Quick Facts
Biography
Marilyn Strickland (born 1962) is an American politician and Mayor of the City of Tacoma, Washington.
Biography
Marylin Strickland was born in Seoul, South Korea where her father was stationed. In 1967 her father was assigned to Fort Lewis, Washington, and the family moved to Tacoma.
Strickland has worked as a marketing manager for Starbucks and as an officer in the Tacoma Public Library System. She is a graduate of the University of Washington and holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Clark-Atlanta University.
She was elected in 2008 for the Tacoma City Council. She is the second African-American, first Asian-American and second woman elected to Tacoma’s highest office.
Ethics violation investigation
In May 2010 the Tacoma Board of Ethics sanctioned Mayor Marilyn Strickland for accepting frequent flyer miles from a local businessman for an official trip to Asia. Mayor Strickland accepted the sanction and returned the value of the frequent flyer miles to the businessman.