Electoral candidates across the region worked to get out the vote during Super Tuesday, as the political landscape narrowed dramatically.
And in early results, Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian and former San Jose mayor Sam Liccardo had risen to the top of the 16th Congressional District race—with Assemblymember Evan Low a not-so-distant third.
They’re all seeking to replace Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, who announced her retirement in November.
Simitian said he’s been hearing plenty from voters about their concerns and fears.
“I think there’s a real anxiety out there about the state of our democracy,” he said. “And what I heard was reinforcement for my message that we need to fix the broken system.”
County election officials will be counting votes until the March 12 deadline for ballots mailed by Tuesday. More than 90 percent of votes were cast by mail over the past month. The Registrar of Voters office reported what is expected to emerge as a record low turnout, below 30% of registered voters.
After a last-minute bout of door-knocking in San Jose, Tuesday morning, Liccardo reflected on how intense the contest had been.
“This has been a pretty truncated election season for us,” he said. “We’re building the engine as the car’s racing down the road.”
He spent Monday afternoon going door-to-door in Saratoga, where he tried to convince voters that the leader of Silicon Valley’s biggest city is the ideal person to solve problems in Washington.
“Mayors are not like those who have served in a state legislature which is dominated mostly by one party,” he said. “Mayors have to be accountable for getting things done. I learned that every time I went to the grocery store or the gym.”
One of the most memorable moments, he says, was the time a woman ran down the street after him to give him a check for $20.
Simitian said it’s been nice to meet people who he’s represented over the years while working at various levels of state and local government.
“It has been a whirlwind of a campaign,” he said. “I feel like the response that the campaign has gotten from Day 1 has been very encouraging. People have been very positive.”
He’s hammered on four main issues: abortion, climate change, economics and health care.
“It was particularly gratifying that so many folks in Los Gatos stepped up and said, ‘We’re with you,’” he said, touting his endorsements from Town Council members. “This district is a special place. It just is. And the rest of the nation looks to our Valley for a view to the future.”
Ahmed Mostafa is someone who has helped shape the global tech future as a policy lead for Google, a job he quit in December to jump into the race.
“I’ve been humbled and inspired to witness the outpouring of community support for my grassroots campaign for change,” he said in an emailed statement. “Voters know that this election represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to elect a progressive candidate who will advance the transformative change that they deserve, and our policy stances have resonated deeply with community members who are eager for representation that will center their priorities.”
More than two hours after polls closed tonight, Liccardo held on to his lead over Simitian, who widened his margin over state Assemblymember Evan Low.
As new returns posted at 10:20pm with approximately 19% of votes counted—the three local political heavyweights solidified their positions at the top of a stack of 11 candidates—nine Democrats and two Republicans.
Separated from the rest of the pack were: Liccardo, with 18,906 votes, followed by Simitian with 15,363 and Low with 13,563 votes. These numbers include both San Mateo and Santa Clara counties.
San Mateo voters helped Simitian move closer to clinching the all-important runner-up finish—and a spot with Liccardo on the November ballot. In the “top-two” open primary, voters of any or no party affiliation could vote for any candidate.
Another candidate to benefit from the more moderate San Mateo voters was Republican Peter Ohtaki, whose 11,437 vote more than doubled the vote for three-time congressional candidate Rishi Kumar. Ohtaki moved up on Low’s total, but both fell further behind Simitian as the vote count reached the midpoint late tonight.
Liccardo, 53, served two terms as San Jose mayor and two-terms as a council member following a stint as a prosecutor in the county District Attorney’s Office. The Georgetown and Harvard Law School grad grew up in San Jose near his grandfather’s grocery store. Considered a moderate with strong ties to Silicon Valley tech and real estate firms, he led the city during its growth as a tech center, championed a high-speed rail link and BART extension into San Jose and gained national recognition for the City’s attempt to require gun owners to have liability insurance.
Simitian, 71, is in the final year of his third term as a Santa Clara County supervisor. The former Palo Alto mayor and Council member served in the California legislature as an Assembly member and State senator. He led efforts in the County and State to build affordable housing, increase environmental protections and boost mental health services. The moderate Democrat led early with endorsements from many local elected officials—highlighted by a cherished endorsement from Eshoo.
Low, 40, an openly gay progressive with strong organized labor support, has served in the Assembly since his first election in 2014. He is a former mayor and council member in Campbell, and is considered a rising next-generation star in the Democratic Party. He also is chair of the California Asian American & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus and a member of the California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus.
Tech security entrepreneur Peter Dixon of Portola Valley, a former Marine officer and Pentagon consultant, was successful at raising a lot of money.
His vote total was higher than Palo Alto Council member Julie Lythcott-Haims, a best-selling author of parenting books and a TED speaker, is a former corporate lawyer and Stanford University professor and dean. Lythcott-Haims, who describes herself as a bisexual African-American born in Nigeria, has accumulated a wide range of regional and national endorsements from feminist and civil rights groups.
Kumar ran his third campaign for Eshoo’s seat. The tech executive and Saratoga Council member received more than 42% of the vote in his last challenge to Eshoo.
Olga Enciso Smith, a Los Gatos resident who volunteered with the Liccardo campaign, was thrilled with the result.
“It’s very encouraging,” she said. “But at the same time, we won’t know until all is final. Because many people vote by mail.”
Enciso Smith, a longtime advocate for the Peruvian community who started a business in Old Town Los Gatos in 1974, said she believes Liccardo’s support for the Latino community is sincere.
“I know Sam Liccardo since he was District Attorney,” she said, as the campaign’s Super Tuesday party wound-down. “He had a heart for Latinos, for Latin Americans.”
She says each time she sees Liccardo he gives her a big hug.
“I could walk with my head high and this leader recognize me,” she said, adding that even if he does win in the fall, the real work will begin after the election. “It doesn’t end there. We need to support him.”
Results, 8:50pm March 5
Totals are incomplete, partial and unofficial from Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters and California Secretary of State
* incumbent
Results, 3:01am March 6
(Next update, 5pm)
Totals are incomplete, partial and unofficial from Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters and California Secretary of State
* incumbent
Local Results
Source, Secretary of State, Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters
CONGRESS
16th District
- Sam Liccardo, Dem 19,134
- Joe Simitian, Dem 15,598
- Evan Low, Dem 13,762
- Peter Ohtaki, GOP 11,985
- Rishi Kumar, Dem 5,540
17th District
- *Ro Khanna, Dem 32,057
- Anita Chen, GOP 15,459
18th District
- *Zoe Lofgren, Dem 22,894
- Peter Hernandez, GOP 14,695
19th District
- *Jimmy Panetta, Dem 73,855
- Jason Anderson, GOP 30,920
LEGISLATURE
Senate
13th District
- *Josh Becker, Dem 78,344
- Alexander Glew, GOP 23,836
15th District
- *Dave Cortese, Dem 57,423
- Robert Howell, GOP 17,850
Assembly
23rd District
- *Marc Berman, Dem 81,709
- Lydia Kou, Dem 11,190
- Allan Marson, GOP 7,182
- Gus Mattammal, GOP 6.845
24th District
- *Alex Lee, Dem 15,868
- Bob Brunton, GOP 5,668
25th District
- *Ash Kalra, Dem 16,181
- Lan Ngo, Dem 8,152
- Ted Stroll, GOP 9,454
26th District
- Patrick Ahrens, Dem 11,828
- Tara Sreekrishnan, Dem 8,409
- Sophe Yan Song, GOP 8,576
28th District
- *Gail Pellerin, Dem 43,699
- Liz Lawler, GOP 19,938
29th District
- *Robert Rivas, Dem 18.286
- J.W. Paine, GOP 10,032
CITY OF SAN JOSE
Mayor
- *Matt Mahan 70,507
- Tyrone Wade 9,983
Council District 2
- Pamela Campos 1,503
- Joe Lopez 2,412
- Babu Prasad 1,428
- Vanessa Sandoval 1,194
Council District 4
- *David Cohen 4,173
- Kansen Chu 2,890
Council District 6
- Michael Mulcahy 4,270
- Olivia Navarro 2,981
- Angelo Pasciuti 1,335
- Alex Shoor 1,604
Council District 8
- *Domingo Candelas 4,064
- Tam Truong 3,581
- Sukhdev Bainiwal 2,731
- Surinder Dhaliwal 203
Council District 10
- *Arjun Batra 3,944
- George Casey 4,405
- Lenka Wright 2,767
SANTA CLARA COUNTY
Board of Supervisors
District 2
- Jennifer Celaya 1,153
- Betty Duong 6,149
- Corina Herra-Loera 5,035
- Nelson McElmurry 2,277
- Madison Nguyen 6,693
District 3
- *Otto Lee 21.052
District 5
- Margaret Abe-Koga 17,243
- Barry Chang 3,130
- Peter Fung 8,913
- Sally Lieber 10,456
- Sandy Sans 2,831
CITY OF SANTA CLARA
Measure A, Appointed City Clerk
- Yes 3.251
- No 6,672
Measure B, Appointed Police Chief
- Yes 2,778
- No 7,267
SCHOOL BOND
Measure C, Sunnyvale
- Yes 4,466
- No 2,261
Statewide Results
Source, Secretary of State
PRESIDENT
- *Joe Biden 1,642,028 (89.4%)
- Dean Phillips 52,475 (2.9%)
- Marianne Williamson 62,486 (3.4%)
Republicans
- Donald Trump 763,429 (75%)
- Nikki Haley 212,904 (21%)
U.S. SENATOR (31 candidates)
Full term (Unexpired term)
- Steve Garvey, GOP 1,218,050 (32%)
- Adam Schiff, Dem 1,247,753 (33%) (29,703 margin)
- Katie Porter, Dem 519,644 (14%)
- Barbara Lee, Dem 276,864 (7%)
BALLOT MEASURE
Proposition 1, Health Bond
- Yes 1,884,614 (50.2%)
- No 1,870,020 (49.8%) (14,594 margin)
Michael Borja, associate communications officer for the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters, said the agency worked with influential community leaders—and even podcasting—in order to encourage as many people to vote as possible.
“This is our main democratic process,” he said, when asked about the significance of the primary. “It’s our civic duty. It’s just a super important day.”
The County has systems in-place to make sure people who are hard-of-hearing or visually-impaired can vote with ease, he added.
Citizens also had the chance to make their opinion known on other items, too.
And in the weeks ahead of Super Tuesday, YouTube viewers were bombarded with ads boosting Proposition 1, featuring Governor Gavin Newsom as the spokesperson.
If successful, the initiative would authorize the state to spend $6.4 billion to build more drug treatment and mental health care facilities.
“Sutter Health is a strong supporter of Proposition 1, because we believe in Governor Newsom’s vision to reform mental health services across California,” said Grace Davis, chief external affairs officer for Sutter Health, one of the funders. “Proposition 1 will expand access to mental health and addiction care services and help address the critical shortage of mental health professionals.”
Meanwhile, just next door to Los Gatos in the 19th Congressional District, Congressman Jimmy Panetta had to contend with a longtime constituent criticizing him with progressive concerns.
Santa Cruz resident Sean Dougherty said he joined the race as the Green Party candidate because he was frustrated that Panetta, a Democrat, wouldn’t meet with him.
He’s also lambasted the politician, who is the son of former CIA Director Leon Panetta, for collecting more than $200,000 from military-industrial-complex donors and accepting more than $143,000 from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee since the Israel-Hamas war began.
“These political donations for them are an investment,” he said.
Panetta did not respond to a request for comment for this article.
“I think these big donors influence the positions that Panetta is taking,” Dougherty said, pointing to his decision to sign a January letter denouncing South Africa’s claim of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice. “He could have just continued refusing to call for a ceasefire and left it at that. But he went a step further.”
On Friday, Panetta led a push for Biden to call for a “pause” in the fighting in Gaza and for hostages to be returned by Hamas.
