Protests Outside Amazon Spheres Over Campaign Spending

SEATTLE, WA — Seattle councilmembers, candidates and activists gathered outside the Amazon Spheres Thursday to protest the company's recent increase in political spending. Last week, Amazon poured another $1 million into a PAC backed by Seattle's Chamber of Commerce, bringing their total spending on this election close to $1.5 million.

Councilmembers Gonzalez, Mosqueda, and Sawant spoke at the rally, joined by candidates Shaun Scott and Tammy Morales, calling Amazon's spending a corporate takeover of Seattle's elections. Earlier in the day, presidential candidate Bernie Sanders criticized Amazon's spending and praising four progressive city council candidates by name.

An Amazon spokesman provided an updated statement from the company, largely echoing their position last week:

“We are engaging in this election because we care deeply about the future of Seattle. We believe that it is critical for our hometown to have a council that delivers results for all of its residents on issues that matter, like homelessness, transportation, climate change and public safety.”