Five candidates make up field for Position 2 seat

Published 1:30 am Thursday, July 31, 2025

EVERETT — Frequent candidates and political newcomers alike are looking to earn a seat on Mukilteo’s City Council this year.

Three of the candidates — Carolyn Carlson, Tina Over and Riaz Khan — have run for office in Mukilteo numerous times. James Sterba and Jon Welton are first-time political candidates.

The position is currently held by council president Tom Jordal, who did not file to run for reelection.

Council members serve four-year terms and earn $10,992 per year.

There are three seats up for election in Mukilteo. Only one will be on the primary ballot.

Ballots for the primary election are due Aug. 5. The top two candidates will advance to the November general election.

Carolyn Carlson

Carlson, 78, is a retired postal worker and a volunteer. She has previously run for office in Mukilteo multiple times since 2011.

Her top priorities are addressing the city’s ongoing budget issues and giving more say to seniors in the community, she said in a June 30 interview.

On the budget, Carlson said the city should lean on local volunteers and move forward with the waterfront redevelopment project to help increase revenue. She also said the city should utilize a public-private partnership to open a senior center in the city, similar to Everett’s Carl Gipson Center.

“My heart’s with our community, all our community, but I don’t see where seniors are getting a voice,” Carlson said.

Carlson also said the city should establish an office of neighborhoods to give council members a chance to hear about local concerns.

On public safety, Carlson said Mukilteo should add more firefighters to address staffing issues and work with state agencies to enforce speeding along Mukilteo Speedway.

In regards to housing, Carlson said it’s difficult in Mukilteo because there’s little buildable land and projects are cost-prohibitive. But she said the city could help individuals who are struggling to find housing by connecting them to local resources.

Carlson has been endorsed by the Snohomish County Democratic Party, Snohomish County Council member Megan Dunn and Mukilteo City Council members Jason Moon and Steve Schmalz. As of Monday, she has not received any campaign contributions, state filings show.

Riaz Khan

Khan, 55, is an engineer at Boeing. He was elected as a City Council member in 2019 after four previous unsuccessful campaigns. He then lost the seat in 2023.

After years of working with the local Democratic party, he also ran a campaign for the state house in 2024 as a Republican.

His top priorities are public safety, redeveloping the city’s waterfront, improving government accountability and opening a senior center, he said in a June 23 interview.

To improve public safety, Khan said he would tell residents to form neighborhood watch groups and report crimes to local law enforcement.

Khan said he worked on the city’s waterfront redevelopment project while he was on council but felt like he “left unfinished work,” he said. For years, officials from Mukilteo and the Port of Everett have discussed developing the real estate along the waterfront to turn it into a destination for eating, shopping and recreation.

If elected, Khan said he would work to make the waterfront a “beautiful” tourist attraction.

On the budget, Khan said his top priority is making sure taxes aren’t increased. He also said he would “open a dialogue” with firefighters in regards to their staffing issues.

He also said his previous experience in the council seat was valuable.

“I’m a proven leader,” Khan said. “I can prove my leadership.”

Khan opted to run a mini reporting campaign, meaning he does not have file contribution and expenditure reports, but cannot raise or spend more than $7,000 on his campaign.

Tina Over

Over is a small business owner, according to her candidate statement. She was not available for an interview.

Since 2017, Over has run for council multiple times. She currently serves on the city’s Civil Service Commission.

In her candidate statement, Over said her top priorities include improving housing affordability, investing in infrastructure, supporting small businesses and improving government transparency.

Over wrote that she would work to make housing more affordable and prevent renters from displacement. She also wrote that the city should invest in infrastructure, clean energy and public transportation.

Over would also work to keep Mukilteo safe through “smart, community-based solutions,” she wrote.

“My campaign is powered by people, not special interests, and I’ll always put our community’s voices at the center of every decision,” Over wrote.

Over has not reported any campaign contributions as of Tuesday.

James Sterba

Sterba, 58, is a procurement manager at Boeing.

His top priorities are protecting Mukilteo’s community feel, investing in infrastructure, improving economic development and limiting tax increases, he said in a July 3 interview.

On housing, Sterba said he supports dense construction where it makes sense, but wants to retain the “community look and feel of Mukilteo.” He said the city could give tax breaks to developers to build affordable units, streamline its permit process and focus on enticing mixed-use development.

“I think government can be more conducive to streamlining and making costs less,” Sterba said. “But we do still need to support the influx in new citizens that come to the city to make sure schools are fully supported, our infrastructure is taken care of and our police and fire response times don’t go down.”

In regard to the budget, Sterba said he would “scrutinize the budget,” he said, to make sure police, fire and emergency medical services are fully funded.

To address the city’s budget issues, he said he would attempt to grow revenue through economic development efforts. He also said the city “can’t continue to weigh on the citizens” with tax increases. He said a recent City Council vote to increase sales tax to pay for transportation improvements was “tone deaf.” Mukilteo Mayor Joe Marine vetoed that action — his first time using his veto power — and a subsequent re-vote failed to pass.

“There’s always going to be fat in there,” Sterba said of the budget. “And people don’t realize until they really get in there of where some of that could be reallocated, how those funds could be used more successfully.”

On the city’s infrastructure, he said the city should pool resources from the federal government, state and city, as well as developers, to pay for improvements to aging sidewalks and streets.

“If you want to be a city that fosters growth, you need to be on top of those things,” Sterba said.”You need to be able to show the businesses moving in how you’re advancing the city forward.”

Sterba has received $278 in campaign contributions as of Tuesday, state filings show.

Jon Welton

Welton, a mechanic at Boeing, did not respond to requests for an interview. According to the Lynnwood Times and the Mukilteo Beacon, he has announced he is no longer seeking the position.

Welton’s top priorities are managing housing growth, balancing the budget and maintaining local control of police, fire and EMS, according to his candidate statement.

In his statement, Welton wrote he would “manage high-density housing growth to protect our community’s unique character.”

On the budget, he wrote that he would set smart priorities and pursue revenue sources to balance the city’s books while keeping taxes low.

Welton also wrote that he opposed regionalizing services like the fire department and emergency medical services. The local firefighter’s union has supported joining the South County Regional Fire Authority because of chronic staffing issues.

Welton has not reported any campaign contributions, state filings show.

Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.