‘Compassion is nonpartisan’: Spokane Council Member Jonathan Bingle looks outside political comfort zone

It’s not exactly a story of friendship at first sight.

Him, standing with accused domestic terrorist and former State Rep. Matt Shea, railing against abortion outside the Planned Parenthood clinic in Spokane.

Her, with 500 Drag Queen Strong leading the counterprotest across the street.

But that day sparked a lasting dialogue between now-Spokane City Council Member Jonathan Bingle and Nicolette Ocheltree, whom he hired as his legislative assistant when he took office this month.

In an interview with The Spokesman-Review, the unlikely duo described how they went from polar-opposite sides of a fraught issue to sharing an office.

Beneath a photo of the Planned Parenthood protest online, Bingle commented with an invitation for anyone welcome to a dialogue. Ocheltree took him up on it.

The two met at First Avenue Coffee prepared for disagreement. They quickly learned they had a lot in common. For starters, they were both wearing black vests, and they even have the same birthday.

Over the course of that discussion and subsequent meetings, they learned the similarities were more than surface level. Those shared values include government transparency and accountability, fiscal responsibility and minimizing harm.

“When it really comes down to these core principles, we actually really agree with each other,” said Ocheltree, who unsuccessfully ran for mayor in 2019.

So Bingle didn’t hesitate to hire her as his legislative assistant following his resounding victory in the election to represent northeast Spokane. Though the position is nonpartisan, Bingle is conservative.

“I honestly feel so lucky,” Bingle said.

Of the two, it’s Ocheltree who actually has more City Council experience.

In signing up to work for Bingle, Ocheltree is giving up her role as a regular commenter at Spokane City Council meetings. She would read the council’s dense agendas every week and prepare for each meeting with a list of subjects she wanted to address.

That attention to detail is an asset to Bingle, who acknowledges that follow-through is not his strong suit.

“I needed someone who’s going to complement me in those ways,” Bingle said.

Ocheltree and Bingle already are preparing for meetings with pages of notes.

“I hate being wrong more than I like being right, so Nicolette is going to help me be wrong less,” Bingle joked.

The two are also taking a hands-on approach to city government.

When the city operated a temporary warming shelter at the Spokane Convention Center around the new year, Bingle and Ocheltree toured it several times in person and encouraged other council members to do the same.

“It’s one thing to have an opinion about the shelters; it’s another to form an opinion after you’ve gone and seen what’s going on, and it requires a much more nuanced perspective of what the problems are,” Ocheltree said.

Homelessness will continue to be a key issue for the City Council, and Bingle and Ocheltree have different perspectives on it.

Bingle campaigned on a message of holding people accountable who refuse to access shelter or other services.

Ocheltree has experienced homelessness firsthand, and feels it could’ve been prevented but for the lack of tenant rights.

Bingle said people “on my side” often focus on addiction and mental health issues within the homeless, but said Ocheltree represents a portion of people who have experienced homelessness for other reasons.

Ocheltree recounted Bingle calling her and suggesting a visit to the convention center shelter the day it opened. She watched Bingle help a man whose electric wheelchair had run out of battery.

“I know it wasn’t a political thing, it was just a human thing, and there was no question about it,” Ocheltree said.

Homelessness is an example of where their worldviews may align.

The two agree the city can improve its homelessness response to be both better for people experiencing homelessness and more financially efficient.

Bingle hopes to develop a sheltering plan that everyone can get behind, compared to a system he said currently feels “disjointed.” When the plan is clear and isn’t “sprung on us,” Bingle said “we’re really going to be able to be effective.”

Disjointed is also how the two describe communication within the council office, which they hope to improve. They also hope to improve District 1’s standing in city politics, which Bingle feels is often overlooked.

“That’s what I’m going to put all of my focus into, is in the northeast and presenting them well,” Bingle said.

There will be areas on which Bingle and Ocheltree disagree, but they don’t believe that will ruin their partnership.

“The truth, humanity and compassion is nonpartisan,” Ocheltree said.