Dontae Payne

Dontae Payne was elected to Olympia City Council Position #6 in November 2021. He is the first Black (African) American man to serve on the Olympia City Council.  Payne and his family moved to Olympia when he was assigned to Joint Base Lewis-McChord during his service in the U.S. Army. He completed two combat tours in Afghanistan in his first four years of enlistment. He earned a Master of Public Administration degree and Bachelor of Arts degree from The Evergreen State College following his military service. Payne currently serves as a district congressional staffer for the U.S. House of Representatives where his work involves external relations and stakeholder management.