Esther Handy, an aide to city council member Mike O'Brien, has taken a leave of absence to manage the anti-tunnel campaign, Protect Seattle Now.

Handy, a former organizer for Obama who graduated from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, will be on leave through the end of the summer.

Handy's leave comes on the heels of a similar leave of absence by Dan Nolte , an aide to council member Sally Clark.

Two aides to Mayor Mike McGinn, Dereck Farmer and Ainsley Close, took leaves from McGinn's office to work on the campaign to get the tunnel referendum on the ballot earlier this year.