William Henry Gates II was an American attorney, politician, and philanthropist who served as the 49th Mayor of Seattle, Washington.
Gates was born in Bremerton, Washington in 1925. His parents owned and operated a furniture shop. Gates served in the US Army for three years during World War II, then entered the University of Washington under the G.I. Bill. There, he earned a B.A. in 1949 and a J.D. in 1950.
Gates briefly worked in private practice before entering the office of the United States Attorney for the Western District of Washington, where he specialized in civil rights and employment law.
In 1969, Gates resigned from the US Attorney’s office to run for Mayor of Seattle in the 1970 election. Gates, a Democrat, defeated incumbent Republican Mayor James Braman. In office, Gates created agencies to assist small business owners, successfully promoted Seattle as a home for the growing technology sector, and reformed Seattle’s healthcare systems. Gates worked closely with Seattle-area lawmakers at the state and federal level to promote and maintain a progressive taxation system.
Gates denied several invitations to seek higher office. He was recruited to challenge Attorney General Slade Gorton in 1972 and to run for the US Senate in 1980 to replace retiring Senator Warren Magnuson and in the 1992 special election to replace scandal-ridden incumbent Brock Adams. He also reportedly turned down the position of Deputy Attorney General in the Bentsen administration.
Retiring in 1994, Gates served 24 years in the mayor’s office, making him the longest-serving mayor in the history of Seattle. In retirement, Gates became a philanthropist, working with the United Nations to develop and promote various global public health programs. He co-founded and co-chaired the Gates Foundation, a charitable organization, alongside his son and daughter-in-law. He served on the Board of Trustees of the University of Washington, his alma mater, in various leadership positions in the American Bar Association, and on the board of Planned Parenthood.
Gates died on September 14, 2020 at his beach home on Hood Canal, Washington, at age 94.
Gates had three children: Kristianne (Kristi), William III (Bill), and Elizabeth (Libby). Bill Gates, the founder and former CEO of Microsoft, was the wealthiest person in the world up until November 2020, when he was elected President of the United States, at which point he pledged to give away a third of his wealth to charitable causes.
Note: This was an idea I had in mind ever since Bill Gates Sr. died in September. Finally got around to doing it.