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Teresa O’Neill has touted herself the environmental candidate for Santa Clara City Council but a review by this news organization found the councilmember owns up to $1.02 million in stocks in oil and coal-mining companies, according to her recent Form 700 disclosures. On her ballot statement and in various interviews, O’Neill has cited fighting climate...
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...
Questions swirl about Santa Clara candidate’s lobbying record, relationship with mayor
As the race for two open seats on the Santa Clara City Council heats up, documents obtained by San José Spotlight raise questions about one candidate’s relationship to the mayor and his lobbying activity. Robert Mezzetti, a longtime San Jose attorney, is facing Anthony Becker and Gary Barve in the District 6 council race. Mezzetti...
49ers drop $250,000 to defeat mayor’s allies on Santa Clara City Council
One day after San José Spotlight reported a developer funneling money through the Santa Clara police union to elect allies of Mayor Lisa Gillmor, her archnemesis — the San Francisco 49ers — threw in six figures to defeat them. The 49ers on Sept. 30 dropped $250,000 into a committee called Citizens for Efficient Government and...
Strange bedfellows? Carl Guardino endorses Dave Cortese
Carl Guardino once raised six figures to defeat Dave Cortese’s bid for mayor. Now he wants to see him go to Sacramento. Guardino, the powerful former CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, has endorsed Cortese’s bid for the Senate District 15 seat. Cortese, a Santa Clara County supervisor, is competing with former FEC commissioner...
Police union backs all-white Santa Clara City Council slate with $25K developer donation
With a hefty donation from a developer building a massive project in the city, Santa Clara’s police union is funding campaign mailers supporting a slate of City Council candidates backed by Mayor Lisa Gillmor. The Related Company has coughed up $25,000 to the Santa Clara Police Officers’ Association Political Action Committee to re-elect Councilmembers Kathy...
San Jose names new city attorney, the second woman to fill the role
Nora Frimann was named San Jose’s second female city attorney Tuesday after serving in an interim role since the retirement of former City Attorney Rick Doyle. “I am honored to have been selected to serve San Jose as City Attorney,” Frimann said in a statement. “The City Attorney’s office will do our best to continue...
New program guides East San Jose parents through online learning
As school districts across Silicon Valley extend online learning to stop the spread of COVID-19, one local school district is helping parents — mostly immigrants and communities of color — get comfortable with the technology. This week, the San Jose Evergreen Community College District began its Parent Academy, a series of courses that train East...
South Bay labor unions vote for their next leader — for now
Silicon Valley’s labor leaders selected Jean Cohen as their new interim executive officer, a little more than a month after Ben Field stunned political insiders by abruptly resigning. The executive officer of the South Bay Labor Council, a powerful coalition of more than 100 unions, resigned July 13, less than two weeks after a heated,...
Two longtime San Jose politicos announce new plans
Two of San Jose City Hall’s most familiar faces are pursuing new political ventures. Ex-San Jose Councilmember Don Rocha announced on Facebook he’s running for the Cambrian School District Board of Trustees — coming full circle since that’s where he began his political career a decade ago. Since terming out from the San Jose council,...
