Silicon Valley Election Night 2008

Posted by The Fly on Wednesday, November 5, 2008 Comments (3)

Former California controller and eBay exec Steve Westly, Obama’s state campaign co-chair, smiled broadly at Tuesday’s victory party at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View. The fancy bash drew high tech notables and featured commemorative posters and laminates, and an eclectic mix of music.



The United Democratic Campaign Party affair hosted by union bosses Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins and Bob Brownstein, pictured behind the controls, was a much humbler affair, and included many latecomers to the Obama juggernaut like Hillary Clinton supporter and former vice mayor Cindy Chavez . The labor leaders wouldn’t smile for the cameras, and evicted a newspaper photographer doing a feature on the get-out-the-vote effort from the South Bay Labor Council’s “Labor Temple” earlier in the day.

Spontaneous celebrations greeted news of Obama’s victory in places like the sidewalk in front of a newly-opened Popeye’s chicken franchise on Santa Clara Street in Downtown San Jose.

Retired principal and political newcomer Joseph Di Salvo scored an upset over incumbent and Mercury News endorsee Gary Rummelhoff and 14-year San Jose Unified trustee Carol Myers to be elected to the Santa Clara County Board of Education.  Di Salvo invited friends over to his Willow Glen home to celebrate, watch Obama’s victory speech and munch on thin-crust pizza fired in his backyard.

Despite enthusiastic backing from supporters like volunteer coordinator Ken Wong, pictured here, former Sunnvale mayor Otto Lee could not overtake San Jose Vice Mayor Dave Cortese in the Santa Clara County District 3 Supervisor race. Unlike the Shirakawa-Hobbs scrap, which was capped by a flurry of nasty late mailings, the Cortese-Lee matchup was a polo match. “My race is kind of kind of boring compared to theirs.” Lee admitted.



George Shirakawa Jr., pictured here on election night, defeated Richard Hobbs to win a seat as District 2 Santa Clara Valley Supervisor. At 11pm, he thanked supporters at the 4th Street Bowl, but stopped short of claiming victory. After shedding his tie and jacket, he expressed confidence in chats with friends. “He’s not going to beat me,” Shirakawa said. He was right, and took the election by almost 10 points.



California Transportation Commissioner Carl Guardino (left) awaits Measure B election results at a gathering at his home in Los Gatos with San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed.

Photographs copyright 2008 Metro Newspapers and Virtual Valley Inc.