Charles William Dempster (August 24, 1879 – July 20, 1941) was an American politician who served in three state legislatures, those of Montana, Idaho, and California.

Dempster died of a heart attack on July 20, 1941, while with a group of friends inspecting real estate on South Rimpau Avenue, Los Angeles.

[6] At that time his address was 1660 West Boulevard[6] In 1897, Dempster received his teacher's certificate in Bannock County, Idaho, and taught school "for several years".

[12] He also introduced a bill "requiring street railway companies to provide a measure of protection for certain of their employees against inclement weather.

[3] Dempster was nominated on the Republican ticket as a California Assembly candidate in August 1930,[14] receiving a plurality vote over W. H. Lolllier, Raymond Tremaine, and Paul H.

[11] In Los Angeles, he turned down an invitation to a yacht party for Republican candidates for the Legislature, sponsored by Southern California Edison, on the grounds that "I could not accept the hospitality of anybody who might be interested in some official act that I might be called upon to perform.

"[11] He sponsored Assembly Bill 1630 in 1931 which would have forbidden a married woman from teaching in a school or taking any civil service examination.

[24] That resulted in "eleven years of internal strife for control" at the climax of which Dempster drew a .38-caliber automatic revolver from a desk drawer and, backing into a corner, held the Supreme Council [of the organization] at bay for ten minutes.

[28] In October 1920 he lost the case,[30] "although he made a stirring personal plea to the jury that brought tears to the eyes of many listeners", according to the Los Angeles Evening Express.