Statement Regarding Troubling Reports About King County Assessor John Arthur Wilson

KING COUNTY DEMOCRATS CHAIR BETH BAZLEY CALLS ON KING COUNTY ASSESSOR TO PUBLICLY EXPLAIN TROUBLING SEATTLE TIMES REPORTING WHICH DESCRIBES STALKING, INTIMIDATION, AND ABSUES OF POWER

For Immediate Release: January 30, 2025

Seattle, WA— “We are deeply troubled by the recent reporting on King County Assessor John Arthur Wilson’s behavior that bears the hallmarks of intimate partner violence. We must be willing to call out these behaviors regardless of party affiliation.

King County voters should have every confidence not only that their elected officials are following the law, but that those they elect are held to the highest standards of personal accountability.

We ask Assessor John Wilson to publicly recognize and acknowledge that his behavior, as described in the Seattle Times, was unacceptable, as evidenced by the court’s decision three times to approve a restraining order.

We further ask Assessor Wilson for a public apology for his unacceptable behavior as our leader and for his violation of the public trust in doing so.

Further, we ask for an investigation to ascertain whether Assessor Wilson used King County resources to secure the meta data used to violate his restraining order to find the undisclosed address of his (at the time) former girlfriend, and whether he used his King County issued phone when tracking her phone.

Finally, we ask that the investigation ascertain whether Assessor Wilson used his authority as the King County Assessor to influence the firing of the ex-boyfriend named in the restraining order.

We believe Assessor Wilson owes his constituents assurance of his clear understanding of the seriousness of his actions here, and confidence in him that he did not use public resources to carry out intimate partner intimidation.

Lastly, we call upon other leaders to stand up and to call out behavior as described in the Seattle Times story when they see it. Everyone is harmed when we allow behavior like this to go unchecked.”

-Chair Beth Bazley, King County Democrats
Statement made at KCDCC Executive Board meeting, January 28, 2025