By Robert Haugh
The Santa Clara County Assessor’s race will be on the November 4 ballot. The assessor determines property values for every home, business, and parcel in the county, decisions that drive funding for schools, police, fire departments, libraries, and parks.
The vacancy follows the retirement of Assessor Larry Stone. During his tenure, the San Francisco 49ers secured one of the largest property tax cuts in county history.
Stone will leave office 18 months before his term expires in January 2027. His departure comes years after a controversial decision that slashed the team’s stadium tax bill in half.
Four candidates are running to succeed him:
Yan Zhao is a Saratoga City Councilmember and former mayor. Zhao is a UC Berkeley–trained electrical engineer who began her career as a chip designer at National Semiconductor, She says her background in technology and public service uniquely qualifies her to modernize the office. Zhao emphasizes upgrading the assessor’s decades-old systems, expanding outreach, and improving accessibility for property owners.
Zhao’s campaign has drawn significant local support, including endorsements from Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor and City Councilmembers Raj Chahal, Albert Gonzalez, and Suds Jain – a majority of the current Santa Clara City Council.
Website: yan4assessor.com
Bryan Do is president of the East Side Union High School District Board. He wants to use technology and artificial intelligence to improve customer service at the assessor’s office. Do is a managing partner at Karakul, a company focused on automation and conversational AI.
His platform calls for 24/7 access to services and faster property reassessments. Do argues that AI systems could handle most public inquiries and summarize information for staff, improving both speed and consistency.
He has not yet launched a campaign website.
Neysa Fligor serves as an assistant assessor and is the only candidate currently working in the office she hopes to lead. An attorney with prior experience as legal counsel for Hewlett-Packard and the assessor’s office, she helped oversee a modernization project to replace the county’s 40-year-old property assessment system.
Fligor emphasizes stability and continuity during a leadership transition, along with modernized technology and strong support for the office’s 262 employees. She has the endorsement of outgoing Assessor Stone, whose support may or may not be politically valuable in this race.
Website: VoteNeysaForAssessor.com
Rishi Kumar is a former Saratoga City Councilmember and technology executive. A mechanical engineer by training, he describes the assessor’s office as a large agency in need of stronger management and technological upgrades.
Kumar pledges to modernize operations, improve transparency, and increase productivity without raising taxes. He does not yet hold the state appraiser’s license required for the position, but has said he will obtain it if elected.
Website: rishikumar.com
As I understand it, Neysa Fligor is the only one of these four candidates currently working in the Assessor’s office and who has the experience and education to immediately step into the role of County Assessor on day one. As for updating the Assessor’s office, the paragraph above notes that Fligor has already “oversee(n) a modernization project to replace the county’s 40-year-old property assessment system.” I’m voting for Neysa Fligor.
This race is between Rishi Kumar and Neysa Fligor. Unfortunately Yan Zhao does not speak english and every company on Bryan Do’s missing resume is fictitious. He’s a realtor. As is Yan Zhao. As is Neysa Fligor.
Fligor is a realtor:
https://www2.dre.ca.gov/publicasp/pplinfo.asp?start=1
Zhao is a realtor:
https://www2.dre.ca.gov/publicasp/pplinfo.asp?License_id=02011502
Do is realtor:
https://www2.dre.ca.gov/publicasp/pplinfo.asp?License_id=01162347
Many see the race between Fligor and Zhao. Both have lots of municipal experience.
The difference between them is Fligor currently works in the property appraiser’s office and has the experience and well as working on integration of updated technology.
None of the other 3 candidates can say that.
I just watched Zhao speak on YouTube. She does speak fluent English but has a slight accent. Are you a Rishi affiliate? Because he is quite scammy. He puts his signs on properties without asking them for permission.
Not a very promising ballot of candidates. So many connections to Big Tech and corporate institutions. Who is fighting for working people? All I seen are tax cuts for corporations.
I believe best candidate here is Rishi. He has prior experience of working for people, keeping taxes in check yet safeguards essential services. He is also for exemption on property tax for residents aged 60 and over.
Disagree 100% with you Sara and here’s why:
First off, anyone considering voting for Kumar should be aware that while he calls himself a Democrat, he leans center-right.
He’s against Prop 50, he supported deporting students who protested on college students. He’s written articles in favor of Trump’s tariffs and Elon’s DOGE. I should stress that these political views are not directly applicable to the role of assessor, but speak to his judgement. Reformers like to claim they offer simple “common sense” solutions which sound great because who wants to be against common sense? But that’s often a far too simplistic approach that ignores reality.
I’d also like to call out a couple things from his assessor’s campaign:
1) His mailers and texts say, direct quote, “I will exempt senior property tax”. This is not something that the assessor can legally do. His campaign says that it just means he’ll advocate for it, but the mailers are deceptive.
2) He fails to take responsibility for the behavior of his campaign volunteers. There have been MANY complaints by voters who have received these ugly responses:
https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/10/31/pathetic-weasel-and-other-expletives-rishi-kumars-campaign-allegedly-sent-profanity-laden-texts-to-silicon-valley-elected-official/
3) In conclusion, like all of us, I would like to see major improvements in the assessor’s office. I do not think Rishi Kumar has earned our trust to execute on it. SJMN has it right! Neysa Fligor has the best credentials for assessor! She has the experience in the office and understanding the specific challenges that come with the department (the specific mechanics of what makes the appeals process slow from a legal perspective),,