Sam Cho (politician)

Sam Cho (born April 24, 1990) is a Korean-American politician based in Seattle, Washington serving as a commissioner of the Port of Seattle for Position 2. Prior to serving as a commissioner, he was a political appointee under President Barack Obama and a staffer for the member of the Washington State Senate and United States Congress. Cho was elected to the Seattle Port Commission in 2019.[1]

Sam Cho
Member of the Seattle Port Commission
Position 2
Assumed office
January 7, 2020 (2020-01-07)
Preceded byCourtney Gregoire
Personal details
Born (1990-04-24) April 24, 1990
Chicago, Washington
EducationAmerican University (BA)
London School of Economics (MS)
ProfessionPolitician

Early life and education

Cho was born in Chicago, Illinois but raised in Seattle, Washington by his immigrant parents from South Korea who came to the United States in the late-1980s through the Port of Seattle.[2]

Cho holds a B.A. from American University, where he served as the President of the Korean Student Association and interned for the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI). Cho was also a member of the Pi Kappa Phi fraternity.[3]

He earned his Master's of Science from The London School of Economics.[4]

Career

Cho was scouted in his junior year on American University's campus by the United States Department of State to work as an analyst. After graduate school, he went on to become a congressional staffer in the U.S. House of Representatives for Congressman Ami Bera from California's 7th congressional district. Shortly after, he received a political appointment to serve in the Obama Administration as a Special Assistant.[1]

After the Obama Administration ended, he returned to his home state of Washington and worked in the Washington State Legislature for Senator Bob Hasegawa.

In 2018, Cho was appointed by Governor Jay Inslee to serve as a Commissioner on the Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs (CAPAA), making him the youngest serving Commissioner at the time.[5]

In 2020, Cho was named to New America's list of Next-Generation Asian American Foreign Policy and National Security leaders.[6]

Port of Seattle Commission

In May 2019, Cho announced his campaign to run and replace Courtney Gregoire on the Seattle Port Commission.[7]

Cho's priorities included the economy, environmental sustainability, accountability, transparency, and fighting human trafficking. Despite being a newcomer with low name recognition, he was able to win over the endorsement of key organizations such as the Longshoreman's Union, Conservation Voters, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), local laborers union, and King County Labor Council.

Despite a crowded primary race with six other candidates including a former mayor,[8] Cho came first place with 31.1% of the vote to move onto the general election.[9][10]

In the general election,[11] his opponent was former City of Bellevue Mayor Grant Degginger. Cho defeated the former mayor with 60.8% of the vote,[12] becoming the first Korean American and youngest port commissioner since the founding of the port in 1911. He was sworn in on January 7, 2020.[13][14]

Cho was also endorsed by Gary Locke, Norman Mineta, Martha Choe, and Mike Honda.

References
  1. Sam Cho. Ballotpedia.
  2. Sam Cho, on the importance of embracing and continuing to celebrate diversity. Northwest Asian Weekly. 2020-01-10.
  3. Sam H. Cho. Council of Korean Americans.
  4. Sam Cho. Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs.
  5. Commissioners. Washington State Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs.
  6. 2020 Asian American Pacific Islander National Security & Foreign Policy Next Generation Leaders. New America. 2020-05-20.
  7. Macz, Brandon. International exporter seeks Port of Seattle Commission seat. Queen Anne & Magnolia News. 2019-05-21.
  8. Vedantam, Keerthi. Felleman trounces competition in Port of Seattle primary election; Cho and Degginger lead pack for other seat . Seattle Times. 2019-08-06.
  9. Brewster, David. A Pendulum Election for Seattle. Post Alley. 2019-08-07.
  10. Vedantam, Keerthi. Felleman trounces competition in Port of Seattle primary election; Cho and Degginger lead pack for other seat. Seattle Times. 2019-08-06.
  11. Warn, Daniel. Former Bellevue mayor, international exporter square off for port commission. Queen Anne & Magnolia News. 2019-10-22.
  12. Vedantam, Keerthi. 10 candidates are competing for 2 seats on Port of Seattle Commission. Seattle Times. 2019-07-22.
  13. Ng, Assunta. From unknown to Port Commissioner—How and why Cho won big in the election. Northwest Asian Weekly. 2019-11-14.
  14. Khashimova Long, Katherine. Former Bellevue Mayor Degginger concedes to Cho in Seattle Port Commissioner race. Seattle Times. 2019-11-07.
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