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Petra Pino
See what others say about me on LinkedIn!
Director, House of Inanna
Steering Committee, The Belly Dance Guild
Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal. ~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
If I can't dance, I don't want to be part of your revolution. ~Emma Goldman [paraphrased]
Talent is a pursued interest. Anything you are willing to practice, you can do. ~Bob Ross
5/26/26, 8:25 AM Mail - Rules and Open Government Committee Agendas - Outlook https://outlook.cloud.microsoft/mail/[email protected]/inbox/id/AAQkADhhYzk3NTk1LTBmZDAtNDc4Yi1hN2Q0LTZjNmZjNTk5M… 2/2
a vote would be "wasted". RCV would've let people vote for Matt Mahan without taking their vote away from other candidates with similar policy positions.
We are San Jose. We are hard-working problem solvers. We are not afraid of improvement. RCV would fix many of the problems that we see with our current elections.
Please give us, the voters of San Jose, the chance to choose RCV.
Thank you for your time and thoughtful consideration of this issue.
Betty Lee
resident of San Jose District 8
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Furthermore, RCV also improves equity and participation in special elections. Eliminating additional election rounds reduces barriers for working families, seniors, and other underrepresented voters who may struggle to turn out to the poll's multiple times in a few short months. RCV also incentivizes candidates to appeal to a broader electorate, resulting in more collaborative campaigns and outcomes that better reflect the collective will of the community.
RCV has been successfully implemented in dozens of jurisdictions across the Bay Area and the entire country, proving to be easy for voters to navigate regardless of age, race, income level, or language spoken. Santa Clara County’s Registrar of Voters currently has the technological capability to implement RCV, making it both practical and fiscally responsible.
By giving voters, the option of RCV for vacancy elections, San José can run efficient special elections, safeguard millions of taxpayer dollars, and reinvest those funds directly into essential public services. It is a true win-win: smarter elections, wiser fiscal management, and stronger democratic outcomes for our community.
It is only right that RCV be included on our November 2026 ballot to let the voters of San José decide whether they're going to equip their City Council with this effective, cost-saving option.
Stay safe, healthy and blessed!
With gratitude,
Carmen Brammer
CEO/Founder, Global Majority Consulting
Former Candidate for San Jose City Council
In memory of my mother
"Grief is in two parts. The first is loss. The second is the remaking of life." --Anne Riophe
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May 27, 2026
Statement from the Executive Board of the Silicon Valley Young Democrats RE: SVYD stands in support of Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies on the City Council Members of the Rules and Open Government Committee, please approve the memorandum by Councilmembers
Cohen,
Kamei,
Mulcahy,
and
Tordillos
to
allow
for
the
use
of
a
Ranked
Choice
Voting
system
in
special
elections
for
vacancies
of
the
Mayor
or
Councilmembers.
As discussed in the memorandum, the use of a Ranked Choice Voting system allows for the City
to
meaningfully
reduce
the
budget
impact
of
special
elections.
Such
a
system
would
shorten
lengthy
periods
wherein
residents
find
themselves
unrepresented
or
represented
by
unelected
appointees
instead
of
a
community
member
of
their
choice.
Voter familiarity relating to Ranked Choice Voting has risen substantially since the Council’s most
recent
discussion
of
the
policy.
An
increasing
number
of
jurisdictions
across
the
United
States
have
begun
to
implement
the
system
including
the
City
and
County
of
San
Francisco
as
well
as
the
Cities
of
Berkeley,
Oakland,
and
San
Leandro
in
Alameda
County.
High-profile
races
utilizing
Ranked
Choice
Voting
like
that
of
the
2026
New
York
City
Mayoral
election
have
also
supported
broader
awareness
of
the
system.
Further, there is data to suggest that Ranked Choice Voting results in outcomes that are more representative
of
the
full
population’s
preferences.
1 The
discrepancy
in
voter
turnout
between
Primary
and
Runoff
elections
is
well
recognized,
doubly
so
in
off-cycle
special
elections.
2 Ranked
Choice
Voting
offers
a
method
of
avoiding
this
concern
by
allowing
candidates
and
voters
to
identify
and
target
a
single
election
day
for
attention
and
turnout.
For the abovementioned reasons, the Executive Board of the Silicon Valley Young Democrats respectfully
request
the
approval
of
the
memorandum
by
Councilmembers
Cohen,
Kamei,
Mulcahy,
and
Tordillos
and
ask
that
the
City
Council
strongly
consider
the
implementation
of
Ranked
Choice
Voting
for
special
elections.
In Solidarity,
The SVYD Executive Board
2 “City Elections in San Jose, California (2025).” n.d. Ballotpedia. Accessed May 26, 2026. https://ballotpedia.org/City_elections_in_San_Jose,_California_(2025) 1 Dowling, Eveline, and Caroline Tolbert. 2025. “What We Know About Ranked Choice Voting, Updated for
2025.”
American
Bar
Association.
https://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_interest/election_law/american-democracy/our-work/what-we- know-about-ranked-choice-voting-2025/.
Outlook
FW: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 From City Clerk <[email protected]>
Date Tue 6/2/2026 7:46 AM
To Agendadesk <[email protected]>
From: lin he >
Sent: Monday, June 1, 2026 6:56 PM
To: City Clerk <[email protected]>
Cc: District3 <district3@sanjoseca .gov>
Subject: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn morel You don't often get email from . Learn why this is important Dear City Clerk and Councilmember,
Please enter my comments into the public record for the June 23 City Council meeting.
I'm a San Jose resident, and I urge the Council to refer the Ranked Choice Voting chaiter amendment to the November 2026 ballot so voters can decide.
When a special election to fill a Council vacancy doesn't produce a majority winner, the city has to run a second, separate mnoff, and that can cost millions. The most recent vacancy cost roughly $3.6 million across two elections. RCV would settle these in a single, decisive election: lower cost, more voter choice, and a winner chosen in the higher-turnout first round.
This measure mandates nothing. It simply gives the Council one more option. Please give San Jose voters the choice.
Thank you,
Lin He
Outlook
FW: City Council Meeting on 6/23 -- Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies From City Clerk <[email protected]>
Date Tue 6/2/2026 7:48 AM
To Agendadesk <[email protected]>
From: Alex Shoor
Sent: Tuesday, June 2, 2026 12:18 AM
To: City Clerk <[email protected]>; District 10 <District10@sanjoseca .gov>; Districtl <[email protected]>; District2 <[email protected]>; District3 <[email protected]>; District4 <[email protected]>; Districts <[email protected]>; District 6 <[email protected]>; District? <[email protected]>; District8 <[email protected]>; District9 <[email protected]>; The Office of Mayor Matt Mahan <[email protected]>; tom .charro~ Wilcox, Leland <[email protected]>; Wilcox, Leland <[email protected]> Subject: City Council Meeting on 6/23 -- Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn morel Mayor & Council,
On an item before you at the 6/23 Council meeting, I write to you personally, not on behalf of any organization. As I suspect you know, I'm a San Jose resident in District 6.
The time has come for San Jose to follow the latest important idea in the spirit of good government: ranked choice voting.
For too long, too many of our elections have been too frequent, poorly timed, drawn out, inconclusive, costly, unrepresentative , elitist, and divisive. Ranked choice voting (RCV) has the potential to improve all of these conditions.
RCV can settle elections in a single, decisive election. They are lower cost, offer more voter choice, and create a winner chosen in the higher-turnout first round.
That's why I urge the Council to refer the Ranked Choice Voting charter amendment to the November 2026 ballot so voters can decide.
This measure simply gives the Council one more option. Please give San Jose voters the choice.
Here's one way I like to think of ranked choice voting. As a foodie, ranked choice voting reminds me of the scenario where three of your friends invite you out to dinner on a Friday night and ask you what kind of food you want to eat. You wouldn't say, "I will only eat Mexican tonight, or I This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. won't eat anything at all!" Instead, when asked, most of us say something akin to, "I really feel like Mexican because it's my favorite cuisine, but I also really like Vietnamese, and I could be persuaded to eat soul food tonight too." That's how human beings make many of our decisions - - we rank our preferences based on a variety of options. And when we get together and make decisions as a group, what's best is when we strive to make as many of us as happy as possible. So if there are four of us friends eating out together, we'll end up at the restaurant that ranks the highest amongst all of us. That's all ranked choice voting is!
Thanks for considering,
Alex
P.S. Shout out to David Cohen for continuing to lead on this issue!
--
Alex Shoor
Outlook
FW: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 From City Clerk <[email protected]>
Date Thu 6/4/2026 3:44 PM
To Agendadesk <[email protected]>
From: Haz
Sent: Thursday, June 4, 2026 3:30 PM
To: City Clerk <[email protected]>
Cc: District9 <district9@sanjoseca .gov>
Subject: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn morel You don't often get email from Learn why th is is importa nt Dear City Clerk and Councilmember,
Please enter my comments into the public record for the June 23 City Council meeting.
As a San Jose resident, I would like to urge the Council to refer the Ranked Choice Voting charter amendment to the November 2026 ballot so voters can decide.
When a special election to fill a Council vacancy doesn't produce a majority winner, the city has to run a second, separate mnoff, and that can cost millions. In fact, the most recent vacancy cost roughly $3.6 million across two elections. RCV would settle these in a single, decisive election: lower cost, more voter choice, and a winner chosen in the higher-turnout first round.
This measure mandates nothing. It simply gives the Council one more option. Please give us San Jose voters the choice.
Thank you,
Hailee Adams District 9
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Outlook
FW: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 From City Clerk <[email protected]>
Date Thu 6/11/2026 7:34 AM
To Agendadesk <[email protected]>
From: Carolina Felix Garcia
Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2026 6:23 PM
To: City Clerk <city.clerk@sanjoseca .gov>
Cc: District3 <district3@sanjoseca .gov>
Subject: Support Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council 6/23 [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn morel You don't often get email from Leam why this is important Dear City Clerk and Councilmember,
Please enter my comments into the public record for the June 23 City Council meeting.
I'm a San Jose resident, and I urge the Council to refer the Ranked Choice Voting chru.ter amendment to the November 2026 ballot so voters can decide.
When a special election to fill a Council vacancy doesn't produce a majority winner, the city has to run a second, separate mnoff, and that can cost millions. The most recent vacancy cost roughly $3.6 million across two elections. RCV would settle these in a single, decisive election: lower cost, more voter choice, and a winner chosen in the higher-turnout first round.
This measure mandates nothing. It simply gives the Council one more option. Please give San Jose voters the choice.
Thank you, Carolina Felix
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn more] From: City Clerk
To: Agendadesk
Subject: Fw: No to Ranked Choice Voting
Date: Friday, June 12, 2026 8:23:38 AM
Office of the City Clerk | City of San José
200 E. Santa Clara St., Tower 14th Floor
San Jose, CA 95113
Main: 408-535-1260
Fax: 408-292-6207
How is our service? Your feedback is appreciated!
From: jonie murphy
Sent: Thursday, June 11, 2026 5:42 PM
To: The Office of Mayor Matt Mahan <[email protected]> Subject: No to Ranked Choice Voting
Dear Matt and fellow council members,
I am writing to respectfully ask that you vote No on the upcoming proposal for Ranked Choice Voting (RCV).
I have several concerns regarding this system:
- RCV is extremely difficult to audit, which may fail to meet federal standards for election validity and accountability.
- The system is complex and often confuses voters, leading to a high number of mis-marked and discounted ballots.
- Implementing RCV requires significant money. According to the Registrar of Voters, the costs to implement RCV are substantial.
I believe these funds would be better utilized for our Fire and Police budgets, which were recently cut.
Thank you for considering these points.
Sincerely,
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.
Joanie Murphy
District 10
From: City Clerk
To: Agendadesk
Subject: Fw: Support Ballot Measure for Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council June 23 Item 3.3 Date: Friday, June 12, 2026 5:00:30 PM
Attachments: 260623 SJCC submission.pdf
Office of the City Clerk | City of San José
200 E. Santa Clara St., Tower 14th Floor
San Jose, CA 95113
Main: 408-535-1260
Fax: 408-292-6207
How is our service? Your feedback is appreciated!
From: <
Sent: Friday, June 12, 2026 4:58 PM
To: City Clerk <
Subject: Support Ballot Measure for Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council June 23 Item
3.3 [External Email. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. Learn more<https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification>]
[You don't often get email from Learn why this is important at https://aka.ms/LearnAboutSenderIdentification ]
Please see the attached PDF as my submission for consideration by the San Jose City Council at their June 23, 2026 meeting. As the subject line of this email states, this is relevant to agenda item 3.3 — their consideration of putting RCV in front of voters in November as an option for special elections.
This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources.
I will unfortunately be out of town that day, so will not be able to attend. Please let me know if there is anything else I need to know or do for this to be considered.
John (Jay) Shuler
Support Ballot Measure for Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies
City Council June 23 Item 3.3
My name is Jay Shuler. I live on Halkins Drive here in San Jose District 9. I am a re:red tech worker who is currently working as a musician, private trumpet instructor, and brass music coach at Leigh and Branham high schools. I am also the Adopt-A-Park leader for Houge Park Na:ve Gardens, and — in the interest of full disclosure — the volunteer leader in San Jose for the California Ranked Choice Vo:ng Coali:on, or CalRCV.
I am wri:ng today to urge you to support the vote to allow voters to decide on the November ballot whether to approve Ranked Choice Vo:ng as an op:on for special elec:ons in San Jose.
Implemen:ng Ranked Choice Vo:ng, or “RCV”, also known as “Instant Runoff Vo:ng”, would save the City money, while ensuring that winning candidates receive majority voter support.
RCV is well tested, and its benefits with respect to cost and :me savings, ease of implementa:on and use, the reduc:on of nega:ve campaign rhetoric, and its overwhelming voter approval are well documented. Most importantly, it is beQer democracy.
The use of RCV in special elec:ons would demonstrate these benefits to the voters and the Council, such that it can be considered not only for use in special elec:ons, but also for all future elec:ons.
Special elec:ons, in par:cular, are unpredictable — of the six special elec:ons called in San Jose since 2000, only four were predictable, based on vacancies opened by members being elected to other offices. The other two were made necessary by resigna:ons.
And of these six specials, five went to a runoff, forcing the city to spend millions of precious dollars, not to men:on staff :me and trouble, both of which could certainly have been put to beQer use. For example, according to the City Clerk, the 2025 special elec:on for the District 3 council seat cost $2.5 million, but the runoff cost an addi&onal $1.5 million. Using RCV would have yielded an indisputable winner in a single elec:on, filling the seat quickly and at minimum cost.
Special elec:ons, and in par:cular runoffs, are notorious for low voter turnout due to voter fa:gue, meaning that a :ny minority of voters end up selec:ng the leadership affec:ng the en:re city.
According to the County Registrar of Voters, pu]ng RCV on the November 2026 ballot would allow RCV to be used as soon as April 2027. If we lose this opportunity, because of the way the San Jose Charter is wriQen, our next opportunity to put it on the ballot will not be un:l 2028, thus requiring runoffs for any special elec:on before 2029.
NOW is the :me to get started.
San Jose 95225
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6/17/26, 8:49 AM P - Agendadesk - Outlook
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P.O. Box 5374
San Jose, CA 95150
www.lwvsjsc.org
June 17, 2026
To: Honorable Mayor Mahan and City Councilmembers Kamei, Campos, Tordillos, Cohen, Ortiz, Mulcahy, Doan, Candelas, Foley, and Casey
cc: City Clerk, Agenda Desk
From: Diane McNutt, President, LWV San Jose/Santa Clara Subject: Support Ballot Measure for Ranked Choice Voting for Vacancies - City Council June 23, Item 3.3
Dear Honorable Mayor Mahan and Members of the City Council:
On behalf of the League of Women Voters of San Jose/Santa Clara, we urge you to give San José voters the choice to authorize Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) for filling City Council vacancies, by referring the question to the November 2026 ballot.
Special elections are among the most expensive and least participatory elections the City runs.
When no candidate wins a majority outright, San José must hold a separate runoff, doubling the cost and stretching the process across months. The 2025 District 3 special election cost about $2.1 million for the first round and another $1.5 million for the runoff, roughly $3.6 million to fill a single seat.
This measure would not mandate any method. It would expand the Council's options. If voters approve it, the City could fill a vacancy by appointment, by the existing two-round runoff, or by a single-round RCV election, whichever fits the circumstance. The judgment stays with the Council, case by case. This is added flexibility, not a constraint.
Our support rests on the League of Women Voters Position on Voter Representation/Electoral Systems, which favors methods that strengthen representation and participation. RCV for special elections advances its core criteria.
● It promotes sincere over strategic voting – In this June's primary for Governor, many Californians held their ballots until the final days, then voted for whichever candidate was polling best rather than their genuine first choice, hedging against the top-two system shutting their party out. RCV removes that dilemma, letting voters rank their honest first choice without fear of wasting their vote.
● It helps under-represented communities take part – In crowded fields, candidates from the same community can split the vote and all lose, while RCV lets voters back their first choice and lets allied candidates cross-endorse.
● It maximizes effective votes – According to FairVote's analysis of California RCV elections over the past two decades, an average of 73% of voters rank the winner among their top three, so winners carry broad affirmative support and a winner is decided more quickly.
RCV is also proven and practical. It is used across the Bay Area and the country and is understood by voters regardless of age, language, or income. The Santa Clara County's Registrar of Voters already has the capability to administer it.
Timing matters. If the charter is not amended this November, the next opportunity is in 2028.
Vacancies are unpredictable and can arise at any time. If one occurs before then, the City will spend roughly $1.5 million more than it needs to.
We respectfully urge you to refer this question to the November 2026 ballot, so the people of San José can decide whether to give their Council this common sense, cost-saving option.
Sincerely,
President, League of Women Voters San Jose/Santa Clara
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Joseph Barco
Naglee Park
District 3
6/17/26, 1:27 PM Inbox - Agendadesk - Outlook
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This message is from outside the City email system. Do not open links or attachments from untrusted sources. "We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both."
Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis
6/17/26, 1:27 PM Inbox - Agendadesk - Outlook
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Please enter my comments into the public record for the June 23 City Council meeting.
I'm a San Jose resident, and I urge the Council to refer the Ranked Choice V oting charter amendment to the November 2026 ballot so voters can decide.
When a special election to fill a Council vacancy doesn't produce a majority winner, the city has to run a second, separate runoff, and that can cost millions. The most recent vacancy cost roughly $3.6 million across two elections. RCV would settle these in a single, decisive election:
lower cost, more voter choice, and a winner chosen in the higher-turnout first round.
This measure mandates nothing. It simply gives the Council one more option. Please give San Jose voters the choice.
Thank you,
Noelle Andrade from Thousand Oaks / district 9