It’s a big election year – are you ready for it?
Registered voters in California will begin to receive ballots in the mail on October 5th – that’s less than 2 weeks away! So let’s have a look at what’s going on in the local, Town of Los Gatos this voting season.
The Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce wants to make sure your voice is heard. Their campaign, Vote LG, and it’s web page are set up to answer all of your election questions. Visit that page for a timeline of important dates, links to register online, information on candidates and measures, and most importantly how to vote whether you submit your ballot in-person, by mail, or by drop box.
Another resource for the local election is the League of Women Voters Southwest Santa Clara Valley division which hosts a variety of events for voters. Coming up on October 5th, they will have a non-partisan discussion of the Pros & Cons of the state propositions, county, and local measures that affect this area. Recordings of their past Candidate Forums for this election year are also available online.
Town of Los Gatos Election
This year, voters for the Town of Los Gatos have 3 open seats to fill in the Town Council and 2 Los Gatos specific measures in addition to a few County measures, state propositions, and federal elections to consider. But let’s just focus on the Los Gatos election. Who’s running and for what position?
There are 3 open seats for Member of the Town Council the 2020 election: 1 for a 2-year term, and 2 for a full 4-year term.
The candidates for full term Members of the Town Council (2 open seats) are:
| Matthew Hudes | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
| Heidi Owens | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
| Larry Maggio | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
| D. Michael Kane | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
| Maria Ristow | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
The candidates for short term Member of the Town Council (1 open seat) are:
| Mary Badme | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
| Rob Stephenson | Candidate Statement | Candidate Website |
You can also meet the candidates at the upcoming Virtual Candidate Forum presented by the Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce.
The Town uses a non-partisan democratic election system, so you will not see any blue vs red campaigning for these seats. There are also no district divisions, all council members and elected officials serve the entire community. You might notice there is no mayoral election. Town voters elect the Council Member positions, and the Council elects a serving Mayor and Vice Mayor amongst themselves every year.
Measures A and B on the ballot pertain to the proposed creation of a Finance Commission to replace Town Committees and a proposed installation of a term limit for Town Council Members. Wording on the measures are available at the Vote LG page (linked above) on the Town’s 2020 General Municipal Election page, and full documents linked in the Town’s Election and Voter Information page where more detailed information can be found.
