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Wednesday April 3, 1:30 p.m. — Supervisor Joe Simitian and Assemblyman Evan Low are now tied in the race secure a spot on the November ballot to replace Congresswoman Anna Eshoo.
It appears likely that both Low, 40, of Campbell, and Simitian, 71, of Palo Alto, will appear on the ballot with former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, 53, in November.
Low was up by one vote yesterday, but Simitian gained a vote today, according to unofficial election results. The results will be certified tomorrow at 5 p.m.
Yesterday was the last day for voters to correct the issues with their ballots and get their votes counted. This resulted in the additional vote for Simitian.
Wednesday, March 27, 7 p.m. — Supervisor Joe Simitian is leading Assemblyman Evan Low by five votes in the race to replace Congresswoman Anna Eshoo. Low picked up one vote yesterday, and Simitian picked up four.
Simitian, 71, of Palo Alto, now has 30,238 votes. Low, 40, of Campbell, has 30,233 votes.
The outcome depends on 1,172 ballots with signature issues on the envelope.
Voters have until Tuesday to correct the issues and get their votes counted. Election officials have until Thursday to send the results to the California Secretary of State.
Candidates can request a recount, but they would have to pay for each day of counting.
Whoever wins will face off against former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo in November. If Simitian and Low tie for second, they could both join Liccardo in the general election, according to state election code.
Tuesday, March 26, 9 p.m. — There is no conclusion to this cliffhanger just yet — Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian now leads Assembyman Evan Low by two votes.
Simitian has 30,234 votes and Low has 30,232 votes.
The outcome depends on 1,225 ballots with signature issues on the envelope.
Voters have until Tuesday to correct the issues.
Whoever wins will face off against former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo in November.
Monday, March 25, 8 p.m. — In a cliffhanger of a race, Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian leads Assemblyman Evan Low by one vote, though hundreds of ballots still must be counted.
The winner’s name will appear on the November ballot in the race for Congress. They will oppose former San Jose mayor Sam Liccardo, who got the most vote in the March 5 primary.
As of this evening, Simitian had 30,229 votes to Low’s 30,228.
About 1,300 ballots have been declared “challenged” due to signature problems and haven’t been counted. Voters with “challenged” ballots have until April 2 to remedy their ballots so that they can be counted.
The congressional district includes northern Santa Clara County and southern San Mateo County. Simitian won in San Mateo County while Low won in Santa Clara County.
In Santa Clara County, Low received 25,067 votes to 23,758 for Simitian. In San Mateo County, Simitian won with 6,471 votes to 5,161 to Low.
March 22, 9 p.m. — Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian is now ahead by four votes. Simitian, 71, of Palo Alto, has 30,222 votes. Evan Low, 40, of Campbell, has 30,118 votes.
March 21, 6 p.m. — Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian is now ahead of Assembyman Evan Low by one vote in the seesaw race for second place in the 16th District Congressional Primary.
Low has 30,216 votes, and Simitian has 30,217 votes.
The outcome hinges on 1,629 ballots with signature issues, which can be corrected until April 2.
March 20, 9 p.m. — Assemblyman Evan Low gained one more vote yesterday, and is now leading Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian by three votes to determine who will run against former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo for Rep. Anna Eshoo’s seat.
Simitian has 30,213 votes to Low’s 30,216.
The outcome hinges on 1,670 ballots with signature issues in Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. Election workers are trying to get voters to fix their signatures.
County election offices must complete their final counts by April 4.
March 19, 9 p.m. — Just two votes separate Assemblyman Evan Low and Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian in the 16th District Congressional Primary, and it may come down to contested ballots to decide the winner.
Low is ahead of Simitian — 30,211 votes to 30,209.
Santa Clara County has 1,100 “challenged” ballots, and San Mateo County has 680.
Ballots are challenged when their envelope is missing a signature, when the signature doesn’t match the one on file, or when a first-time voter hasn’t provided ID, Chief Elections Officer Mark Church said.
Voters can fix their ballots until April 2 at 5 p.m.
If they miss the deadline, then their ballot won’t get counted. It stays unopened and stored for 22 months before it’s shredded, Church said.
March 18, 9 p.m. — Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian holds a 12-vote lead over Assemblyman Evan Low in the 16th District Congressional Primary, but the outcome isn’t final.
The top two vote-getters will go on to the November general election ballot. Former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo is the solid first-place winner with 38,421 votes.
But for the Nov. 2 slot, there’s been a back-and-forth battle between Simitian and Low. As of Monday, Simitian had 30,204 votes and Low had 30,192 — a difference of 12.
Nearly all of the ballots have been counted by Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. But each county has a number of “challenged ballots” that haven’t been tallied because they may have signature problems or other reasons why one side or the other doesn’t want them counted.
March 15, 7 p.m. — Santa Clara County Supervisor Joe Simitian has pulled ahead of Assemblyman Evan Low for a spot on the November ballot to replace Congresswoman Anna Eshoo.
On Election Night, former San Jose mayor Sam Liccardo was in first place and Simitian in second. In the primary, the top two vote-getters move on to the November ballot.
As election workers continued to count ballots, Assemblyman Evan Low moved up from third to second on Thursday, pushing Simitian out of the November runoff.
But tonight (March 15), Simitian has regained the lead with 30,163 votes. Low had 30,119. That’s a difference of 44 votes and there are still ballots to be counted in both Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Here’s a link to the California Secretary of State’s website, which provides totals that include both counties: https://pp.electionresults.sos.ca.gov/returns/us-rep/district/16
March 14, 5 p.m. — Assemblyman Evan Low has surpassed Supervisor Joe Simitian in the race to replace Congresswoman Anna Eshoo.
Low, 40, of Campbell, has a 63-vote lead over Simitian, 71, of Palo Alto.
An estimated 23,550 ballots still need to be counted, mostly in San Mateo County where Simitian is ahead.
The winner will face off in November against former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo, sitting comfortably in first.
Simitian said yesterday that he remains optimistic.
“There are always ups and downs in a count,” he said.
Simitian said he doesn’t regret declaring victory at the Palo Alto Creamery on election night, when he had a lead of more than two percentage points.
“Now the race has taken a different turn. These things happen,” said Simitian, who’s been fundraising for the seat since 2009. Both candidates have talked about the race as a reminder that every vote matters.
“While there are still votes left to be counted, I am encouraged by the latest results that have put our campaign in the lead,” Low said on social media.
County elections officials must complete final official results by April 4, and the Secretary of State will certify results on April 12.
Evan Low’s commercials were so cringey and the message (anti-Trump) didn’t convince me to vote for him. Hopefully, Liccardo wins because Simitian is too far left.
PG&E paid for Low’s commercials. I guess if you can buy off legislators, you can get away with big rate increases. Liccardo was sponsored by Stanford, which wants to punish Simitian even though he would be the community’s best representative in congress.
The PGE candidate seems like a corporate sell-out. Hopefully Simitian remains in the race.
Glad to hear it. Evan Low and Mark Berman are up to their ears in PGE donations and Pac spending. At some point we’ve got to say enough.G
As if it makes any difference. It’s like choosing between AOC and Ilhan Omar. Simitian would have voted with Low on over 99% of the state assembly bills, including the most anti-free speech bill ever, AB2098. Their platforms are virtually identical.
Alvin, are you out of the hospital again? I hope you’re taking your meds. You don’t want to be placed in the hospital again on a 5150 hold.
I wonder what the future holds for visionary and climate investor Joby Bernstein. He was so close to winning — just 20,000 votes away.
Rishi Kumar has got to be asking himself why he keeps running, election after election. He didn’t even get the support of his former Saratoga city council colleagues?
It’s interesting that the Palo Alto Daily Post will report this development, but San Jose Spotlight and the Mercury News are completely silent. Both SJ rags issue a story every single time Evan Low inches closer or takes a lead, but they don’t dare say a word when he falls behind. Makes it abundantly clear who they report to.
Also Alvin is right about AB2098. California doctors practice under a gag order written by Evan Low.
Somewhere, Peter Dixon’s father/donor is quietly disinheriting him.
Hey, Joe, where’s that pandemic after-action report you promised. It must be pretty bad if it’s been delayed this long. People want to hold you and your buddies accountable.
Go Joe! Evan Low and Mark Berman took so much money from PGE they’re a wholly owned subsidiary of them!
Go Joe indeed! So tired of DODO (Developer Owned Developer Operated) candidates like Berman and sell-outs like Low and his PG&E masters. Too bad most of the media never bother to disclose their corporate ties and support.
I don’t know what media you read but the Daily Post has been reporting all along that Low is backed by PG&E and Liccardo is getting his support from Stanford and anti-gun activist billionaire Michael Bloomberg. All you’ve got to do is pick up the Post.
Yes, and good for the Daily Post but Embarcadero Media (Palo Alto Online, Mountain View, MP etc.) hasn’t written word one about this, possibly because of its ties to Stanford which has a vested interest in pushing Liccardo since they’re still furious that Simitian didn’t give them carte blanche to expand.
Dave Price, being a gentleman, wouldn’t want to see his competition criticized and doesn’t allow links to outside stories that would prove my point.
If people are angry that Stanford is helping Liccardo, they should write the IRS and ask for a review of Stanford’s tax-exempt status. The law is crystal clear that 501(c)3s shouldn’t support political candidates. Send your complaint Mail to IRS EO Classification, Mail Code 4910DAL, 1100 Commerce St., Dallas, TX 75242-1198 Fax to 214-413-5415, or Email to eoclass @ irs.gov.
If Stanford wants to influence our elections, maybe they should start paying taxes like everybody else.