Meet Massah
Raised Here. Educated Here. Building Here.
"Oceanside is not a community I discovered when I decided to run. It is the community that raised me."
Oceanside Roots
Lived in Oceanside since six months old
Attended Libby Elementary School
Attended Lincoln Middle School
Attended El Camino High School
Built businesses in Oceanside
Family, friendships, business relationships, and community connections are rooted here
Oceanside shaped my childhood, my education, my relationships, and my understanding of community. The schools I attended, the people I grew up around, and the local businesses and organizations I have worked with all helped make me who I am.
A Family Story Built Around Service and Responsibility
My father joined the United States Marine Corps while raising a young family and working to create stability and opportunity for his child. That family experience helped shape my respect for service, sacrifice, discipline, responsibility, and hard work.
Building in the Community That Built Me
• Built businesses in Oceanside.
• Has relationships with local restaurants and business owners.
• Has managed employees and worked with contractors.
• Has worked with public agencies and community organizations.
• Understands how city decisions affect workers, families, renters, homeowners, and employers.
• Brings practical operational and financial experience.
Building businesses has required me to solve problems, manage people and budgets, work with public agencies, respond to unexpected challenges, and remain accountable for results. Those experiences have shown me how government decisions affect people in practical, everyday ways.
Strong Roots. A Responsibility to the Future.
Massah Chatton is the first enrolled member of a federally recognized California Native American tribe to run for Oceanside City Council.
Stewardship
Responsibility to future generations
Community history
Long-term thinking
Representation
Leaving the community stronger than he found it
Representation matters, but service matters most. My Native American roots reinforce my responsibility to think beyond one election or one term and consider what we leave for the generations that follow.
The Office Belongs to the People
Public office should be a period of active service—not a permanent career, personal entitlement, or retirement plan. A councilmember should remain visible, accessible, accountable, and focused on delivering as much progress as possible during the term entrusted to them.
Strong public servants should also share knowledge, develop future leaders, and understand that the next person to serve is not simply a competitor but a potential partner in carrying the community forward.
Why I’m Running
I am running for two main reasons. First, I want to help restore the meaning of public service. Second, I want City Hall to focus on the issues residents actually experience rather than beginning with a fully predetermined political agenda.
I have ideas and areas of concern, including housing, homelessness, youth opportunity, neighborhood quality of life, and support for local businesses. But I want those priorities shaped by the people I hope to represent.