By James Tabafunda
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Supporters of Tacoma City Council, District 4 Candidate Silong Chhun (Photo by James Tabafunda)
Why would a Tacoma City Council candidate bring his campaign to Seattle? For Silong Chhun, it’s about mobilizing regional support—and building solidarity across community lines. On Oct. 5, State Rep. My-Linh Thai co-hosted a fundraiser for Chhun at Mam’s Books in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District, drawing supporters from across King and Pierce counties.
Thai urged Seattle-area residents to back Chhun’s campaign, especially refugee and immigrant communities.
“We believe that we could have people here in King County to support his campaign. It’s very important bringing all of the refugees in. I mean, we have the numbers.”
(From left to right): Tacoma City Council, District 4 Candidate Silong Chhun, Washington state Rep. My-Linh Thai, D-Bellevue. (Photo by James Tabafunda)
A week earlier, Chhun’s campaign made a stop in Tacoma with a fundraiser hosted by friends, family, former Gov. Jay Inslee, Trudi Inslee, and former Tacoma Mayor Brian Ebersole—capping off a week that saw both local and state leaders publicly endorse Chhun’s candidacy.
Thai’s remarks drew on shared experiences of refugee resettlement and the ongoing struggles for representation, recounting her own journey as the first refugee legislator in Olympia and reflecting on the deep connections and collective trauma within immigrant communities.
She spoke candidly to a group of about two dozen attendees, describing the moment she learned of Chhun’s candidacy as profoundly moving.
“He didn’t know, but I cried. I found my brother.”
Her endorsement also represents the importance of authentic representation from individuals who understand the layered challenges facing refugee families and marginalized communities in Washington. Thai recounted legislative victories and setbacks, urging those present to amplify their voices and continue the effort needed to overcome historic trauma and division.
Silong Chhun’s personal history
Tacoma City Council, District 4 Candidate Silong Chhun (Photo by James Tabafunda)
Chhun’s journey from refugee to advocate and Tacoma City Council candidate for District 4 is grounded in struggle, service, and a vision for inclusive government.
Born in Cambodia in 1979, Chhun and his family settled in Tacoma as refugees in 1981 after the Khmer Rouge was overthrown, finding their first American home in the Salishan neighborhood—one of the city’s most challenged communities.
“I thought the crime, the drugs around Salishan was just pretty normal. This is how we live,” Chhun said, reflecting on his childhood shaped by poverty, violence, and resilience.
His roots run deep, extending from Lister Elementary through Lincoln High School to raising his own family in Tacoma.
“Today, I continue to serve the community where I grew up, living on the Eastside with my wife of 18 years and our two boys,” Chhun said.
He credits these experiences for shaping his decades of advocacy for equity and civic engagement and influencing his philosophy of public service. As he puts it, “When we create pathways of opportunity for our most vulnerable, we strengthen our entire community.”
Chhun often credits Tacoma’s refugee community for helping his family survive difficult times. “It really took a community to kind of raise my family out of poverty. Everybody needs help,” Chhun said, crediting the support system of relatives, neighbors, and organizations like Tacoma Community House for helping his family adapt, learn English, and thrive.
“When we arrived here with little more than dreams and determination, this community embraced us, giving us the chance to rebuild our lives and grow strong once again.”
As a child, he quickly became his parents’ bridge to American life, an experience that revealed how inaccessible basic services could be for immigrant families.
“As soon as I learned English, I went with my parents to doctor’s appointments, translated, and handled bills they couldn’t read yet.”
Chhun is candid about his own challenges.
“Growing up poor, not speaking English until the fourth grade, I became my parents’ social worker … helping my parents navigate these systems that weren’t designed to serve us.”
Service became foundational. Chhun grew up not only looking out for himself but for neighbors and friends from across Tacoma’s diverse east side—Black, Samoan, Hispanic, and Asian families who all leaned on one another.
“We didn’t see each other as Cambodians. We didn’t see each other as Blacks. We just saw ourselves as friends who were just trying to make it to the next day or go play basketball,” he recalls. This deep-rooted sense of inclusion shapes his policy outlook.
“Everything that shapes my policy is everything that I grew up learning, experiencing here on the East Side.”
He credits mentors like former Gov. Inslee for instilling in him a duty to get government to work for historically marginalized communities.
“My main motivation is I want to show our community that we can make government work for us because government won’t work for us if we don’t make it work for us. And I’m here to make it work for all of us,” Chhun said.
“Even if I’m just running in the City of Tacoma, the representation resonates throughout the whole state so we’re going to elevate more Southeast Asian refugees,” he said. “We have to make this work for us because we don’t fight for ourselves.”
As digital communications specialist in the Washington State Attorney General’s Office, Chhun brings his experience to inclusive governance and equitable policy execution. His prior role as digital media manager in Gov. Inslee’s office helped him gain expertise in strategic communications built to unite diverse communities and drive meaningful policy change. These professional experiences, matched with past advocacy, form his approach to public service and community engagement.
He has served on boards for the city’s Immigrants and Refugees Commission and the Arts & Heritage Advisory Board for Parks Tacoma, and worked in public affairs for the attorney general’s office.
Chhun’s entry into public service was gradual and reluctant.
“I was never looking to get into politics. I’m more interested in the governing aspect … but politics is how we get in the door,” he said. “I decided to run because I feel like I’m in such a privileged position.”
“I have a lot of community support from Seattle to Tacoma, and I see politics a little bit differently. Growing up, we feel like we were disengaged in civics because we didn’t feel like government worked for us, right? And I’m running to let my community know we’re here.”
He expressed his belief in building political power as a way to reshape the system.
“We’re trying to make the system work for us and not improve ourselves in the system,” he said.
A major turning point came during the Trump administration, when Tacoma’s Cambodian community “was being targeted by ICE raids that you see in the media today … when Trump won this latest election, I made a decision to think about it like, okay, I need to do more.”
Drawing on years of advocacy—including working closely with the Seattle Clemency Project and Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, he said, “I think one of the biggest issues that I’m going to be running on is protecting our immigrant and refugee communities, because in the city of Tacoma, District Four … the East Side and the South End, we have the largest concentration of immigrants and refugees.”
One supporter and recent history of the Tacoma City Council
Sina Sam, a longtime friend and campaign volunteer, emphasized the historic nature of the moment and deep ties binding Southeast Asian advocates in Washington.
“We’ve been good friends since college,” Sam said, noting their collaboration in creating a production company at the University of Washington. “Having both Silong and Rep. My-Linh Thai in office is the best protection for families facing deportation, giving our community a real seat at the table.” Sam said recent gubernatorial pardons for Southeast Asian residents highlight the importance of having leaders who understand immigrant struggles, calling Chhun’s campaign “a historical moment we’ll recognize for generations.”
Chanjolee “Joe” Bushnell, elected in 2021 to represent Tacoma’s District 5, became the city’s first Cambodian American council member, marking a historical milestone for refugee representation in Tacoma politics. Chhun’s candidacy follows in that legacy.
Plans for city government
If elected, Chhun plans to measure success by action: protecting tenants’ rights, raising the minimum wage, holding officials accountable, and closing the Northwest Detention Center.
“Everything’s made up in government … leaders tell you they can’t do something, they take refuge in the complexity,” he says. “If you have an issue that matters to you the most, consider running, consider stepping up or supporting somebody that runs because we need more representation.”
His story—marked by resilience, community-building, and lived experience—explains a campaign centered on representation, accountability, and deep-rooted advocacy for underrepresented voices and immigrant communities.
“I’m not here to become a politician,” he said. “I’m here to be in the seat so I can stand on my soapbox and say, ‘I’ve got to shut down the detention center in Tacoma.’”
For more information on Silong Chhun, go to www.silongchhun.com.
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