By Staff
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
From left: Senayet Negusse, Peter Kwon Takele Gobena, and Erin Sitterley. (Photo provided by Peter Kwon)
Peter Kwon and Benson Wong were recently named deputy mayor of SeaTac and mayor of Mercer Island, respectively.
On Jan. 7, Benson Wong was appointed as mayor of Mercer Island for 2020-2021 in a 4-3 vote.
“As the first person of color to serve as mayor of Mercer Island, I am humbled by that fact and appreciative of this community’s welcoming of diversity and inclusion,” said Wong. “The mayor is but one of seven councilmembers and collectively I know that we look forward to working together for the benefit of the entire Island, including our growing Asian population that is now almost 19 percent.”
From left: Eleanor Wong, Leeching Tran Wong, wife Terry Mark, Benson Wong, Wesley Wong, and Trevor Wong. (Photo by Ross Freeman)
Originally elected to the Mercer Island City Council in 2013, Wong has an undergraduate degree from Yale University and a law degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He is a senior partner at the Seattle law firm of Keller Rohrback L.L.P.
And on Jan. 14, Kwon was appointed as deputy mayor of SeaTac, saying he is “humbled and honored.”
Kwon told the Northwest Asian Weekly, “I have been working very hard over the last four years to improve our community, to build friendships, to bridge gaps, create trust, and to focus on the strength diversity holds if we work together and not apart. As we move forward… let us challenge ourselves to be proactive, contribute, share our diversity of talents, and participate in life-changing decisions.”
Staff can be reached at info@nwasianweekly.com.