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.

An advocate for families and children, District 8 San Jose Councilmember Sylvia Arenas said she is not a politician — she’s a public servant. The distinction is notable — her role as a public servant did not begin when she assumed elected office, rather when she began to dedicate her career to serving a community...

Ruben Navarro said he doesn’t mind having the odds stacked against him — he’s been “fighting those odds” his whole life. Now, Navarro, along with Jake Tonkel and Marshall Woodmansee, is challenging Councilmember Dev Davis for the San Jose City Council District 6 seat, which covers Willow Glen and the Rose Garden. His launch into...

Dev Davis is proud of her first four years representing San Jose’s District 6 on the City Council, but says there’s more work to do as she defends her seat from three challengers. The 41-year-old Marvel enthusiast, mother of two and Stanford University graduate said she initially ran because she wanted to bring back lost...

Marshall Woodmansee may be the youngest person running for City Council in San Jose, but he speaks with the confidence of someone who has spent years thinking about issues facing the South Bay city. The 19-year-old District 6 native has run one of the most grassroots campaigns in the race so far. He hasn’t locked...

Jake Tonkel is crossing his fingers that he can trade his biomedical engineering job making heart valves and surgical devices for one at San Jose City Hall. The 29-year-old announced his run for office in July, challenging District 6 incumbent Dev Davis, who was elected in 2016 with nearly 54 percent of the vote. Tonkel...

San Jose City Council hopeful Jonathan Fleming wants District 2 voters to know he’s nothing like the incumbent, Sergio Jimenez. “It’s like night and day,” said Fleming, a mechanical engineer and data-driven defense government contractor. “What’s happening with our current policies are not working.” The Republican turned Independent, born again Republican said he’s eager to...

Sergio Jimenez remembers playing on the corner of Checkers Drive and McKee Road in East San Jose in front of the El Rancho Verde apartments that were his childhood home. He watched as helicopters circled his neighborhood at night, lights flickering above as the sound of police sirens wailed. Jimenez slept on the living room...

For the first time in nearly two decades, Santa Clara County is overhauling its voting system and county officials last week unveiled new voting machines that officials say are more efficient and secure. The new machines are part of a larger plan to implement the Voter’s Choice Act in Santa Clara County, making voting easier...

Jamal Khan was born and raised in San Jose’s District 4 and now at 32 — with a decent amount of public service under his belt — he hopes to represent the district on the San Jose City Council. “I’m always interested in what can make the community a better place or help a disadvantaged...