Pete Holmes, who is running against two-term incumbent City Attorney Tom Carr, says, “I feel optimistic.” And he should. The Seattle Times endorsed Holmes, as did The Stranger and nearly every Democratic district organization in the city (except in Carr’s home turf of West Seattle). “It sure seems like things are breaking my way,” Holmes says.

It's impossible to have any certainty how the race will shake out; polling at PubliCola indicated in July that Carr is in the lead, but 80 percent of voters were undecided. That four out of five voters would be undecided about Carr after he's spent eight years in office means they aren't satisfied with him—or they don't care about the down-ticket race either way. But Carr's reputation is tarnished after defying voters who passed Initiative 75, which made marijuana possession the city's lowest law-enforcement priority. Marijuana possession prosecutions went down—but only because police referred fewer cases to Carr's office. Overall, Carr prosecuted a higher percentage of all the marijuana cases referred by police. Carr also pushed a war on nightlife and clubs, including the notorious Operation Sobering Thought, fought against free-speech rights in Seattle Center, and subpoenaed reporters.

Holmes, an attorney for 24 years in the city, plans to meet some club owners on Pike/Pine neighborhood—club owners who have campaigned for Holmes and detest Carr—this afternoon. But he’s also extending an olive branch. “I am inviting people who endorsed Carr to the party,” he says. Holmes is sharing an election-night party with City Council incumbent Nick Licata and council candidate David Bloom at the Seattle Glassblowing Studio.