San Jose May Change Mayoral Election Cycle

SAN JOSE, CA -- The City Council wants to get the most bang for the buck from the voting public during key election seasons in changing the charter to allow the mayor's election cycle to line up with presidential election years.

Currently, the mayor's election falls every four years, making this fall the time to be scheduling one since the first one fell on 1994.

The reason is exposure.

In a memorandum written to Mayor Sam Liccardo, Vice Mayor Magdalena Carrasco made the case for increased voter participation on election years when a U.S. president is elected. The other three council members, Chappie Jones, Sergio Jimenez and Don Rocha, co-signed the memo.

"Citizen involvement in the electoral process improves governance. Elected mayors can lead with the understandig that they have been chosen by a substantial part of the voting population," the memo reads.

The letter refrains from moving all elections of City Council seats in general election years just for the sake of keeping order.

If proposal goes forward, Liccardo will serve another half term. He was elected in 2014. The changing of the charter was not his plan.

"I only recently had a chance to read this proposal, and while I appreciate the desire to have a large turnout at the polls, it should be balanced against the importance of having a robust dialogue about local issues without the distraction of the chronic dysfunction consuming our national politics," Liccardo said. "I also suspect my wife will raise even greater concerns about giving up our weekends for another two years."

The City Council will discuss the matter at its Oct. 16 meeting.