Editorials
Editorial by Martin Barrett- The Highline Journal Editorial Board
[Editor's Note: Over the past several years, Sally Nelson, (past Burien Mayor), has demonstrated clear one-sided bias through various commentaries submitted to the B-Town Blog. These commentaries lack a balanced perspective; picking and choosing candidates to criticize based on their political alignment with her viewpoints. This editorial is an attempt to highlight this hypocrisy and journalistic double standard.]
On Oct 8th, a Letter to the Editor was published on The B-Town Blog (a local opinion blog), criticizing three Burien City Council candidates for not attending the League of Women Voters (LWV) forum on October 7. Yet this marks the second consecutive local election cycle in which three candidates have declined to participate — and notably, all three who skipped the 2023 forum went on to win their elections.
The League of Women Voters promotes itself as a non-partisan grassroots organization, but that claim doesn’t align with reality. For decades, the League has openly advocated for left-leaning causes and picked policy positions. Today, it functions as a well-funded political activism group calling itself “non-partisan.” This is misleading. The League’s grassroots image conceals a national network backed by progressive and liberal funding sources — a top-down movement, not a neutral community forum.
[We have reached out to the League of Women’s Voters for comment on this story and will publish their response when we receive it.]
Ironically, the writer of the recent letter chastising these candidates (Stephanie Mora, Marie Barbon, and Gabriel Fernandez) made no mention of the Highline School Board forum held on September 30, where the three- and four-term incumbents (Joe Van and Angelica Alvarez) also failed to attend. If the League and its supporters were truly committed to non-partisan fairness, their response to both absences would be consistent. Instead, they chose outrage for one and silence for the other. If the League of Women Voters is truly even-handed, what accounts for such a selective reaction?
The League is organized at three levels — local, state, and national — each run by volunteer boards but tightly linked through shared advocacy priorities. Its associated 501(c)(3) “educational” arm, the League of Women Voters Education Fund (LWVEF), receives financial support from major liberal donors and foundations, including some groups often characterized as “dark money” organizations.
Recent Foundation Grants
Financial reports from 2023 and 2024 indicate major new grants from philanthropic organizations:
- Bernard and Anne Spitzer Charitable Trust — $450,000 (2023)
- Democracy Fund — $300,000 (2023)
- Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund — $316,909 (2023)
- Carnegie Corporation of New York — $250,000 (2024) and $1 million (2025)
Past Funding and Affiliations
Charity reporting sites also highlight past grant funding from other large foundations:
- Joyce Foundation
- Craigslist Charitable Fund
- Open Society Foundations (founded by George Soros)
- MacArthur Foundation
- Ford Foundation
- Tides Foundation- received millions of dollars from George Soros’s Open Society Foundations and was labeled by the National Legal and Policy Center as “George Soros’ Favorite Money Handler”- $17.2 million to the Tides
- Turner Foundation
These are not small neighborhood donors. They represent national networks driving a clear ideological agenda.
Perhaps the three council candidates who did not attend the forum are simply aware of the extreme, left leaning positions the LWV now represents and chose not to be associated with it. Who did not show up: Stephanie Mora, Marie Barbon, and Gabriel Fernandez.
These candidates were not rude and made no derogatory remarks about the LWV. But no one should delude themselves into believing that the LWV is truly a non-partisan group, as Sally Nelson, former Burien mayor and City Council member, insisted in her Letter to the Editor.
Ms. Nelson was also wrong to suggest that these three candidates have not been accessible or willing to engage with the public. On the contrary, they have held several open meetings in and around the city. The Burien News—now The Highline Journal—currently features their responses on issues critical to the community.
For those reasons, it’s not difficult to understand why some candidates might choose not to associate with a forum that, while claiming neutrality, so clearly aligns with one side of the political spectrum.
[NOTE FROM EDITOR: If you wish to submit a comment, please email us at info@thehighlinejournal.com ]
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