Dontae Payne

Dontae Payne was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He and his husband moved to Olympia during his service in the U.S. Army. They are the proud parents of their beautiful daughter, Priscilla.

Dontae was elected to the Olympia City Council in November 2021 and he is the first Black/African American man to serve on the council. In his professional life, he served as the South Sound & Olympic Peninsula Regional Representative in the Office of the Governor, as Deputy District Director for Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland, and returned to the Office of the Governor as Senior Policy Advisor for Civil Rights & Racial Justice. Dontae also serves on the Olympia Hands On Children’s Museum’s Board of Directors.

He earned a Master of Public Administration degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington. He’s the first person in his immediate family to earn a 4-year college degree. Dontae served on active duty in the United States Army for six years, with two tours to Logar Province, Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom. He reenlisted to serve for two additional years at Joint Base Lewis-McChord and separated from the Army in 2016. If elected, he become the City of Olympia’s first Black and openly gay mayor.