Town of Los Altos Hills Town Council Councilmember Linda Swan

The top vote-getter in the 2020 town council election, Linda Swan has a long history in Los Altos. A 32-year resident when she threw her hat in the rain, Swan is one of the founders of Bullis Charter School, an associate member of the town’s History Committee and a past president of the Los Altos Hills Historical Society.

Swan explains that when three seats were opening up on the council in 2020, a group of town residents got together to discuss what traits they wanted to see in the candidates. “They asked me if I would join and run as a team with Jay Sutaria and Stan Mok. And so I decided I really like both of those people, and I agree with their basic tenets and decided to join them,” Swan told Los Altos Online. She believes that her educational background will also be a strength during her tenure. “I think my engineering studies contributed to my analytical abilities and my MBA added a business-orientation piece.”

First elected: Nov. 3, 2020

Day job: Project manager

Alma maters: Santa Clara University (MBA, emphasis on marketing); UC Berkeley (master’s degree, mechanical engineering); Arizona State University (bachelor’s degree, mechanical engineering

Notable quote: “I think transparency and honesty are important, as are fiscal responsibility, and with the changes in the work environment with COVID, I think we need to look at the plans for town hall expansion to see if it’s still prudent. The total projected cost of their expense is almost $3 million and right now, it’s looking like a poor investment when we don’t know how many people will be returning to town hall.” —Linda Swan, Los Altos Online