David Della

David Della (born March 10, 1955) is an American politician and labor activist from Seattle, Washington. In the 1970s and 1980s, Della was a union organizer fighting racial discrimination in the fish canary industry. He was elected to represent District 7 on the Seattle City Council in November 2003.

Early life and labor activism Della grew up in South Seattle and attended Cleveland High School.

In the 1980s, Della worked with members of ILWU Local 37 in the Philippines who were organizing against loyalists of the Ferdinand Marcos' dictator regime. Della focused his campaign on energy bills increasing, after Seattle City Light raised rates four times in a year.

Della defeated Willis in the November General Election, 65,324 votes (54%) to 55,620 (46%).

Seattle City Council (2003-2007) Della was chair of the Parks, Neighborhoods, and Education Committee from 2004 to 2006 and the Education, Libraries and Labor Committee from 2006 to 2008.

During his time as chair of the Parks, Neighborhoods, and Education Committee, he oversaw the passage of the sports complex expansion at Magnuson Park, which drew complaints from locals and organizations surrounding the park. The council would pass a bill on an 8–1 vote that would open the various fields in a phased system. Della would be the lone no vote, stating, "In the master plan that the council passed 9–0, we committed to seven lighted fields. It is incumbent on the city to honor that agreement and move forward.”

Della initially voted to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a tunnel and open waterfront but would later oppose the plan. Della wanted to repair the viaduct stating, "I can't stand by and wait for gold-plated alternatives. We have the money today, and we have to get working tomorrow." Similar to his previous election campaign, Della was aggressive in attacking his opponent, stating that Burgess was too conservative for Seattle. Della also attacked environmental groups for endorsing Burgess, insinuating that race played a factor in their decision.

Della would lose in the November General Election, garnering only 45,932 votes (35%) to Burgess' 84,333 votes (65%).