Santa Clara’s $400 million infrastructure bond looks to be passing, giving the city a much needed cash infusion to tackle infrastructure repairs. As of 5 p.m. on Monday, Santa Clara’s Measure I had 69.1% approval, squeaking past the 66.7% needed to pass. The 30-year bond will levy $19 per $100,000 of assessed property value. Officials...
Santa Clara official’s perjury trial sheds light on alleged lies
Santa Clara Vice Mayor Anthony Becker’s perjury trial is underway, with witness testimony alleging he leaked a 2022 Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury report. Becker is on trial for allegedly lying about whether he leaked an early copy of a grand jury report about the 49ers’ relationship with the Santa Clara City Council to former...
Santa Clara mayor may have violated city rules serving another term
Eight years ago, Santa Clara approved a policy to prohibit anyone from serving more than two terms on the city council or as mayor. But the city’s top political leader — Mayor Lisa Gillmor — might have broken that rule. New questions are swirling about whether Gillmor was eligible to run for reelection in 2022,...
Silicon Valley city named one of best places to retire
A city in Santa Clara County has been named one of the best places to retire in the nation for its health amenities and quality of life. Santa Clara took the No. 3 spot as one of the best places to retire affordably, according to a 2024 Fortune report. The ranking took into account health...
Santa Clara voters promote police lieutenant to chief
Santa Clara voters have selected their new chief of police and city clerk, with early results showing Cory Morgan holding a significant lead in the race to replace Police Chief Pat Nikolai, who is retiring this year. As of 4:58 p.m. on Friday, Morgan is leading with 66.2% of the vote. He is trailed by...
Santa Clara votes new candidate in and familiar politician out
In the Mission City’s only open city council race, Albert Gonzalez appears to be leading a 3-way contest to replace Santa Clara Councilmember Kathy Watanabe who terms out in December. As of 4:58 p.m. on Friday, Gonzalez is leading with 43.3% of the vote. He is trailed by Satish Chandra who secured 34.9% of the...
49ers spend millions in Santa Clara council races
Special interest groups have sunk millions of dollars into November’s Santa Clara city elections to decide its future government. The San Francisco 49ers have spent the most money supporting who the team wants sitting on the City Council, burning $2.3 million so far. Other special interest groups include the Santa Clara Police Officers Association, Santa...
Fired Santa Clara officials can’t stay away from city politics
Santa Clara political observers worry that former officials are making moves to return to City Hall. The Santa Clara City Council fired City Manager Deanna Santana and City Attorney Brian Doyle in 2022, but they’re still sticking around. Santana recently donated about $100 to each of the four council candidates backed by Mayor Lisa Gillmor. The move...
Former Santa Clara official fined for violating campaign rules
A former Santa Clara official is being fined for multiple campaign violations years after losing a Santa Clara County supervisor race. Former Santa Clara Councilmember Dominic Caserta was slapped with a $22,500 fine from the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) over misuse of campaign funds in his 2018 bid for the District 4 Board of...
Meet the candidates for Santa Clara police chief and city clerk
Alongside filling City Council seats, Santa Clara voters will need to pick their next police chief and city clerk on the November ballot. Santa Clara voters resoundingly approved to keep electing both positions after two measures failed in the March primaries to change them to appointed positions. In March, 72.4% of voters said they wanted...