Preceded by Dow Constantine Nationality American Spouse Noel Drago Succeeded by Sally Bagshaw Role American Politician | Preceded by George Benson Name Jan Drago Succeeded by Joe McDermott Political party Democratic Party Party Democratic Party | |
Residence Seattle, Washington, United States Education Douglass Residential College, Rutgers University | ||
Jan Drago is an American politician from Seattle who has served on both Seattle City Council and King County Council.
Drago was a member of Seattle City Council until her run for mayor in 2009, having served since January 1994 on Seattle City Council. Her tenure includes four years as Council President and four years as chair of the Finance and Budget Committee from 1999–2003, steering the Council through four difficult budget cycles. In late 2008 Drago announced her intention to retire from the Seattle City Council and not seek another term.
Drago announced on May 26, 2009 that she was running for Mayor of Seattle, seeking to unseat two-term Mayor Greg Nickels. Despite raising the second largest amount of money of the nine candidates seeking the office, she ultimately finished fifth in the August 2009 primary election and failed to advance to the November general election.
While a member of the Seattle City Council, Drago chaired the Council’s Transportation Committee which has jurisdiction over citywide and regional transportation policies, planning and coordination of transportation issues. She vice-chaired the Housing and Economic Development Committee, and was a member of the Parks and Seattle Center Committee. She represents the Council on the Puget Sound Regional Council and its Transportation Policy Board as well as King County's Regional Transportation Committee, the Trade Development Alliance, the Seattle Convention and Visitors’ Board, PortJobs Board, Seattle-Chongqing Sister Association, Seattle-Taejon Sister City Council, the Sister Cities Coordinating Council, and the Sister City Association. For eight years, she has been a Council representative on the Civic Center Client Group.
Drago is also a board member of the Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust, and is a present or past member of the Seattle Art Museum Executive Board, Downtown Seattle Association, Washington Council on Crime and Delinquency, Denny Regrade Business Association and the Denny Regrade Crime Prevention Council (former president), the Women's Political Caucus, and Washington State Democratic Party. Prior to her election to the City Council, she served as chairperson to Mayor Charles Royer's Homeless Task Force and vice-chair of Governor Booth Gardner’s Task Force on Homelessness. More than 16 years ago, Drago organized the City's Downtown District Council, the first acknowledgment by the City that Downtown Seattle was composed of several residential neighborhoods, a fact no one would dispute today. Drago was one of the original founders of Sustainable Seattle.
Prior to her election, she was a small business owner (Häagen-Dazs Ice Cream Shoppes franchise owner, 1980–1991) and a schoolteacher (1973–1978). She is a graduate of Douglass College, Rutgers University (B.A., Psychology). She and her husband Noel, residents of Pioneer Square, have four sons and four grandsons. Her favorite form of relaxation is working her plot in Seattle’s Judkins P-Patch.