BOTHELL—A challenger to Representative April Berg (D-Mill Creek) has entered the race to represent Washington’s 44th Legislative District, position 2 – Sam Sim, a Republican from Bothell.
Sim’s platform revolves around empowering families, ensuring public safety, rewarding success, and regulating the cost of living.
He believes in enhancing informed parental decisions in education matters, allocating resources to support law enforcement for crime prevention, incentivizing academic achievement to maintain high education standards, and rejecting the capital gains tax to reduce the burden of cost of living.
Sim enters the race with no prior elected official experience but for the last 20 years he has served as an ordained deacon at his church, the Community Church of Seattle in Bothell – the largest Korean immigrant church in the Northwest with approximately 2,500 members.
It is through his church-led community engagement, as well as serving as North America Director for Father School – a global ministry with over 10,000 volunteers across over 30 countries where fathers are spiritually compelled to take spiritual leadership for their lives and their families – where Sim’s interest in civics first came about.
Sim also lends his volunteerism to the Korean Community Service Center, the second largest Korean-based nonprofit in Washington State. Founded over 40 years ago the Korean Community Services Center was originally founded to offer legal immigration services for Korean immigrants and their families, as well as translation services, social services, health services, and so on.
It was through his work with the Korean Community Service Center that led Executive Director Won Jun Kim to select Sim to become Vice President for the Korean Association, the largest and most influential Korean organization in Washington other than the Korean consulate.
Just last month Sim helped in having the Bothell City Council and the Snohomish County Council read a proclamation, in both English and Korean, recognizing the month of May as Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.
Sim, formerly the VP of Greater Seattle Korean Association, currently serves as Vice President of AKUS.
In parallel to his work with esteemed Korean organizations Sim first met Bill Cooper, Chairman of the Snohomish County Republican Party, about four months ago who specifically requested Sim be the Chairman of a new Community Outreach group for the party. Through this work Sim has assisted in offering the Snohomish County GOP’s website, and promotion material, be translated in Korean and Chinese languages with five more languages on the horizon.
“The Republican party is the party of Lincoln; we freed the slaves. We’re the party of women’s rights, women’s suffrage, and we’re the party of civil rights,” said Sim. “Part of the mission of why I decided to run is to convey this message: that we’ve [Republicans] been pinned into a corner which is not true. We are accepting, we love all people, especially me. I love people of all backgrounds because that’s who I am.”
Sim is a tech entrepreneur, starting three tech startup companies single handedly where he developed digital advertising software aimed at monetizing mobile apps. He has lived in 10 different U.S. states growing up, moving frequently as the son of a Korean church planner, until finally calling Snohomish County home where he’s been for the last 20 years.
Throughout the various places he has lived, Sim has met a variety of different people from different backgrounds, but he noticed that everyone, essentially, wants the same things: “the best for our families, the best opportunities for our children, and the best education.” These became the pillars of Sim’s political campaign.
As a proud Korean American, Sim believes elected officials should be more representational of our country’s robust, and diverse, culture. Additionally, he believes the nation’s youth, who are the next generation, are severely lacking in leadership and need someone who will empower their skills and help show them to be proud of who they are.
Sim was less than a year old when his family immigrated to the United States (Hawaii) from Korea in 1972. In 1989 Sim’s family relocated to Seattle, Washington, where he completed his Senior Year at Shorecrest High School. He enrolled at the University of Washington the next year where he graduated with a degree in Political Science in 1995.
Sim met his wife Christine in Hawaii, where he was taking care of his parents after graduating, and the two relocated to Bothell, Washington to begin their family where they currently still reside with their two children, Jessica and Justin. In addition to Sim’s three successful tech startup companies, the married couple also own and operate a successful Teriyaki restaurant in Bothell. The Sim family are highly involved in their community, their church, and several volunteerism efforts.
Sim is currently enrolled at Grand Canyon University furthering his education pursuing a master’s degree in the sciences, as well as Gateway Seminary where he’s pursuing a Master’s of Divinity.
Family values are at the core of Sim’s platform and pledges to support family needs in all endeavors when elected as State Representative, including quality education, economic opportunities, and citizen safety.
Sim is endorsed by: Bill Cooper, Chief of Police (RET), Doug Roulstone, Naval Commander (RET), Dr. Raul Garcia for US Senate, Nate Nehring, Snohomish County Council, Vice Chair, Debbie Blodgett, Former Snohomish County Republican Chair, John Kartak, Former Mayor of Snohomish, Snohomish County Republican Party, Legislative District 38, Legislative District 39, Legislative District 44, Conservative Ladies of Washington, and Washington Young Republicans.
To learn more about Sim, his platform, and campaign – as well as a link to his social media and virtual town halls, visit: https://samsim.org/
