In the three contested races for San Jose City Council this fall, the candidates we favored in the primary — Magdalena Carrasco in District 5, Madison Nguyen in District 7 and Donald Rocha in District 9 — made the runoff. We remain confident they’re the best choices.
District 5
Carrasco is not just a better candidate than Xavier Campos, who was positioned as the heir apparent to his sister, Nora Campos, for the council seat. Carrasco is a potential star — a grass-roots leader with the intelligence and poise to become a citywide player, immeasurably benefiting the struggling East Side.
Carrasco is grounded in East San Jose, where she grew up and now cares for her aging parents while raising her four children and working as a child advocate for First 5 Santa Clara County. She understands the community and — this is key — can marshal broad support for its needs: Her backers include both the Chamber of Commerce and former council member and county supervisor Blanca Alvarado, that most impassioned advocate for the disadvantaged.
Campos’ supporters are making much of Carrasco’s personal bankruptcy in 2005. It should raise questions, mainly: Why did it happen? And how was it resolved? Carrasco fell into debt when her mother came down with cancer — but she did not dodge responsibility. She eventually paid off all debts. And she never owed back taxes, although
she failed to file returns during her ordeal.
We’re comfortable with Carrasco’s conduct — but not with Xavier Campos’ record.
Campos was chief operating officer of the Mexican American Community Services Agency, which is under criminal investigation for failing to pay into its charter school employees’ retirement funds. He says he knew nothing about this. But public records obtained by the Chamber of Commerce show the schools reported to Campos, among many indicators that he should have known about the finances. And if he didn’t know, then he wasn’t really doing the chief operating officer job. Either way, he is not a good bet for public office.
Carrasco could break the pattern of entitlement in East Side leadership and bring a fresh approach. It’s time.
District 9
Donald Rocha is not a typical politician. He is quiet and sometimes frustratingly reluctant to give a firm opinion, even when the answer might seem obvious. But when he does come to a conclusion, it usually seems right. He reminds us of the current Cambrian council member, Judy Chirco — another quiet person who over two terms became known for thoughtfulness and independence. Chirco believes Rocha has the same potential. We do, too.
Raising a family in the district, Rocha understands its concerns. He learned about city government working in Dave Cortese’s council office and more recently for the redevelopment agency. He says superficial reactions to issues can ultimately prove wrong, and he will work for deeper understanding.
Rocha is being painted as a union shill, but we don’t see it. Unions definitely oppose his opponent, Larry Pegram, who is running on an anti-labor platform. But Rocha does not echo labor’s agenda. He says he would have supported the call for union concessions last spring and the imposition of a contract on one union when bargaining failed. He supports Mayor Chuck Reed’s reform Measures V and W this fall to help curb ballooning payroll and pension costs. (He wishes those measures had been proposed earlier for more thorough analysis, but then so do we.)
Pegram co-founded and until recently ran the Values Advocacy Council, which, among other things, led the local campaign to ban same-sex marriage. Reed endorsed him only after the candidate made a written commitment not to use the council seat to pursue his personal agenda. In a column on this page Wednesday, San Jose police Sgt. Jim Unland noted the oddity of Reed’s having to ask a candidate to check his personal beliefs at the door. Like Unland, we don’t see how Pegram — if he’s sincere in those beliefs — could help but try to further them in office.
Rocha has no such baggage and will, we believe, be a solid vote for fiscal responsibility.
District 7
Incumbent Madison Nguyen is challenged by Minh Duong, who is running as a business candidate despite a series of financial setbacks. We recommended Nguyen in the primary because she pledged to work harder to bring city costs under control. She has kept her word, consistently voting for fiscal responsibility, including supporting Reed’s budget and Measures V and W.
Nguyen had a tumultuous first term, with Little Saigon and other unusual upheavals. She has learned a lot and deserves another term to put that learning to use.
Updated: 10/07/2010 08:36:24 AM PDT
