In a heated fight for reelection, San Jose Councilmember Domingo Candelas appears to be headed for another four years on the city council.
As of 5 p.m. Friday, incumbent Candelas is leading his opponent, San Jose police Sgt. Tam Truong, with 55.1% of the vote, or 15,866 votes. Truong trails with 44.8% of the vote, or 12,910 votes. The county’s voter turnout is about 53.9% and more than 565,000 ballots have been cast. As of Friday there are 238,000 ballots left to be counted.
The two are vying for the District 8 city council seat, which includes the Evergreen, Silver Creek and Lake Cunningham areas.
“I’m excited with the first batch of results,” Candelas told San José Spotlight Tuesday night. “There are still a lot of votes to be counted. I feel great. I left it all out on the field. The door knocks, the phone calls… I feel good for the kind of campaign we ran and the conversations we had.”
Born and raised in Evergreen, Candelas, 35, was appointed to the city council last year after Councilmember Sylvia Arenas was elected county supervisor. Candelas’ appointment was controversial and he was accused of cheating to win his seat. He worked for retired state Sen. Jim Beall and most recently as director of government affairs at Stanford University.
“The difference between an appointment to an actual campaign is having been born and raised in this district, I know the neighborhoods, I know the intricacies of different parts of the district. But after having knocked on almost 30,000 doors, you truly understand what issues neighbors and the community is having,” Candelas said.
Candelas said his priorities for a second term are making communities safer, empowering neighborhoods and keeping the streets clean.
During his 22 months in office, Candelas has hosted town halls, meet and greets and worked to reach residents in multiple languages, including Vietnamese, Hindi and Spanish. He said public safety and cleaner streets and parks are the biggest issues in his district.
He pushed for additional funding in last year’s budget to hire more police officers and a launch camera pilot program in the business corridor on Tully Road to deter retail theft.
Candelas has helped lead park cleanups and the revitalization of the Meadow Fair Neighborhood Association, in addition to securing $2.3 million from federal and state funds to restore Lake Cunningham, a man-made body of water near Tully Road. The lake’s revitalization is estimated to cost between $3 million and $20 million, according to a city study.
Truong said the night is still young and he’s excited to see the final results.
“It’s important that we respect the democratic process, and make sure that every voice is heard, and every vote is counted,” Truong told San José Spotlight. “As we wait to see the updates, I want to extend my respect and gratitude to our opponents. While Domingo and I may have different ideas, we share the same commitment to improving our city and making it thrive. To the incredible volunteers, staff, supporters — thank you. Thank you for your hard work and dedication. And to my family and friends, your support has meant the world to me.”
Truong, 42, is a District 8 native who attended public schools and is now raising two children in the district he hopes to represent. Truong unsuccessfully sought this seat during the appointment process in January 2023 and previously ran in District 4 against then-Councilmember Kansen Chu in 2012.
Truong said the city’s main issues—and his top priorities—are housing, homelessness and public safety. His main focus areas for the district are traffic-related fatalities and improving the road infrastructure, as well as economic development in vacant commercial centers.
Truong has been entrenched in controversy and faced criminal proceedings. The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office charged Truong with grand theft related to mortgage fraud in September. The fraud charge was dismissed a month later. He was put on administrative leave from the police department amid the investigation and the state police board temporarily suspended his officer certification.
Since the start of his campaign, Candelas raised $298,204 and spent $264,913. Truong raised $197,046 and spent $192,164.
This story will be updated.
Contact Joyce Chu at [email protected] or @joyce_speaks on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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