King County voters are saying yes to a proposal to increase the region’s investment in public lands and green spaces, suggesting a good outcome for King County Proposition 1 this month, NPI’s latest poll has found.
In the aggregate, 57% of voters surveyed this week for NPI by Change Research said they had voted for King County Proposition 1 or would be doing so, while 27% said they had voted no or would be doing so. 9% did not recall how they had voted, 7% were not sure, and 0% said they did not vote on the measure.

Visualization of NPI’s October-November 2022 poll finding on King County Charter Amendment 1, concerning conservation
More than six in ten of those who had already cast ballots reported having backed the proposition, with fewer than a quarter opposed. Among voters who have not yet voted, the measure has less support: 49% indicated they’ll be voting yes and 33% indicated they’ll be voting no. 18% said they were not sure.
King County Proposition 1 was placed on the ballot by the King County Council several months ago at the request of King County Executive Dow Constantine.
The Yes campaign explains:
Executive Constantine launched the Land Conservation Initiative in 2016, convening a regional partnership of communities, cities, farmers, businesses, and environmental leaders to protect 65,000 acres of the highest conservation-value open space.
The initiative is off to a strong start, but without adequate funding now, King County and partners will miss the best opportunities to protect open spaces. A Yes on King County Proposition 1 [vote] restores the local Conservation Futures Program to its original rate – less than $2 more per month for the average homeowner.
A large number of environmental and conservation organizations are championing the levy’s passage, along with REI and the King County Democrats. Both The Stranger and The Seattle Times have supported a yes vote.
Opposition has been muted. Michael Fisette and Chuck Best supplied a “stop the land grab” con statement for the voter’s pamphlet, bizarrely arguing in one passage: “If everybody owns the property, then no one person is incentivized to maintain it, increasing the likelihood of fire, pollution, and squatting.”
(That’s a nonsensical argument: when property is in private hands, there are usually fewer people with the authority to manage and maintain it.)
“Opponents misstate facts: King County owns just over 3% of lands,” the Yes campaign said in response. “Federally-owned Cascade forests are inaccessible to many. Taxes are determined by home valuation — not public land ownership.”
Former Interior Secretary Sally Jewell joined De’Sean Quinn and Dow Constantine in signing the voter’s pamphlet statement supporting the measure.
The Democrats on the King County Council all support the levy. Republicans Pete von Reichbauer and Reagan Dunn are not listed as supporters of the measure.
King County voters clearly agree that the Land Conservation Initiative is worth funding, even though they are asked on almost an annual basis to approve levies for other worthy causes, such as Medic One or Best Start for Kids.
Here’s the questions we asked and the answers we received:
Already voted
QUESTION: This year, King County voters are considering King County Proposition 1, a conservation levy. The ballot title is as follows: The King County Council passed Ordinance 19458 concerning funding to protect open space lands in King County. This proposition would provide funding to pay, finance, or refinance acquisition and preservation of: urban green spaces, natural areas, wildlife and salmon habitat, trails, river corridors, farmlands and forests. It would authorize restoration of the county’s RCW 84.34.230 conservation futures property tax levy to a rate of $0.0625 per $1,000 of assessed valuation for collection in 2023 and use the dollar amount of the 2023 levy for the purpose of computing subsequent levy limitations under chapter 84.55 RCW.
How did you vote on this proposition?
Respondents who told us that they had already voted were shown this question.
- Yes: 62%
- No: 23%
- Did not vote on this: 0%
- Don’t recall: 15%
Haven’t yet voted
QUESTION: This year, King County voters are considering King County Proposition 1, a conservation levy. The ballot title is as follows: The King County Council passed Ordinance 19458 concerning funding to protect open space lands in King County. This proposition would provide funding to pay, finance, or refinance acquisition and preservation of: urban green spaces, natural areas, wildlife and salmon habitat, trails, river corridors, farmlands and forests. It would authorize restoration of the county’s RCW 84.34.230 conservation futures property tax levy to a rate of $0.0625 per $1,000 of assessed valuation for collection in 2023 and use the dollar amount of the 2023 levy for the purpose of computing subsequent levy limitations under chapter 84.55 RCW.
How are you voting on this proposition?
Respondents who told us that they had not yet voted were shown this question.
- Yes: 49%
- Definitely yes: 28%
- Probably yes: 21%
- No: 33%
- Probably no: 11%
- Definitely no: 22%
- Not sure: 18%
Aggregate responses
COMBINED ANSWERS (AGGREGATE), BOTH QUESTIONS:
- Yes: 57%
- No: 27%
- Did not vote on this: 0%
- Don’t recall: 9%
- Not sure: 7%
Our survey of 740 likely 2022 King County general election voters was in the field from Friday, October 28th until today, Thursday, November 3rd.
The poll was conducted entirely online for the Northwest Progressive Institute by Change Research and has a modeled margin of error of 4.0%.
Follow this link if you’re interested in a detailed primer on the survey’s methodology along with information about who took the poll.
If you’d like more information about King County Proposition 1, the Yes campaign’s website is a great resource. You can see all of the endorsements and check out the news coverage. If you’d like to read the text of the amendment and the complete voter’s pamphlet statements, King County Elections has a page with all of that information helpfully compiled in one place. Happy voting!
Friday, November 4th, 2022
King County conservation futures levy is receiving solid support, NPI poll finds
King County voters are saying yes to a proposal to increase the region’s investment in public lands and green spaces, suggesting a good outcome for King County Proposition 1 this month, NPI’s latest poll has found.
In the aggregate, 57% of voters surveyed this week for NPI by Change Research said they had voted for King County Proposition 1 or would be doing so, while 27% said they had voted no or would be doing so. 9% did not recall how they had voted, 7% were not sure, and 0% said they did not vote on the measure.
Visualization of NPI’s October-November 2022 poll finding on King County Charter Amendment 1, concerning conservation
More than six in ten of those who had already cast ballots reported having backed the proposition, with fewer than a quarter opposed. Among voters who have not yet voted, the measure has less support: 49% indicated they’ll be voting yes and 33% indicated they’ll be voting no. 18% said they were not sure.
King County Proposition 1 was placed on the ballot by the King County Council several months ago at the request of King County Executive Dow Constantine.
The Yes campaign explains:
A large number of environmental and conservation organizations are championing the levy’s passage, along with REI and the King County Democrats. Both The Stranger and The Seattle Times have supported a yes vote.
Opposition has been muted. Michael Fisette and Chuck Best supplied a “stop the land grab” con statement for the voter’s pamphlet, bizarrely arguing in one passage: “If everybody owns the property, then no one person is incentivized to maintain it, increasing the likelihood of fire, pollution, and squatting.”
(That’s a nonsensical argument: when property is in private hands, there are usually fewer people with the authority to manage and maintain it.)
“Opponents misstate facts: King County owns just over 3% of lands,” the Yes campaign said in response. “Federally-owned Cascade forests are inaccessible to many. Taxes are determined by home valuation — not public land ownership.”
Former Interior Secretary Sally Jewell joined De’Sean Quinn and Dow Constantine in signing the voter’s pamphlet statement supporting the measure.
The Democrats on the King County Council all support the levy. Republicans Pete von Reichbauer and Reagan Dunn are not listed as supporters of the measure.
King County voters clearly agree that the Land Conservation Initiative is worth funding, even though they are asked on almost an annual basis to approve levies for other worthy causes, such as Medic One or Best Start for Kids.
Here’s the questions we asked and the answers we received:
Our survey of 740 likely 2022 King County general election voters was in the field from Friday, October 28th until today, Thursday, November 3rd.
The poll was conducted entirely online for the Northwest Progressive Institute by Change Research and has a modeled margin of error of 4.0%.
Follow this link if you’re interested in a detailed primer on the survey’s methodology along with information about who took the poll.
If you’d like more information about King County Proposition 1, the Yes campaign’s website is a great resource. You can see all of the endorsements and check out the news coverage. If you’d like to read the text of the amendment and the complete voter’s pamphlet statements, King County Elections has a page with all of that information helpfully compiled in one place. Happy voting!
# Written by Andrew Villeneuve :: 6:28 PM
Categories: Elections, Our Environment, Policy Topics
Tags: Conservation, Research Poll Findings, WA-Counties
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