Cedric Gates
{{Short description|American politician from Hawaii}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = Cedric Asuega Gates
| office = Member of the Hawaii House of Representatives
| term_start = November 8, 2016
| term_end = November 5, 2024
| predecessor = Jo Jordan
| successor = Chris Muraoka
| constituency = 44th District (2016–2022)
45th District (2022–Present)
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| party = Democratic
| spouse =
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| otherparty = Green (2014)
| birth_name = Cedric Solosolo Asuega Gates
}}
Cedric Solosolo Asuega Gates{{Cite web|last=Feagaimaali’i-Luamanu|first=Joyetter|date=January 27, 2017|title=Lualemaga Faoa remembered as a pillar of the community|url=https://www.samoanews.com/sites/default/files/A%20Section%20Fri%2001-27-17.pdf|url-status=live|website=Samoa News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211124233837/https://www.samoanews.com/sites/default/files/A%20Section%20Fri%2001-27-17.pdf |archive-date=2021-11-24 }} is a politician who served as a member Hawaii House of Representatives for the 45th district from 2022 to 2024, previously representing the 44th district from 2016 to 2022, as a member of the Democratic Party.
Early life and education
Gates is of African-American and American Samoan descent.{{Cite web|title=Hawaii close to honoring Juneteenth, leaving 1 state holdout|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/hawaii-close-honoring-juneteenth-leaving-1-state-holdout-n1265564|access-date=2021-11-24|website=NBC News|date=28 April 2021 |language=en}} His mother, Easter Asuega Gates, died in 2006, and his father, William Gates, died in 2014. According to members of his family, he is the great-grandson of Solosolo Mauga Asuega, who was High Chief of Pago Pago.
Gates attended Waianae High School,{{Cite web|title=Legislative Members|url=https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/memberpage.aspx?member=gates&year=2021|access-date=2021-11-24|website=www.capitol.hawaii.gov}} and later enrolled at Leeward Community College. In 2013, he was honored by Governor Neil Abercrombie as an Outstanding Advocate for Children and Youth.{{Cite web|date=2015-05-22|title=Overcoming Hardship|url=https://www.hawaiibusiness.com/overcoming-hardship/|access-date=2021-11-24|website=Hawaii Business Magazine|language=en-US}}
Political career
In 2014, Gates ran as a Green Party candidate in District 44, losing to Jo Jordan. In 2016, Gates ran against Jordan, this time in the Democratic primary. Gates' 2016 candidacy was controversial, as his 2014 candidacy as a Green Party candidate was supposed to have barred his nomination as a Democrat under Democratic Party of Hawaii rules.{{cite web|last=Cocke|first=Sophie|date=2016-11-09|title=Chang ousts Slom to create nation's only all-blue Senate|url=http://www.staradvertiser.com/2016/11/09/hawaii-news/chang-ousts-slom-to-create-nations-only-all-blue-senate/|access-date=2017-04-10|publisher=Staradvertiser.com}}
Nevertheless, Gates defeated incumbent Jo Jordan in the District 44 Democratic primary, and went on to defeat Marc Pa'aluhi in the general election.{{cite web|url=http://elections.hawaii.gov/wp-content/results/histatewide.pdf|title=General Election 2022 - State of Hawaii - Statewide|website=hawaii.gov|access-date=8 September 2023}} During the 2016 campaign, his campaign posters were vandalized with a racial slur.{{Cite web|last=Gilmore|first=Marcus|date=2016-07-29|title=House of Rep. Candidate - Victim of Hateful Vandalism » The Culture Supplier|url=https://www.theculturesupplier.com/culture-supplier-news/house-repcandidate-victim-hateful-vandalism/|access-date=2021-11-24|website=The Culture Supplier|language=en}} Upon taking office at age 23, he became the youngest member of the state legislature. After completing his first term in office, Gates was reelected in 2018 and 2020.
In 2024, Gates ran for District 44 in the Hawaii State Senate and was defeated 44.3% to 53.1% by Samantha DeCorte.{{cite web|url=https://elections.hawaii.gov/wp-content/results/histatewide.pdf|title=General Election 2024 - State of Hawaii - Statewide}}
References
{{Reflist}}
{{Hawaii House of Representatives}}
External links
- [https://ballotpedia.org/Cedric_Asuega_Gates Biography] at Ballotpedia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gates, Cedric}}
Category:American people of Samoan descent
Category:Democratic Party members of the Hawaii House of Representatives
Category:21st-century members of the Hawaii State Legislature
Category:Year of birth missing (living people)
Category:21st-century African-American politicians
Category:Leeward Community College alumni
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