Seattle – Today, Mayor Bruce Harrell announced additions and changes to his Cabinet and Mayor’s Office staff:
Natalie Walton-Anderson will join Mayor Harrell’s staff on June 5, 2024 as the Director of Public Safety. She fills the position previously held by Kerry Keefe who moved to a role with the police department to work on matters related to women in policing and criminal case investigations.
Julie Dingley will step away from her position as Director of the City Budget Office on May 17, 2024. The Mayor’s Director of Policy Dan Eder will fill the role of interim CBO Director until a search for the next permanent director is launched.
Mayor Harrell will appoint Mina Hashemi to serve as the interim Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations, taking the role of former Director Gael Tarleton who retired earlier this year. Director Hashemi’s first day at the City of Seattle is today, Wednesday, May 8.
Mayor Harrell will nominate Jamie Carnell as permanent Director of City Finance.
Aisha Foster will serve as Executive Director of Human Resources for the Mayor’s Office.
Callie Craighead will serve as Press Secretary under the Communications Director for the Mayor’s Office.
“My administration is a learning organization that always seeks to grow, improve, and elevate talent to help us reach our goals. I am confident these new and empowered members of our staff will help us advance our mission to build a safe, healthy, and sustainable Seattle,” said Mayor Harrell. “I’m excited to work with this set of leaders to continue driving progress – creating a safe city through urgency and comprehensive solutions to issues like crime and fentanyl; investing in a stronger, more effective budget for our residents; and building a model for a collaborative government with our local, county, state, and federal partners.”
Mayor Harrell continued, “I want to express my sincere and heartfelt gratitude to Director Dingley, who since Day One of my administration has been an essential member of our team and who we can thank for giving us the tools and approach needed to address forecasted deficits and build a solid financial future. I also want to thank Deputy OIR Director Sierra Howlett-Browne for her leadership and strong example as acting director over the last several months and look forward to her continued partnership in the years to come.”
“I look forward to serving with Mayor Harrell to deliver on our shared mission to create a safe Seattle for every resident,” said Natalie Walton-Anderson. “We know true safety requires holistic, multi-faceted solutions, and, in this role, I’m excited to build on longstanding relationships with law enforcement, social service providers, public health leaders, and more to create partnerships, strategies, and programs that keep neighbors and communities safe.”
“Serving as CBO Director over the last two and a half years has been an honor as we’ve worked to produce effective, balanced budgets in the face of significant general fund deficits, implement biennial budgeting, and restore relationships based in trust and collaboration with the City Council. CBO remains a critical steward of taxpayer dollars, providing invaluable institutional knowledge across administrations, and has an impressive bench of thoughtful, dedicated, and resourceful public servants,” said CBO Director Julie Dingley. “Despite this progress, the last six years with CBO and two and a half years as its Director have been extremely demanding, and after working to transform the City’s fiscal policies and budgeting practices to promote a more sustainable and accountable budget process, now is the right time to step away so I can focus on my family and my next chapter. I know the City is in good hands, and I’m incredibly grateful to Mayor Harrell, my colleagues in the City Budget Office, my fellow Directors, and every City employee who worked with us to craft budgets that reflect our values.”
“The City faces serious budget challenges in the coming years, but also significant opportunities to improve how we invest to serve our residents,” said Director of Policy Dan Eder. “I look forward to drawing on my 16 years of experience helping craft City budgets to address these challenges, ensure the City is on a sustainable fiscal trajectory, and invest in the priorities and essential services of the people of Seattle.”
“It’s an honor to be chosen to lead the Office of Intergovernmental Relations and an incredible team of dedicated public servants,” said Interim Director of the Office of Intergovernmental Relations Mina Hashemi. “I’m looking forward to further strengthening the City’s relationships as together we work to build a thriving, innovative, and equitable Seattle we are all proud to call home.”
“I’ve known Mina for more than 15 years and have deep admiration for her career experience and dedicated public service,” said Gael Tarleton, former state representative and OIR Director from January, 2022 to March, 2024. “Mina brings to this office invaluable perspective on and first-hand knowledge of the City’s relationships with our government partners. She knows how to create an environment where diverse voices come together to address critical public policy challenges. And she understands how to navigate the competing pressures our elected leaders face. Mina will be a strong director for the intergovernmental relations office.”
About
Natalie Walton-Anderson is an experienced public safety leader, who has worked to address complex safety issues in Seattle and Washington state for nearly 30 years. As a former Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington Criminal Division, Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office Criminal Division, and Criminal Division Chief for the Seattle City Attorney’s Office, she is a champion for keeping people safe, including supporting survivors and victims of crimes such as domestic violence and sexual assault, holding offenders accountable, and designing and implementing diversion strategies and programs like LEAD and Mental Health Court.
Dan Eder currently serves as the Director of Policy for Mayor Bruce Harrell, where he is responsible for researching, analyzing, and evaluating policy proposals related to Mayor’s Office priorities. Eder brings decades of local government leadership experience and expertise to the role. He was the Interim and Deputy Director of Seattle City Council Central Staff, where he specialized in budget and fiscal issues, after rising through the ranks as an analyst, and before that worked as a project manager for Sound Transit. Eder has a Master of Public Administration from the University of Washington Evans School and a Bachelor of Arts from Swarthmore College.
Mina Hashemi most recently served as the Director of Strategic Partnerships in the Office of King County Executive Dow Constantine. In that role, she lead government relations for high priority projects and forging impactful partnerships across the public, private, and community sectors for one of the nation’s largest counties. In her role, she also helped oversee the passage of the $16.2 billion biennial budget and critical levies including the Crisis Cares Center and Conservation Futures levies. Prior to joining King County, she served as Executive Director of the House Democratic Campaign Committee, where she crafted the successful 2018 and 2020 campaign strategies that added seven seats to Democratic control and elected the most diverse House Democratic Caucus in state history. Growing up in a small town in Southwest Washington, Mina graduated from the University of Washington where she earned her degree in Political Science and Art History.
Jamie Carnell is the City of Seattle Interim City Finance Director, Jamie Carnell, has worked for the City of Seattle since 1994. Prior to becoming the Interim City Finance Director, Jamie served as Director of the City’s Business Systems Division and Deputy Director to former City Finance Director, Glen Lee. Jamie has overseen several enterprise financial system implementations for the City of Seattle as well as across other multiple jurisdictions in Western Washington. Jamie has an extensive background in information technology, communications, and project management. Jamie received her Bachelor of Arts from Seattle Pacific University.
Aisha Foster, a proud native of Seattle, brings nearly three decades of expertise in Human Resources to the forefront, contributing to citywide HR initiatives and demonstrating a proven record of executive-level recruitment. Since joining Mayor Harrell’s administration, Aisha has consistently made significant contributions and earned recognition as a problem solver with the keen ability to navigate complex challenges with precision, dedication, and a commitment to positive change.
Callie Craighead is responsible for working with journalists, members of the media, and community stakeholders to ensure Mayor Harrell’s policies and goals are communicated efficiently and effectively. Callie joined Mayor Harrell’s communications team in 2022 from the nonprofit sector where she developed strategic media plans about global health efforts to expand vaccine access. She previously worked at the Seattle P-I and reported on local politics, transportation, and real estate, and her writing has also appeared in Seattle magazine. Craighead has a Bachelor of Arts from Seattle University and completed a media and journalism fellowship at the Poynter Institute.