Joe Lopez said he was thrust into the world of public service when he became one of the first bilingual hostage negotiators for the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, an experience enhancing the decades-long law enforcement career that sparked his interest in city government.
A retired deputy, Lopez, 71, is running for the open San Jose City Council seat in District 2 against nonprofit officer and former educator Pamela Campos, with Councilmember Sergio Jimenez terming out at the end of the year. Lopez and Campos were the top vote getters in the March primaries. The district stretches from the border of Morgan Hill and up to a portion of South San Jose, ending at Sylvandale Avenue.
Lopez’s first taste of community activism came at the peak of the civil rights movement, when he said he met his high school sweetheart and started working for Cesar Chavez, a labor leader and civil rights activist who helped co-found what would become the United Farm Workers. Lopez described Chavez as a mentor.
Lopez worked for the United Farm Workers after graduating high school and discovered his passion for advocacy.
“My union activity goes way back,” he said. “I managed to graduate from high school and went to San Jose State for a number of years. I couldn’t sustain a family on grants, loans and work study, so that’s when I entered into law enforcement in the early 1970s.”
As his career at the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office continued, Lopez took on more challenging jobs and responsibilities.
He said he spent about seven years working at the jails, sometimes having oversight over dozens of officers and civilian staff, along with thousands of people incarcerated at the facilities.
“Our particular jail was a peculiar institution in the sense that, although it was a separate entity after it was taken from the county sheriff and they created the California Department of Corrections, they still needed peace officers, deputy sheriffs — and that’s where I filled in,” Lopez told San José Spotlight.
His own brief stint in juvenile hall more than 50 years ago for taking a radio taught Lopez about not just accountability, he said, but redemption as well — priding himself on the 35-year career in law enforcement that came to an end with his retirement in 2009.
In addition to his background in law enforcement, he said being bilingual and coming from a Mexican family helps him connect with less politically active residents.
As Lopez became involved with community groups such as the National Latino Peace Officers Association and the Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury, he said he realized people from diverse backgrounds could use better representation.
He served on several local commissions including the San Jose Human Services Commission and Fair Political Practices Commission. Lopez said the next step for him in terms of community representation is a city council seat.
Public safety and homelessness are among his top priorities, and he plans to advocate for more San Jose police officers and a robust police department.
Lopez voiced his opposition to the now-scrapped Santa Clara County jail diversion program proposal that was set for an existing tiny home site at Monterey and Bernal roads in District 2, saying he plans to increase transparency on such projects if he is elected councilmember.
“My expertise is in inmates and law enforcement, so I know what I’m talking about when I say it’s dangerous to put those folks in what’s been described as an Emergency Interim Housing (EIH) site,” Lopez said.
Lopez’s endorsements include Mayor Matt Mahan, the San Jose Police Officers’ Association, the San Jose Mercury News, the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors and the Silicon Valley Biz PAC, among other people and organizations.
“San Jose police officers support former sheriff Sgt. Joe Lopez because he is committed to reducing 911 response times, cracking down on retail and auto thefts and holding fentanyl dealers accountable,” Steve Slack, president of the San Jose Police Officers’ Association, told San José Spotlight. “As a former member of the county grand jury, Joe has the experience to audit city spending on homelessness to eliminate waste and fraud and make sure the focus is on providing safe shelters, mental health treatment and job training for the unhoused.”
One of the most important aspects of representing District 2, Lopez said, is making sure more affordable housing is built and evenly distributed across the city, including downtown — and revitalizing local business sectors.
“We need to do more thinking outside of the box, to preserve and build more housing that’s affordable and low income housing where needed,” he said. “We have to take a closer look across the board about what we’re going to do and how we’re going to accommodate our citizens and what’s really going to work.”
Contact Vicente Vera at [email protected] or follow @VicenteJVera on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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