As ballots continue to trickle in from the 2022 Midterm Elections, the Cupertino Today team is bringing you the latest results of key local races across the South Bay. Here are a few of the highlights:
Campbell City Council
Three of the five Campbell City Council seats were up for grabs this Midterm Election cycle, as previously reported by Cupertino Today. All three candidates ran unopposed in their districts, incumbent Dan Furtado (District 3), small business owner Elliot Scozzola (District 4) and Campbell Vice Mayor Anne Coyne Bybee (District 5) won their respective seats with 100 percent of the votes.
Campbell Union High School District Governing Board of Trustees
Three new trustees will also be selected to serve on the Campbell Union High School District Governing Board in areas 1,2 and 3. At the time this article was written, newcomer James Kim is leading the race for Trustee Area 1 with 53.30 percent of the votes, newcomer Elisabeth Halliday is in the lead for Trustee Area 2 with 42.24 percent and former city Council Member Jason Baker is in the lead for Trustee Area 3 with 74.61 percent.
Campbell Union School District Governing Board Trustees
Three new trustees will be selected for Campbell Union School District Governing Board Trustees in area’s 1, 4 and 5. So far, incumbent board member Richard Nguyen is leading the race in Area 1 with 69.59 percent of the votes, incumbent Chris Miller for Area 4 with 65.39 percent and incumbent Danielle M.S. Cohen is in the lead for Area 5 with 64 percent.
City of Campbell, Measure O
Two Campbell City Measures were put up to a vote this election cycle. If Measure O is approved by two-thirds of voters, the City of Campbell will be authorized to issue $50 million in general obligation bonds for constructing a new police building and an improved library. So far the measure is passing with 74.20 percent of Campbell residents voting “yes.”
City of Campbell, Measure T
So far, a majority of voters (67.09 percent) have said “yes” to Campbell Union School District Measure T. If Measure T is approved, the Campbell Union School District will be authorized to issue $96 million in bonds to fund general improvements to school facilities, and require a property tax of $30 per $100,000 of assessed value.
Cupertino City Council
In the City of Cupertino, eight candidates vied for three available city council seats, as previously reported by Cupertino Today. The top three candidates are former Fine Arts Commissioner and Library Commissioner for Cupertino, Sheila Mohan with 18.26 percent, local attorney J.R. Fruen with 16.97 percent, and incumbent Liang-Fang ‘Liang” Chao with 15.34 percent.
Cupertino Union School District Governing Board
Three candidates will also be elected onto the Cupertino Union School District Governing Board. Incumbent Jerry Liu is leading the vote with 28.42 percent, followed by local educator Ava Chiao with 26.91 percent and incumbent board member Satheesh Madhathil with 24.07 percent.
Los Altos City Council
As Cupertino Today previously reported, this year’s race for Los Altos City Council has not lacked excitement. Three candidates fought for two open seats. A public conflict between incumbent Anita Enander and newcomer Pete Dailey followed the race to the end. In numerous instances, Dailey openly accused Enander of lying about the true intentions of her campaign and values. So far, it’s incumbent Neysa Fligor leading the race with 39.40 percent of the votes, followed by Pete Dailey with 31.53 percent.
Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District Board of Trustees
Five newcomers and one incumbent competed for just three seats on the Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District Board of Trustees this election season. Incumbent Catherine Vonnegut is leading the vote with 25.47 percent followed by newcomers Esmeralda Ortiz with 24.23 percent and Thida Cornes with 16.88 percent.
Los Altos School District Board of Trustees
Four candidates vied for three open seats on the Los Altos School District Board of Trustees Board of Trustees. Three of the four are seeking reelection. The Board has recently faced challenges ranging from declining enrollment to questions over the use of the district’s 10th school site purchased in 2019. Incumbent and former Board President Bryan Johnson leads the race with 29.72 percent of the vote followed by Incumbent Vladimir Ivanovic with 26.66 percent and incumbent Vaishali Sirkay with 25.92 percent.
Los Gatos Town Council
Three at-large seats on the Los Gatos Town Council were up for grabs during the Midterm Elections on Tuesday. At the time this article was written, candidates Rob Moore, Mary Badame, and Rob Rennie appeared to be winning, beating out Los Gatos Planning Commissioner Reza Tavana, business executive Rob Stump, and attorney Margaret Smith. However, the scoreboard could certainly shift in the coming days as only 51 percent of ballots have been counted as of the time this article was written.
Rob Moore, a Special Projects Manager at the San Jose Conservation Corp, is currently receiving the the highest number of votes, at 22.51 percent of counted ballots. As a candidate, Mr. Moore received an impressive array of endorsements from local, state, and federal elected leaders such as Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, State Senator Josh Becker, and State Assemblymembers Evan Low and Alex Lee.
The current second place vote-getter is incumbent Mary Badame, at 21.85 percent of ballots cast. Ms. Badame, a former Los Gatos Planning Commissioner, touts her votes at Council against the elimination of single family zoning within the Town. Ms. Badame was endorsed by eight former Los Gatos Mayors.
The candidate currently receiving the third highest number of votes is Rob Rennie. As an incumbent Council Member and Mayor, Mr. Rennie carried the endorsements of the Santa Clara County Democratic Party and a host of elected leaders like State Senator Dave Cortese, Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, and Santa Clara County Supervisors Mike Wasserman and Otto Lee.
Santa Clara Mayor
The 2022 Santa Clara mayoral race was cast as a re-match between incumbent Mayor Lisa Gillmor and Santa Clara City Council Member Anthony Becker. In 2018, the two candidates went head-to-head for the City’s top position. Ms. Gillmor won that contest with a resounding 74.2 percent of the vote. Mr. Becker ultimately won election to the City Council in 2020.
In Tuesday’s Midterm Election, Mayor Gillmor’s 2018 margin over Council Member Becker had shrunk substantially. At the time this article was written, it appears Mayor Gillmor is winning – but only with a 166 vote margin. As additional mail ballots are counted the results may shift in either direction.
The San Francisco 49ers’ political spending in this race was particularly noteworthy. According to financial disclosure reports, the team contributed $4.5 million to political action committees (PACs) aimed at unseating Mayor Gillmor and re-electing two members of the City Council. The Council maintains oversight responsibilities over Levi’s Stadium where the 49ers play.
Mayor Gillmor carried endorsements from Congressman Ro Khanna and Santa Clara’s Chief of Police Pat Nikolai. Council Member Becker’s campaign was endorsed by the City’s Vice Mayor Suds Jain and Council Members Raj Chahal, Karen Hardy, and Kevin Park.
Santa Clara City Council, District 2
One of the Santa Clara City Council Members the 49ers supported for re-election was Raj Chahal. Council Member Chahal faced off against retired engineer and political newcomer Lary McColloch, and, as of the time this article was written, appears to be winning decisively with 61.23 percent of ballots cast.
Council Member Chahal was endorsed by The Mercury News and a slate of electeds such as Congressman Khanna, State Senator Wieckowski, and Assemblymembers Kalra, Low, and Lee.
Santa Clara City Council, District 3
The 49ers also supported incumbent Karen Hardy for re-election to the Santa Clara City Council over Christian Pellecchia, former chair of the Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. As of the time this article was written, Council Member Hardy is currently leading by an impressive 63.65 percent of ballots counted.
Council Member Hardy was endorsed by The Mercury News, Santa Clara Unified School District Board Member Michele Ryan, and the Santa Clara County League of Conservation Voters.
San Jose Mayor
As Cupertino Today previously reported, the South Bay’s big ticket race on Tuesday was the City of San Jose’s mayoral contest to replace termed-out Mayor Sam Liccardo. The election pitted Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chávez against San Jose City Council Member Matt Mahan. At the time this article was written, Council Member Mahan maintains a slight lead of 4,766 votes over Supervisor Chávez. However, as Mahan noted on his Twitter account, “there are still about half of the votes to be counted.”
Council Member Mahan received endorsements from four former San Jose Mayors (including Mayor Liccardo). On the other hand, Supervisor Chávez was endorsed by the entire 10-member San Jose City Council, not including her opponent. As the vote counting continues, this is certainly a race to watch.
San Jose City Council, District 3
In Cupertino Today’s San Jose pre-election roundup, an overview of the City Council’s open District 3 race showcased a matchup between Omar Torres, a Trustee on the San Jose-Evergreen Community College District Board, and small business owner and mental health professional Irene Smith. As of the time this article was written, Trustee Torres is ahead with a commanding 63.41 percent of the vote.
Torres’ endorsements include the Santa Clara County Democratic Party, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, Congressman Ro Khanna, and Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chávez.
Smith’s endorsements include former San Jose Council Member Johnny Khamis, the Silicon Valley Biz PAC, and San Jose City Council Member Dev Davis.
San Jose City Council, District 5
The District 5 seat of the San Jose City Council was up for grabs on Tuesday with the terming out of Council Member Magdalena Carrasco. Vying for the seat are Nora Campos and Peter Ortiz. Ms. Campos is a former State Assemblymember and former District 5 Council Member. Mr. Ortiz is a Member of the Santa Clara County Board of Education. At the time this article was written, Ortiz was up with 53.48 percent of the vote.
As Cupertino Today has reported, Campos and Carrasco are longtime political rivals. Carrasco won her seat from Campos’ brother, Xavier Campos, in 2014 after Xavier Campos defeated Carrasco for the seat in 2010. Among Campos’ endorsers are California State Senator Dave Cortese, California Secretary of State Shirley Weber and Morgan Hill Mayor Rich Constantine.
Ortiz’s endorsements include Civil Rights Activist Dolores Huerta, The Mercury News, and the Santa Clara County Democratic Party.
San Jose City Council, District 7
Incumbent San Jose City Council Member Maya Esparza hoped to defend her seat and win reelection over challenger Bien Doan. Mr. Doan is the first Vietnamese Captain of the San Jose Fire Department. As of the time this article was written, Captain Doan is leading with 56.55 percent of the vote.
Doan is endorsed by San Jose Council Member Dev Davis, former District 7 Council Member Tam Nguyen, and the Silicon Valley Biz PAC. Among Esparza’s endorsements are the San Jose Firefighters Local 230, Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, and the Santa Clara County Democratic Party.