[3] After graduating from college at the University of San Diego, where he became interested in politics, Cate then interned at Jefferson Government Relations in Washington, D.C.[8] Later he worked for Kevin Faulconer as a policy advisor.

[19] Cate was only the second Asian American to be elected to the San Diego City Council, the first being Tom Hom.

[20] In 2016, Cate received national attention as the Chargers attacked him for his opposition to Measure C, a ballot initiative to provide public funding for a new stadium for the team.

[23] After the election, Cate supported an effort to lease the Qualcomm Stadium site for a dollar,[24] but the Chargers instead decided in 2017 to relocate to Los Angeles.

San Diego City Attorney Mara Elliott called the leak “an egregious breach of public trust”.

[32] In October 2017, facing questions from a related lawsuit, Cate admitted he was the one to leak the memo, and that he would not resign.

[33] In December 2017, San Diego's Ethics Commission levied its maximum fine of $5,000 for the leak, which Cate paid.