Before casting your vote in the Aug. 5, 2025, primary election, the public can attend an in-person debate between the three candidates for mayor of Auburn: incumbent Mayor Nancy Backus, Auburn City Councilmember Yolanda Trout, and local businessman Ron Morgan.
The event runs 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, July 9, at the Auburn Senior Center, 808 9th St. SE. All mayoral candidates have been invited to participate. This will be a recorded event.
In the meantime, below are Morgan’s responses to questions sent by the Auburn Reporter.
Ron Morgan
Q: Why do you want to be mayor?
A: A friend of mine recently asked me, “What, did you just wake up in the morning and say I think I am going to run for Mayor of Auburn?” My answer was that when I looked at my options, I just kept thinking, none of the above.
Anyone who has been around Auburn for more than a couple of years knows Nancy came in under Pete Lewis and kept the status quo. Yolanda I thought would be a good choice, but when she voted with Councilmember Kate Baldwin to allow King County to continue to run our municipal court and just take over the probation services, I could see that she was not going to be any better.
Bob Roegner was mayor of Auburn when I was kid. I would ride the bus to Auburn from Enumclaw to meet my friends to go skating, or to visit the new Super Mall. Bob’s vision for Auburn brought Sound Transit, warehouses, stores and new businesses that we boast about today like Zones and Tommy Bahama. So much of what we claim to be Auburn started over 30 years ago.
Now, we are at the cusp of the ultra modern era. We need to think about what is best for Auburn today and what is going to be best for Auburn’s future, 2050 and beyond. I only hope I can be a mayor like Bob was.
Q: What are the five greatest challenges the city faces at this time, and what would you do to better the situation?
A: First, we need to protect our neighbors from violent crimes, gangs and police brutality. Since 2018, our city has seen an increase of shootings. A death in Auburn used to be a rare occurrence. Auburn was the first city in our state to have an officer convicted of murder under Initiative 940, and there has been no official statement from the mayor to the family of the victim or about the officer involved. I believe Auburn needs to restructure in order to have a bright and prosperous future for all.
Q: Given concerns about public safety and rising crime rates in Auburn involving teen violence, break-ins, shootings, etc., voiced in recent public forums, what would you do, indeed, what could you do, to make things better?
A: Candidate did not provide an answer.
Q: How would you help strike the necessary balance between Auburn’s simultaneous needs for growth and development and for preserving what’s best about the city?
A: I would work to create jobs. The economist Milton Friedman believed that unregulated markets and job creation are crucial for poverty reduction. I have plans to attract new businesses to Auburn and help the struggling ones that are already here succeed and grow.
Q: What experience do you have dealing with large budgets?
A: My family has been in the car business for five generations. Average monthly inventory for the current small neighborhood dealership I work for is a half-million dollars. I have worked for developers in the area where the project budgets were between $20 million and $90 million. I worked on the Miami Tunnel Project for Bouygues Civil Works for almost two years in many capacities. I worked with engineers and tradesmen from all over the world on that project.
I am known by my friends, family and business associates to be someone that can get things done. I use networking, relationships, and generational knowledge to accomplish goals. I always try to find the best solution that will benefit all parties involved.
My grandpa used to say, “Give the people what they want. When you do they pay more and they leave happy.” My grandpa also used to say, “People never know what they want. Just find out what they need and they will be happy with that.”
There’s a fine line between need and want, and I think the mayor’s job walks that line. We need to listen to what our neighbors want and give them what they need.
