By Alia Sinclair
The first SeaTac City Council meeting of 2026 opened on Tuesday, Jan. 13 with the swearing-in of two new council members – Caitlin Konya, and Bedria Abdullahi – and the re-appointment of Councilmember Mohamed Egal as Mayor.
Councilmember Abdullahi attended remotely and was eight minutes late for the meeting, causing her to miss the swearing-in conducted by City Clerk Kristina Gregg. However, the City Clerk confirmed that Councilmember Abdullahi could still participate in the meeting as a full Councilmember, as the official swearing-in had been conducted in December 2025 and the one happening currently was ceremonial.
The second item on the agenda was the selection of the new Mayor and Deputy Mayor by the City Council.
For the position of Mayor, the nominations were as follows:
- Councilmember Negusse: No nominations
- Councilmember Konya: No nominations
- Councilmember Kwon: Senayet Negusse
- Councilmember Vinson: No nominations
- Councilmember Lovell: Mohamed Egal
- Mayor Egal: Mohamed Egal
- Councilmember Abdullahi: Absent
After nominations, a vote was taken for Senayet Negusse for the position of Mayor. The votes were as follows:
- Councilmember Negusse: No
- Councilmember Konya: No
- Councilmember Kwon: Yes
- Councilmember Vinson: Yes
- Councilmember Lovell: No
- Councilmember Abdullahi: No
- Mayor Egal: No
The votes for the nomination of Mohamed Egal for the position of Mayor were as follows:
- Councilmember Negusse: Yes
- Councilmember Konya: Yes
- Councilmember Kwon: No
- Councilmember Vinson: Yes
- Councilmember Lovell: Yes
- Councilmember Abdullahi: Yes
- Mayor Egal: Yes
The majority vote selected Councilmember Mohamed Egal to continue in the position of Mayor.
For the position of Deputy Mayor, Councilmember Senayet Negusse was nominated by Councilmembers Lovell and Kwon, with no opposing nominations from the rest of the council. When put to a vote, Councilmember Negusse was appointed unanimously.
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