Thursday, October 1, 2026
A 12-year-old girl from Jefferson Middle School served as the City of Olympia's 2026 Mayor for the Day.
Harriet Rambo was selected for the role through a program designed to introduce young residents to local government and civic leadership.
Rambo earned the honor through an essay contest. This was her second time applying for the program.
Rambo read her winning essay during a recognition ceremony during a city council meeting on Tuesday, June 23.
She shared her love of reading, botany, science and the outdoors, as well as her hopes for protecting Olympia’s natural environment.
“My passion is science, Harriet said. “If I were a mayor, my focus would be on the environment and all the other important things, too.”
In her essay, Harriet proposed planning a wooded area on a site near the Washington State Legislative Building where an older structure is slated for demolition.
She said it could help replace forest land lost to development, while adding to the city’s natural beauty.
“A lot of forest spaces are being taken apart for housing, so what if we planted a wood of trees there?” she wrote. “Even if I were only mayor for a day, I would try my best to make sure everybody or everything was included, even the trees and wildlife around us.”
Rambo is Olympia’s second Mayor for the Day. She served in the role on May 29, taking the oath of office, and then shadowing Mayor Dontae Payne.
She also visited several city departments, including the Olympia Police Department and learned about the Crisis Response Unit, and spent time with the Olympia Parks, Arts & Recreation Department.
The day also included lunch at Squaxin Park and a ride aboard one of the city’s street sweepers, where Rambo learned about Olympia’s water system and annual calendar art program.
Mayor Pro Tem Yen Huynh, who helped review the essay submissions alongside Payne, said selecting a winner was difficult because of the high quality of the applications.
Huynh said one passage from Rambo’s essay especially stood out: “For a brief period of time, I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I was older. Now I have too many options.”
Huynh told Rambo, “I hope that you continue feeling like you have too many options, because you can do anything.”
Payne said he created the Mayor for the Day program to expose elementary and middle school students to local government and inspire future civic engagement.
He said the program complements Olympia’s Youth Council by encouraging younger students to become involved in their community.
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wellnow77
Congratulations Mayor Rambo!! Great way to get young people interested and motivated.
Tuesday, June 30 Report this
Snevets
Congratulations! What a great program to get young people involved in our community and government.
Tuesday, June 30 Report this
Boatyarddog
Im so happy we have children so interested in Public related projects. Especially this quote “Even if I were only mayor for a day, I would try my best to make sure everybody or everything was included, even the trees and wildlife around us.” Inspiring words good advise if the city council approaches it this way.
Congratulations Harriet I look forward to your eventual position on Olympias City Council
Tuesday, June 30 Report this