Seattle’s violent crime rate hits a 15-year high in 2022, surpassing the record set in 2021, according to an annual crime report released today. Dad on February 7th.

Harrell replaced Jenny Durkan as mayor after she decided not to run for re-election. He took office on January 1, 2022.

During his campaign, Harrell promised police reform and police funding and set a goal to reduce 911 response times to seven minutes.

Prior to serving as mayor, Harrell served three terms on the Seattle City Council, including serving as president during his final three years on the council.