List of mayors of Tukwila, Washington

Mayor of Tukwila
Incumbent Thomas McLeod since 1 January 2024
Term length	4 years
Inaugural holder	Joel Shomaker
Formation	23 June 1908
Website	http://www.tukwilawa.gov/mayor/

This is a list of mayors of Tukwila, Washington . In 1908, Tukwila was incorporated as a city. Joel Shomaker, the first mayor, was integral in the movement towards incorporation. ^[1] Jim Haggerton was elected mayor in 2007 and assumed office on 1 January 2008. Reelected to a second term in 2011, he has announced that he will not run for a third. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Joel Shomaker, circa 1916

History

Tukwila was incorporated on 23 June 1908 with Joel Shomaker as mayor. Shomaker, farm editor for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, had pushed for the city to be incorporated and planned the newspaper contest that decided the city's name. ^[5] Many mayors have had a lasting legacy in Tukwila, where Strander, Minkler, and Baker Boulevards are named after mayors who served in the middle of the twentieth century. ^[6]

Duties

As an optional municipal code city, Tukwila is governed by Title 35A of the Revised Code of Washington. As a mayor-council government, the mayor provides over all city council meetings, breaks tied votes, reports as to the city's finances, and prepares the budget. The mayor has the right to veto ordinances, but that veto can be overridden by a 50%-plus-two majority of the city council. ^[7]

List of mayors

#	Name	Term began	Term ended
1	Joel Shomaker	23 June 1908	31 December 1909
2	Ernest Engel	1 January 1910	31 December 1911
3	Jacob Guntert	1 January 1912	14 January 1913
4	John Hall	14 January 1913	31 December 1914
5	Sylvanus Harlow Stevens	1 January 1915	31 December 1918
6	Edward F. Greene	1 January 1919	31 December 1924
7	George C. Bergquist	1 January 1925	31 December 1927
8	John R. Walkup	1 January 1928	5 June 1933
9	John P. Walkup	5 June 1933	2 June 1947
10	Charles Baker	2 June 1947	2 April 1962
11	John Strander (1924–1998)	2 April 1962	31 December 1967
12	Stanley Minkler	1 January 1968	31 December 1971
13	Frank Todd (1923–2004)	1 January 1972	31 December 1975
14	Edgar Bauch (1924–2004)	1 January 1976	31 December 1979
15	Frank Todd (1923–2004)	1 December 1980	15 July 1982
16	Gary VanDusen (1941–)	15 July 1982	31 December 1991
17	John W. Rants	1 January 1992	31 December 1999
18	Steve Mullett (1943–2017)	1 January 2000	31 December 2007
19	Jim Haggerton	1 January 2008	31 December 2015 [8]
20	Allan Ekberg (1959–)	1 January 2016	31 December 2023
21	Thomas McLeod	1 January 2024	Present

References

1. Jones-Brown, Louise (17 August 2012). "Joel Shomaker Gave Tukwila a Start in 1908". Tukwila Reporter. Sound Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
2. Radford, Dean (18 December 2014). "Tukwila Mayor's Legacy: Make the City Financially Secure". Tukwila Reporter. Sound Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
3. "Mayor Haggerton's Bio". City of Tukwila, Washington. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
4. Radford, Dean (16 October 2014). "Public Can Weigh in on $300 Million Tukwila Budget Proposal on Nov. 10". Tukwila Reporter. Sound Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 5 February 2015.
5. Jones-Brown, Louise (16 August 2012). "Joel Shomaker gave Tukwila start in 1908". Tukwila Reporter. Sound Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
6. Jones-Brown, Louise. "Three mayors made Southcenter happen: Tukwila's story". Tukwila Reporter. Sound Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
7. "Duties and authority of the mayor — Veto — Tie-breaking vote". Washington State Legislature. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
8. "Tukwila Past Mayors". City of Tukwila, Washington. Retrieved 5 February 2015.