| Cathy Moore | |
| Office: | Member of the Seattle City Council from District 5 |
| Term Start: | January 1, 2024 |
| Predecessor: | Debora Juarez |
| Office1: | Judge of the King County Superior Court |
| Term Start1: | January 2017 |
| Term End1: | February 25, 2022 |
| Predecessor1: | Ronald Kessler |
| Successor1: | Jason Holloway |
| Birth Place: | Seattle, WA |
| Party: | Democratic |
| Spouse: | David Baxter |
| Children: | 3 sons |
| Alma Mater: | Binghamton University (BA) Albany Law School (JD) |
Cathy Moore is an American lawyer and politician elected to represent District 5 of the Seattle City Council. She was a King County Superior Court judge from 2017 to 2022.
After graduating from Binghamton University and Albany Law School, Moore worked in Brooklyn as a public defender and continued to do so after she moved back to Seattle.[1] [2] She left her job as a public defender to serve various Seattle city jobs on an interim bases, including city clerk and legislative aide to councilmember Richard Conlin.[3] [4] Before her election to judge on the King County Superior Court, Moore was a judge pro tem and commissioner pro tem in King County Superior Court, as well as a tribal drug court judge and a state administrative law judge.[5] She also served as the chair of the Seattle Human Rights Commission.[2] [3]
Moore ran for King County Superior Court in 2016 after Judge Ronald Kessler chose not to run for reelection.[5] In the August primary, Moore finished first with 55% of the vote, with Air Force veteran and lawyer Eric Newman coming in second with 36%.[5] [6]
In the general election, the King County Bar Associated openly faulted Moore for a name tag at an event describing her as a judge and "elected official", at the time she was not, and misleading campaign materials.[7] Moore said the campaign material was "...not misleading" and that she covered the "elected official" portion of the name tag.[7] In the November election, Moore defeated Newman 55% to 44%.[8]
Moore faced no challengers for reelection and retired in February 2022.[9] [10]
Moore ran for city council in District 5 against nine other challengers after council president Debora Juarez announced she would not seek reelection.[11] She focused her campaign on public safety, increasing the police force and increasing violence intervention prevention, as well as affordable housing and small business support.[12] [13] She was accused of flip-flopping on the criminalizing public drug use, at first opposing criminalization but then confirming support through the Downtown Seattle Association and The Seattle Times questionnaires.[13] [14] The Moore campaign did not respond to questions on changing her position during the primary, saying they did not have the time to, stating "We're focused on winning the election, and are prioritizing our limited time."[14] In the August primary election, Moore came in first with 31% of the vote and ChrisTiana ObeySumner, a social equity consultant, with 24%.[15]
ObeySumner focused her campaign on progressive issues, such as reducing the police budget, increasing alternatives to policing, stopping homeless sweeps, and not criminalizing public drug use.[3] [16] Moore continued to support Mayor Bruce Harrell plan to hire an additional 300 to 400 officers, and that the police budget was about right.[17] Moore confirmed her support for the city ordinance that makes drug use and possession prosecutable, even though it allocated no additional funding for treatment.[17] Moore received backing from business and real estate independent expenditure committees, which gave nearly $1.1 million in total to more "conservative" city council candidates.[18]
In the November general election, Moore won in a landslide with 64% of the vote to ObeySumner's 36%.[19] Moore was elected with a slate of other candidates that were considered "moderates" and generally support Mayor Harrell's agenda.[20]
Moore is the chair of the Housing and Human Services Committee and has worked to make changes to the Seattle Housing levy passed in 2023.[21] The committee would vote against the legislation, brought up by councilmember Tammy Morales, that would reduce red tape for affordable housing developers.[22] [23] After the vote, Morales said "Despite the fact that everybody’s talking about the need for more affordable housing, when it comes down to it, there’s either no understanding of how we actually get there, or no willingness to really take action."[22] At the next full council meeting, Moore accused Morales of calling other councilmembers "evil, corporate shills" and of "The vilification of your fellow council members in the media—it is uncalled for, it is unprofessional."[22] [23] [24] There is no record of Morales calling other councilmembers "evil, corporate shills."[22] [23] [24]
In a February 2024 council meeting, protestors and asylum seekers disrupted the meeting by banging windows and demonstrating in the chambers.[25] [26] Protestors were arrested and the council chambers were cleared, with Moore stating she felt "physically threatened" and that "We need to make sure that this does not happen going forward."[27] The protestors were charged with first-degree criminal trespassing, one was charged with obstruction as well.[26]
At a press conference on Aurora Ave with city attorney Ann Davison, Moore announced that she would introduce legislation to create "Stay Out of Areas of Prostitution" (SOAP) zones on Aurora Ave in conjunction with councilmember Robert Kettle's "Stay Out of Drugs Areas" (SODA) zone legislation.[28] [29] Moore and Davison introduced the legislation in response to high crime on Aurora associated with prostitutions..[28] [29] City council Central Staff updated a memo in regards to comments by Moore, which removed sections that raised concerns about the legislation's impact and lack of additional funding for diversion and emergency services.[30]
Moore resides in Seattle with her husband and three children. She is the legal counsel for her family's landscaping business.[5] [31]