Two seats are up for election on the Cupertino City Council, and incumbents Kitty Moore and Hung Wei are competing against five challengers in November. The city is grappling with an inexpensive housing crisis, revitalization of the old Vallco site and a budget deficit resulting from the lack of tens of millions in sales tax dollars.
Residents can expect a more experienced group of political hopefuls: The majority of candidates are former Cupertino council members and mayors running for four-year terms on the five-member council.
Here's who's running
Kitty Moore
I actually have been serving on the Council since 2020. Moore is able to rise up for residents and be a “smart watchdog” in City Council affairs. “I'm generally known for doing my homework and following city rules closely,” she said.
Moore's priorities include monitoring taxpayer dollars in city funds and making “important reforms” to make sure financial transparency and accountability.
Moore said she supports the town's growth and desires officials to think about the environmental and public safety impacts of enormous projects just like the Vallco development. During her time on the City Council, Moore was known for advocating for correct oversight of hazardous waste disposal on the demolished shopping mall, which is able to soon change into the location of hundreds of inexpensive housing units.
Last 12 months, Moore and Councilmember Liang Chao were faraway from their committee assignments amid an independent investigation into Cupertino City Council misconduct. Former Mayor Darcy Paul was investigated by the county district attorney's office for his conduct toward city employees. Both members were reinstated in fall 2023 after the town voted to require council members to take additional training on council leadership and staff communications.
Hung Wei
Although her first term as a council member is coming to an end, Wei is in search of re-election because she must “finish the work we started four years ago,” including more housing and reliable transportation in the town. Wei wants to make sure all families have access to good schools and amenities, including more parks and trails.
She hopes Cupertino will see itself as a Silicon Valley city and work with neighboring cities to bring more housing, businesses, transportation and academic opportunities to the realm.
“It's important for us as city councillors to keep the future in mind in every decision we make,” she said. “We should be aware that we are making this decision for the next 10 or 20 years, not just five.”
In addition to serving as a city councilman and former mayor of Cupertino, Wei served as a trustee of the Fremont Union High School District and as board chair of the Fremont Union High Schools Foundation and the Rotary Club of Cupertino. Outside of the town, Wei served as a board member of the Asian American Parent Association and the Northwest YMCA, and as board director of the League of Women Voters of Cupertino-Sunnyvale.
Barry Chang
Chang-chang, who served one term as mayor and eight years as a city councilor, said he’s returning to enhance the standard of lifetime of residents.
His priorities include working with the county sheriff's department to deal with homelessness and public questions of safety, working to get the town out of a $30 million budget deficit and ensuring no other city services are cut. The avid pickleball player said he can even push for higher pickleball facilities in the town, in addition to more comprehensive services for seniors.
Chang said he was the perfect candidate because he “dares to do what other city leaders won't.” That included criticizing Apple for not paying its “fair share of taxes” and fighting for 20 years to bring the Lehigh cement plant into clean air and clean water regulations. The plant was set to shut permanently in 2023.
“I can tell you, there is no other candidate who would take such a step and do the right thing for the people,” Chang said.
Chang ran for the Santa Clara County fifth District Board of Supervisors seat in February, but lost to Mountain View City Council member Margaret Abe-Koga.
In 2016, when Chang was mayor, residents filed a recall petition against him over concerns about campaign contributions from developers related to the redevelopment of the Vallco Shopping Mall and Oaks Shopping Center. However, the recall petition was not placed on the ballot.
Claudio Bono
Bonowho serves as general manager of the Cupertino Hotel, is entering the race because he desires to bring “good governance” to the town and support small businesses and tenants.
The businessman's top priorities include restoring city services, which have been severely cut through the years, and providing inexpensive housing for residents, especially first responders, service employees and teachers. He also wants to seek out ways for local businesses to “coexist” with future developments.
Bono said one in all his strengths is the power to work with people of all backgrounds. “I don't belong to any particular group,” he said. “I'm an engaged citizen who finds solutions and moves forward.”
He got here to Cupertino in 2014 as general manager of a hotel, then referred to as the Cupertino Inn. Bono currently serves on the town's Parks and Recreation Commission. He has also previously held leadership positions with the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce and the Cupertino Historical Society. In 2017, Bono received the town's CREST Award, an award that recognizes a person or organization's commitment to community service.
Ray Wang
Wang is running for the town council seat because he wants Cupertino officials to be more “resident-focused.” Lately, the town council has change into less fascinated with residents and prefers to hearken to lobbyists and special interest groups on city issues, Wang said.
His top priorities include demanding more accountability and transparency in how taxpayer dollars are spent, and finding a “balance” between expanding the town's housing supply and preserving single-family home neighborhoods and native businesses. He also wants Cupertino to guard its public spaces and never be so quick to think about selling those properties to personal interests.
“We should not sell public land to create more housing,” he said. “These are valuable resources.”
Wang was appointed chairman of Cupertino's Planning Commission in 2019, but was faraway from his post last 12 months after allegations of bullying community members and city officials. Wang and his supporters previously called the move politically motivated and criticized the council majority for not hearing his side of the story before making the choice.
Gilbert Wong
Wong has worked for the town for the past decade, including two terms as mayor, nine years as a council member and 6 years as a planning commissioner. The current trustee of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District said his extensive experience in leadership roles and coping with community members makes him a professional candidate.
“I will fight for our citizens to achieve something,” he said. “We have to get results.”
Wong's priorities include constructing more cost-effective housing in the realm and creating a well-liked “gathering place for our youth and seniors” in the town. He also wants to enhance public safety and reduce white-collar crime by increasing police presence in Cupertino. Wong desires to bring “sensible governance” back to City Hall and be certain that city staff and other public employees work in a protected environment.
Wong has also served on the board of directors of the Cupertino Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the board of directors of the Cupertino Library Foundation, the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Foundation, and the board of directors of the Association of Community College Trustees.
Bar sinks
Bathroom sink, Another former Cupertino mayor is a board member of the Fremont Union High School District and can retire this November. In addition to his eight years as a former council member, Sinks has been involved in several environmental organizations. “I've always gotten results for the people of Cupertino,” he said.
Sinks said he’s entering the race because he wants the town to “make progress in building a downtown” by making the most of the retail and residential opportunities on the Vallco site. He also desires to bolster the town's tax revenue and shut its $30 million revenue gap by promoting a business-friendly environment.
The longtime environmentalist hopes to scale back traffic and automotive pollution in the town by expanding the Silicon Valley Hopper service in Cupertino and creating safer bike and pedestrian routes.
He was the founder and former chairman of the Silicon Valley Clean Energy Authority, the Cupertino Rotary Climate Action Committee and the Bay Area Air Quality Management District Board, which oversees air quality and climate change mitigation strategies within the nine-county region.
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