Voters headed to the polls on Tuesday to cast their ballots in 11 local races, 20 statewide contests and 7 local measures. In San Jose, residents voted for a new mayor for the first time in 8 years to replace Mayor Sam Liccardo who terms out in December. San Jose voters also chose their representatives...
Op-ed: Measure B is common sense reform for democracy
Recently, San Francisco officials announced a desire to shift the date of elections for purposes of increasing voter participation. San Jose is already pursuing this via Measure B this June primary election. We believe this is a common sense reform for democracy, and here’s why. Three years ago, Santa Clara County declared a climate emergency to...
Democrats denounce San Jose candidate over controversial endorsement
Two Democratic institutions in Santa Clara County are taking last-minute punches at a contender in the San Jose mayor’s race. Both groups are zeroing in on support he’s received from a conservative organization and questioning his stance on abortion. The Santa Clara County Democratic Central Committee recently adopted a resolution calling on San Jose mayoral...
Op-ed: Bring San Jose’s billboard ban back with a ballot measure
When it comes to stopping digital billboards in San Jose, don’t expect our City Council to come to the rescue. That’s because the current council—except Matt Mahan—still favors the special interest billboard lobby, despite a public survey showing residents overwhelmingly oppose digital billboards along San Jose freeways and downtown, and despite the Airport Commission recommending...
Santa Clara County families want police shootings reinvestigated
Families want new investigations into the deaths of their loved ones following reporting errors uncovered in the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. Silicon Valley De-Bug, a nonprofit in criminal justice reform comprised of families impacted by police shootings, said sloppy incident reporting by the DA’s office has been discovered after reviewing a number of...
Santa Clara County creates department to support children
Santa Clara County wants to give children and families the necessary tools to succeed in life. To accomplish this, officials have created a new office. The Office of Children and Families Policy will support and manage a diverse set of priorities that focus on children, youth and family programs. These priorities will monitor the effectiveness of...
Staedler: Binding arbitration needed for government agency disputes
When government agencies sue each other, it is simply a huge waste of taxpayer dollars. The only winners in these situations are the contracted attorneys on either side. Those dollars could be used to fund vitally needed services, but are wasted going to a long, drawn out court battle. A majority of those matters could...
How are special interests swaying Silicon Valley elections?
Special interest groups have spent a whopping $2.3 million to boost their preferred candidates across eight local races—making the 2022 primary election one of the most expensive seasons in recent Silicon Valley history. More than half of all political action committee (PAC) spending has gone to the San Jose mayor’s race. Special interests are also...
Fleming: San Jose special interests choose division and lies over unity and truth
Every two years we go temporarily insane during elections while choosing the elected officials who are supposed to represent us, people who generally care about the wellbeing of our community, but who oftentimes make promises they know they cannot keep and sometimes make wild claims they know are untrue. Logical thinking is thrown out the...
San Jose transit board fights bill that would reorganize leadership
Silicon Valley transit officials are standing firm against a legislative proposal that would dramatically change VTA’s governing body. The VTA board of directors voted unanimously Thursday to oppose Assembly Bill 2181, introduced in February by Assemblymember Marc Berman. The bill would eliminate the current board of directors on or after July 2023 and shrink the...