NBA Star James Donaldson Stands Tall And Bares All In Run For Seattle Mayor

James Donaldson has gone from athlete to politician.

Former Sonic James Donaldson ‘Dukes’ launches campaign for Seattle mayor

James Donaldson, a military brat who was born in England, played basketball at Washington State University and started his 14-year NBA career in 1980 on the other side of the state with the now-defunct Seattle Supersonics. (They are now known as the Oklahoma City Thunder.)

For Donaldson, who holds the NBA record for most games played (957) without ever attempting a three-point shot, squeezing into a normal-sized human’s chair is like a normal-sized human squeezing into a kindergartener’s chair.

His demeanor is cerebral and soothing; if he could get paid to read people to sleep, Donaldson would make top dollar. As for the Saturn, he had to have the seat moved back, which is par for the course for any vehicle he’s ever driven.

In retirement, Donaldson owned a physical therapy business and has previously run for city office. In 2009, he ran for mayor and came in fourth.

He started a foundation called Your Gift of Life in 2019, a nonprofit foundation for mental health awareness.

“It’s important for me to work with youth, minority populations, and the impoverished in any way I can,” says Donaldson ’79, who lives in Seattle, but travels south once each week as part of a program for grades one through three. “And that includes my businesses, where many of these people have not had services as we provide.”

For his service to the community and success as an entrepreneur, which includes three Donaldson Fitness Centers and Clinics located in less-affluent neighborhoods in Seattle, Tacoma, and Mill Creek, Donaldson was named the 2005 recipient of the Jeri McDonald Community Service Award.

This is Donaldson’s second run for mayor of Seattle, a city that seems to lurch further leftward with every passing year. The first time he ran, in 2009, he finished a disappointing fourth and failed to emerge from the primary election. But still, life was good.

“Three values have made Seattle a world leader: compassion, innovation, and problem-solving,” Donaldson said Thursday as he announced his campaign. “Our city is at its best when we remember the values that unite us.”

“We all know that the city faces three big challenges. Homelessness, a loss of trust in law enforcement, and need to ‘build back better’ as we return to normal after COVID,” he continued. “Each of these challenges can be met with compassion, innovation, and problem-solving.”

In December 2020, current Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan announced that she will not be running for re-election as Seattle’s mayor, opting not to pursue a second term.

Sources: