Erika Evans

Erika Evans (born ) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the Seattle City Attorney since 2026. In the November 2025 election, she defeated incumbent Republican Ann Davison with 66.8 percent of the vote. Evans is the first Black person elected to the office.

Evans previously served as an assistant U.S. Attorney, where she was the office's Civil Rights Coordinator. She resigned from the U.S. Department of Justice in March 2025, citing the department's direction under the second Trump administration, including the rollback of diversity initiatives and new policies on birthright citizenship. She ran for City Attorney on a platform that included implementing a restorative justice model, increasing the prosecution of wage theft, and opposing the administration's policies.

Early life and education Evans grew up in Tacoma, Washington, in a Black, working-class, and low-income household that was steeped in civil rights activism. She has stated that her family has deep roots in civil rights activism. Her grandfather was Lee Evans, a track and field athlete who won a gold medal in the 400-meter race at the 1968 Olympics. At the Games, he protested racial inequality by wearing a Black Panther-style beret and raising his fist during the medal presentation, while her grandmother planned human rights demonstrations at the games. Before attending law school, she volunteered at legal aid clinics assisting people who could not afford an attorney.

Career

Early legal career Evans began her legal career at the Seattle City Attorney's Office under then-City Attorney Pete Holmes, working in both the criminal and civil divisions. As a line-level trial prosecutor, she handled misdemeanor cases, including DUI and assault, before being promoted to the civil side, where she defended the City of Seattle in lawsuits.

During this time, Evans served as a judge pro tempore, presiding over cases in the city-level courts of Seatac, Puyallup, and Tukwila.

She was president of the Loren Miller Bar Association, a civil rights group for the Black legal community. For seven years, Evans led the association's Bar Studies Program, which assists diverse law graduates in passing the bar exam. She co-chaired the Charles V. Johnson youth in law forum and was selected as co-chair of the Washington Leadership Institute, which helps attorneys from underserved backgrounds advance into leadership roles. Evans also cited new directives, stating, "We were getting notices to report on colleagues doing diversity work in the office," and being told that U.S. attorney general Pam Bondi's interpretation of the law was binding on all DOJ lawyers.

In the August primary, Evans finished first with 55.8% of the vote, while Davison received 33.4%, allowing both to advance to the general election. Other primary candidates included legal aid attorney Rory O'Sullivan and public defender Nathan Rouse.

Evans was a vocal critic of Davison's "tough on crime" policies, calling them "ineffective." Davison defended the exclusionary zones, stating that she has heard from community members that they are working.

Personal life In 2017, Evans' apartment building in Eastlake, Seattle was shot up by police officers. As of 2024, she is a resident of Seattle and her partner is Christopher Sanders.