Races for two Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors seats were tight after polls closed Tuesday night, while an unopposed incumbent appeared likely to lock up a third open seat.
Early returns showed Madison Nguyen, a former San Jose vice mayor, and Betty Duong, chief of staff for outgoing Supervisor Cindy Chavez, were locked in a tight race to lead all candidates for District 2, which includes downtown and East San Jose. Nguyen had 32% of the vote and Duong had 29%. Corina Herrera-Loera, a local school board member, was in third with 24%
In District 5, encompassing the northern part of the county and a swath of the West Valley, early returns placed Mountain View City Councilmember Margaret Abe-Koga and California State Board of Equalization member Sally Lieber at the top of the race with 41% and 25%, respectively. Retired neurologist Peter Fung had 21%.
District 3 Supervisor Otto Lee currently holds the remaining uncontested seat, likely cementing a second term representing Sunnyvale, Milpitas and parts of North San Jose.
The two competitive races are to replace soon-to-be-termed-out supervisors Chavez in District 2, and Joe Simitian, who is running for U.S. Congress, in District 5. The top two vote-getters in each contest will head to the general election in November unless a single candidate captures a majority of votes.
Supervisors will be expected to manage a more than $11 billion budget all while facing an estimated $250 million deficit in the coming fiscal year, triggered by the rising cost of labor and a slower turnover in home ownership that has curbed tax revenue streams.
In the coming years, the board will also grapple with finding a new funding source for affordable housing as Measure A, a $950 million affordable housing bond passed by voters in 2016, is nearly exhausted.
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