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Election Day:  Santa Clarans to Decide if They Want to Keep the Right to Vote for City Clerk and Police Chief

By Robert Haugh

It’s Election Day and Santa Clarans have two important decisions to make.

Will Mission City residents keep the right to elect the City Clerk (Measure A) and the Police Chief (Measure B)? Both are rights that are in the City Charter.

If you want the City Manager to appoint both positions, vote yes.  That will change the City Charter.

If you want the voters to elect both positions, vote no. That will keep the right in the City Charter.

Both measures were pushed onto the ballot by the 49er Five and were criticized for being deceptive in their wording.

The 49er Five were also criticized for being deceptive with endorsements, like using a dead police chief.

There was no official campaign against Measure A.

The No on Measure B campaign was led by the Santa Clara Police Officers Assocation.  

Here are polling locations in Santa Clara that are open today from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Editor’s Note:  Tonight, there’s also a Santa Clara City Council meeting.  There will be a presentation from City staff about Super Bowl LX and the 2026 FIFA World Cup that Santa Clara News Online will cover later in the week.

14 comments

  1. Mark Twain is attributed with the following:
    “History doesn’t repeat itself, but it often Rhymes.”

    PAST PRESENT
    —– ——-

    Chicago—————–> Santa Clara

    Mob Boss Mob Boss
    Al Capone—————> Jed York

    St. Valentine’s Revenue from 49ers
    Day Massacre—————> -$0-

    City Divided City Divided
    by Wards—————-> by Districts
    (easier to bribe) (easier to bribe)

    Bribed City Official
    William Hale
    Thompson—————–> 49er 5?

    *APPOINTED
    Police Commissioner
    William F. Russell
    forced to resign by
    corrupt politicians———> Brian Doyle

    Chicago Tribune————> Silicon Valley Voiceless

    Paid-for Paid-for
    Corrupt Reportage——-> Corrupt Reportage

    Corrupt Reporter Corrupt Reporter
    Jake Lingle——————-> ?
    (Time will tell)

    Reply

  2. Schadenfreude. I wish I could relish the victories against measures A and B. But alas. I sense it is one victorious battle with many more to come.

    I ventured into the wasteland of Jed’s propaganda machine, Silicon Valley Voice (it does not deserve its former reference to our beloved ‘Santa Clara.’) I just showered to cleanse myself after reviewing the sentiment of those Santa Clarans that were ‘Yes’ on A and B. Yuck.

    Jed’s scriveners at that rag and willing commentary are perplexed and dumbfounded that us Santa Clarans can think for ourselves and do not wish to bend a knee to Mob Boss Jed York—in favor of safety for our families and friends.

    Generally, the commentators proffer reasons for the failure of A and B because:
    1) Santa Clarans are so dumb that they believed marketing material
    2) “Educated” (code word for elitist) were too lazy to vote
    3) Many residents did not do much research
    4) Those who voted no on A and B are “Trumpsters”
    5) Those who voted no on A and B are old and too white
    6) Blame the ‘boogey man”—the POA. [Actually, this a big canard (word used 4 you elitists)]

    To sum, Silicon Valley Voice and persons in favor of Yes to A and B KNOW MORE than you dumb Santa Clarans. Do what the 49er 5 say to do!

    But what goes unsaid is that perhaps that across any demographic and financial status, that SAFETY is important to us Santa Clarans…. and WE want to be able to determine that.

    Reply

  3. Key fact

    Measures lost.

    1971 1994 2024
    Same margins
    Jain
    Park
    Becker
    Made the Poa stronger
    Ethics Commission would have weakened it.

    Reply

  4. So tonight, I did a little research. I really wanted to learn what would designate the term “Landslide” being used.
    Turns out the common number associated with the term was a 15% differential.
    So…. what do we call a an election that has a 40+% between winning and losing?
    You know what I call it…. A good Start, A good Day.
    No on A
    No on B
    Both defeated in huge, really huge landslide type numbers.

    Congratulation Santa Clara, today was a great day.
    I believe our collective voices were heard.

    Burt Field

    Reply

  6. Suds is an absolute idiot. It’s really time for him to go. I don’t personally live in his district, but I will be the first one walking his district to let people know what he’s doing and taking away from the city. It’s time for the 49er five to go!

    Reply

  7. So Suds Jain wants us to follow the lead of Oakland and Richmond? LOL. I’ll take a well managed Santa Clara police dept as is over the other cities with bad police chiefs and high crime.

    If you read the ballot argument and the impartial analysis, it’s clear that this is an attempt to take away our rights and give it to the City Manager who’s proving to have dubious ethics and who answers to the 49er Five who clearly have no ethics.

    Reply

  8. Interesting that Robert Haugh fails to leave out some key points:

    1. A judge ruled that the ballot wording was not misleading after the POA challenged the wording.

    2. Santa Clara is the LAST city in California to elect the Chief of police. If it were such a superior method, then why didn’t even one other city realize that?

    3. In 6 out of the last 9 elections for Chief of Police, there was only one candidate for Chief. In fact in the March 2020 election, the POA pressured Assistant Chief Dan Winter to drop out of the race, leaving only Lieutenant Pat Nikolai on the ballot. Nikolai was head of the POA for 18 years.

    4. Out of 153 sworn SCPD officers, only 10 live in the City and are currently eligible to run for Chief when Pat Nikolai retires this year. Of those 10, almost none have any management experience.

    5. The current Chief of Police has less education and training than all the other chiefs in Santa Clara County. The assistant Chiefs are not eligible to run for Chief unless they move into the City but they stand the chance of being opposed by the POA like Dan Winter was.

    6. The POA is backing the no on Measure B campaign. The POA has spent heavily in all Santa Clara elections. In this election they have spent at least $50,000 while the YES on B campaign has spent less than $4,000. The POA spent $325K in the 2020 elections.

    6. The rumor is that the POA has already selected Cory Morgan to be the next Santa Clara Chief of Police. The POA will pressure everyone else to drop out like they did to Assistant Chief of Police Dan Winter. This will propel Morgan (who is a lieutenant) above captains and assistant chiefs of police who are currently his superiors. Santa Clarans deserve the most experienced and qualified person to lead the department. A professional hiring process run by the City Manager will accomplish that.

    Reply

    • Ok I’ll bite off Suds comment…
      You want to know why Lt Morgan is still a Lieutenant? Because promotions above him are currently stagnant. We have younger Captains who are not ready to retire and 2 Assist COP’s who are retirement age and choose to stay in their current positions.
      Don’t knock LT Morgan because he hasn’t reached a higher level, there’s no where for him to go. He can’t promote until retirements.
      Look at his accomplishments vs. saying he’s “only” a Lieutenant. But suds won’t look at that. Does Suds even know the assignments that Lt Morgan has held?

      Reply

    • To counter #4 – A Lieutenant is a management position. 4 of the employees who live in the city are a part of the management team. I recommend that as a city council member, you educate yourself before trying to prove a point. This makes you look silly.

      Reply

    • To counter #4 – a Lieutenant is a management position. There are currently 4 employees on the management team who live in Santa Clara. I recommend you educate yourself better before speaking out. This made you look silly.

      Reply

    • Suds, you don’t listen to voters. What else is new? Voters don’t listen to Suds when he comes whining at your doors for reelection.

      Reply

    • Suds, in your excitement you seem to have said the opposite of what you meant.
      You said, “Interesting that Robert Haugh fails to leave out some key points:”
      Actually he DID leave out those points, for good reason.

      Reply

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