Silicon Valley voters this November will cast ballots in one of the region’s most consequential elections: From deciding who to send to Washington to a historic county supervisorial election, there is no shortage of major decisions up and down the ballot.
How Sam Liccardo plans to influence 2022 elections
Mayor Sam Liccardo may be leaving San Jose City Hall next year, but the longtime politician isn’t ready to give up power. The city’s top lawmaker wants to have his finger on the pulse of the City Council—and even potentially pick his replacement. Liccardo formed a political action committee in late October to influence the consequential...
San Jose lawmaker’s social media pages kept separate, she says
San Jose Councilmember Dev Davis drew the ire of campaign watchdogs and local residents regarding her Facebook page in September. But the District 6 rep has since wised up when it comes to social media. Davis was co-mingling her official Facebook page with her mayoral campaign page, San José Spotlight learned. Davis’ campaign team put “Councilwoman...
Former San Jose council candidate forms shadowy political nonprofit
A new local advocacy group is rallying against San Jose’s policies on gun control and homelessness, but the organization doesn’t want the public to know who is behind it—or who is funding it. The political nonprofit, called Silicon Valley Public Accountability Foundation, promotes a stance against gun control and the “housing first” approach to solve homelessness—all while...
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UPDATE: San Jose commission OKs three council district maps
San Jose will soon be divided in a new way following a city commission vote Wednesday for new council districts. The San Jose Redistricting Commission is recommending three maps to redraw the city’s political boundaries, pushing months of heated debate about which neighborhoods belong in which districts to the City Council. The 11-member commission chose...
Santa Clara County sergeant steps into sheriff’s race
Sean Allen has been fighting for change in the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office for years, and he’s about to take that fight to the county’s top cop. Allen told San José Spotlight on Friday he intends to file papers to run for sheriff in 2022. Allen is a sergeant who’s worked for the department...
Silicon Valley Rep. Ro Khanna’s campaign to pay $16K to FEC
A San Jose congressman’s campaign will pay $16,000 to a federal watchdog for using software that divulged donor history for fundraising purposes. The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) reached a settlement with Rep. Ro Khanna‘s campaign to pay for using information from the commission’s database to send people emails during his 2014 and 2016 runs for...
San Jose voters approve extending taxes for schools
Early results show South Bay voters overwhelmingly favor ballot measures to extend parcel taxes for two local school districts. Out of 65,005 registered voters in the two boundaries of Berryessa and Los Gatos Union school districts, only 17,622 voters turned out for the special election on Tuesday—about a 27% turnout rate, according to the county....
UPDATE: Santa Clara County lawmakers narrow redistricting proposals
Santa Clara County lawmakers will focus on three possible maps for changing local political boundaries. The Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Tuesday to advance three maps for further consideration at a meeting later this month. The maps being advanced are titled Yellow, Purple and Equal and Equitable (EE) 2.0. The final boundaries must be adopted...
Nora Campos is back: East San Jose leader running for council
More than two dozen supporters cheered Wednesday as veteran San Jose politician Nora Campos launched a run for her former East San Jose council seat. Campos, 56, jumped back into the political fray standing in front of a small Mexican bakery against the backdrop of impending rain. She hasn’t been in elected office since leaving...
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San Jose could expand to 14 council districts
San Jose could expand to 14 council districts and change how councilmembers are elected. The San Jose Charter Review Commission voted Monday in favor of two recommendations: one that paves the way for four additional council districts and another to implement ranked-choice voting. Ten districts have anchored the city since it last expanded from seven...