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Following the death of George Floyd, Jake Tonkel attended rallies and live streamed videos on his Facebook showing protesters demanding police departments be defunded. Some protesters held signs calling cops bastards. In response, the San Jose Police Officers’ Association spent close to $100,000 on ads and messaging to defeat Tonkel, and sent an email to...
Lan Diep a Democrat? San Jose party officials say not so fast
A recent campaign mailer from San Jose Councilmember Lan Diep urges voters to support Joe Biden and himself — a “fellow Democrat” — but records show Diep joined the party just seven months ago. Before that, he had no party preference and was a registered Republican for seven years. Diep, who faces a tough re-election...
Indoor dining, church services can resume in Santa Clara County
As COVID-19 numbers in the county slowly improve, officials gave Santa Clara County businesses the green light to begin operating indoors — but with caution. Starting Oct. 14, restaurants, churches, movie theaters and other businesses can open at 25% capacity or 100 people, whichever is fewer. They also can host outdoor gatherings of up to...
San Jose to give $5,000 grants to help restaurants survive this winter
San Jose restaurants in need of financial support during the pandemic can apply for a $5,000 grant starting Oct. 16 to help them serve customers through the winter. As the weather gets colder, business owners often have steeper heating bills to pay to keep patrons comfortable. The presence of COVID-19 also means restaurants will have...
New space for yoga, worship divides San Jose residents
A vacant building on 796 Delmas Avenue will soon become a place for yoga, meditation and religious worship, but residents are pushing back, saying the proposal does not fit the community’s needs. “I’m a little disappointed that further dialogue didn’t happen,” Councilmember Magdalena Carrasco said after joining the rest of the City Council Oct. 6...
Jake Tonkel wants to disrupt the status quo in San Jose politics
He joined the Peace Corps, learned Arabic in Morocco, made life-changing prosthetics, took a stand against Wall Street banks — and he hasn’t even hit 30. Now Jake Tonkel, 29, is topping off his 20s by running for San Jose City Council District 6 against incumbent Dev Davis to bring what he learned about caring...
Ex-employees allege San Jose councilmember used city staff to aid his reelection campaign
Two former employees of San Jose Councilmember Lan Diep told San José Spotlight the District 4 representative is using his elected office staff and public resources to support his reelection campaign. In general, using taxpayer dollars and government resources for campaign purposes is not permitted and is considered a misuse of public funds. The City...
UPDATE: San Jose City Council approves adding more bike lanes across city
Biking in San Jose is about to get a lot safer — and easier — for residents. The City Council on Oct. 6 unanimously approved the Better Bike Plan 2025, which would prioritize rider safety while increasing the amount of bike lanes, bike parking and bike sharing services citywide. The bike network would also help...
Dev Davis finds way to San Jose, wants to stay as District 6 council rep
Councilmember Dev Davis never pictured herself as a politician. She came from hardworking stock — the daughter of a school teacher and a truck driver who hauled farming equipment. At age 10, Davis got her own job delivering newspapers and didn’t know much about the world outside her North Dakota home. “I didn’t really even...
After 40 years in politics, Jim Beall casts his final vote in Sacramento
For Jim Beall, there were no first-day jitters when he stepped foot on the Senate floor eight years ago. “It was December of 2012 – my first day — and by the time I finished the day, I had introduced, I think, three bills,” Beall said. And after a distinguished four decades in public office in...