Charlie Chong

Charlie Chong (October 13, 1926 – April 26, 2007) was a populist Seattle political figure and activist on behalf of the Pike Place Market and against the marginalization of West Seattle. Chong was a perennial candidate but did serve on the Seattle City Council for one year after winning a special election in 1996.

Early life and career On October 13, 1926, Chong was born on the island of Maui, then part of the Territory of Hawaii (now the State of Hawaii). He was the sixth of 13 children with his father working as a bookkeeper on sugar plantations.

Chong graduated from Honolulu's St. Louis High School and was editor of the school's newspaper. After graduating, he was drafted into the Korean War, serving in the United States Air Force as an intelligence officer.

Chong left the military in 1954 and went to work with one of his Georgetown University professors, who was studying international law.

Elections In 1995, Chong ran as a protest candidate for City Council, advancing to the general election against incumbent Margaret Pageler. He ran as a reform candidate, critiquing the council's support of downtown business interests. In the general election, Pageler defeated Chong in a landslide, 69% to 31%.

Although Chong lost, he ran for city council in the special election the following year to fill the vacancy left by Tom Weeks. He again ran on a populist platform against the council's focus on downtown projects and not average citizen's problems, like potholes. Chong and Rohan agreed on some issues, like focusing spending on neighborhoods and not downtown, but disagreed on key issues, such as how to respond to homelessness and civilian oversight of police. In the November general election, Chong defeated Rohan 57% to 43% and took office when the election was certified on November 12, 1996.

In 1997, midway through his first year in office, Chong ran for mayor because "we’re riding an upswelling of resentment that might not be here two years from now." Chong and Schell disagreed on how to address the population increase, with Chong focusing on keeping neighborhoods intact and development outside the city, while Schell focused on compact urban living. In the November general election, Schell defeated Chong, 56% to 44%.

In 1999, Chong ran for the open city council seat after councilmember Tina Podlodowski chose not to run for reelection. During the campaign, some media outlets called Chong "eccentric" while The Stranger, referred to him as a "lunatic" and a "nutcase." In the November general election, Wills defeated Chong 55% to 45%. Chong came in a distant fourth place in the September primary election, with 6.8% of the vote.

Tenure During his brief tenure in the Seattle City Council, Chong chaired the Personnel, Organization, and Performance Committee. He governed as a populist, vocalizing the fear and anxiety of citizens who felt unheard by the council. Chong was unpopular among establishment figures on the council, who privately called him a "blowhard and a nitpicker," and had few allies in the system.

At the beginning of Chong's tenure, a massive snowstorm hit Seattle, and he responded by pushing a deal to buy snowplows at a discounted rate. The council and other city leaders at first blocked the deal by forcing studies on the purchase, which led to the city of Bellevue purchasing the cheap snowplows. After Chong led the public outcry over the deal, the council reversed course, blaming Chong's "bullying" as the reason for the change.

Personal life Chong was a Roman Catholic and was an usher at Holy Rosary Church in West Seattle. Chong married his longtime partner Mary Pearson in 1999 before he had heart surgery; they had no children together. He died in Seattle's Providence Hospital on April 26, 2007.