BY STEPHANIE LAM
Daily Post Correspondent
Santa Clara County voters have until Tuesday, Dec. 30, to cast their ballots to determine the next county assessor, the result of a $13 million runoff election between Neysa Fligor and Rishi Kumar.
Both campaigns have doubled down on fundraising, with Fligor’s campaign raising $420,000 and Kumar securing around $35,000, according to campaign finance filings from Nov. 16 to Dec. 13. Fligor is backed by well-known county leaders and groups, including Board Supervisor Susan Ellenberg ($1,998); Assemblyman Patrick Ahrens ($999) and LGBTQ nonprofit BAY-MEC ($1,000).
Kumar is mostly supported by individual residents, most of whom are from Saratoga, Los Altos and San Jose. Some work at software companies like Cisco or technological services, and contribute an average of $1,000 each.
Los Altos Vice Mayor Fligor led with 38% of the Nov. 4 vote compared to former Saratoga Councilman Kumar’s 24%. Since Fligor did not surpass the 50% vote threshold needed to win, a run-off election is needed.
The winner will replace former assessor Larry Stone, who retired in July after serving 30 years.
Fligor, who is the assistant assessor, centered her campaign around her credentials. A lawyer, Fligor worked as legal counsel to the assessor in the mid-2000s. She rejoined the office as a special assistant last year, and after Stone’s retirement, assumed the role of assistant assessor. Stone has endorsed Fligor to be his replacement.
Fligor had mentioned one of her top priorities would be replacing the assessor’s office’s decades-old computer system, a project she leads in her current role.
The office announced this week an upgrade to its online programs to help property owners efficiently file their information. These include an improved electronic filing platform for Business Personal Property Statements, a program to support commercial property valuation and a new proprietary process that streamlines commercial evaluations, and a tool allowing private property owners in contract with local government to file state-mandated information digitally.
Kumar, meanwhile, is promising to cut the department’s budget and make property tax reforms. Kumar touted a proposal to exempt residents 60 and older from paying taxes on assessed properties, a move that can only be done at the state level. Kumar later said he would advocate for a statewide ballot measure to address it.
The assessor is responsible for appraising and assessing more than 500,000 properties across the county, which produces a $700 billion assessment roll that generates $8 billion in yearly property tax revenue.
The office manages more than 16,000 active appeals and has 251 employees.
In-person voting starts
Nineteen out of the 38 centers across the county are open before the Dec. 30 election. The remaining centers will open Dec. 27 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for selected locations.
Residents are also able to vote on Christmas Day, and all locations will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day.
Palo Alto has one early voting location, Ventura Community Center on 3990 Ventura Court. Two other centers, Palo Alto Buddhist Temple on 2751 Louis Road and Mitchell Park Community Center on 3700 Middlefield Road will open on Dec. 27, according to the Registrar of Voters.
Voters can still cast their ballot by mail or drop their mail-in ballot at a vote center or at the county’s official drop boxes. The boxes are open all day and on Election Day until 8 p.m. Residents who missed the Dec. 15 voter registration deadline can cast a provisional ballot to register and vote at the same time.