Seattle mayor laughs off millionaires leaving Washington state over progressive taxes, waves 'bye'

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. ©2026 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by LSEG. Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson laughed off millionaires who wanted to flee the state over taxation and waved bye during an event earlier this month. Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson laughed and seemed to encourage the notion that millionaires could leave the state of Washington while discussing her support for a progressive tax during an interview earlier this month. "I think the claims that millionaires are going to leave our state are, like, super overblown. And if — the ones that leave, like, bye," she said, which prompted cheers and laughter from the audience at the Seattle University event, Seattle University Conversations, which took place on April 14. Wilson was asked if she believed progressive taxes were an "easy" and "promising" solution to the tax climate in the area. She said she never thought they were easy, but said she was excited about the mill