City of San Jose City Council Councilmember Sam Liccardo

Mayor Sam Liccardo took office in 2015, and was reelected in 2018 with 76 percent of the popular vote. In March 2016, Liccardo unveiled a Smart City Vision, with the goal of making San Jose the “most innovative city in America by 2020.” Liccardo grew up in Saratoga and graduated from Bellarmine College Preparatory in 1987. Prior to his election to public office in 2006 he served as a criminal prosecutor in the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office. Liccardo serves on various boards, including the Metropolitan Transportation Commission and the Valley Transit Authority (twice as chairperson), and is a co-chair for Joint Venture Silicon Valley. He is a senior fellow for the American Leadership Forum-Silicon Valley, and is a Rodel Fellow at the Aspen Institute.

First elected: November 2014

Twitter bio: Mayor of San José, America's coolest/10th largest city. Cycling geek. @SteveCarell’s secret twin. Better half: @kohl_garcia. He/Him. #SiliconValleyStrong

Alma maters: Harvard Law School (juris doctorate); Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government (master’s in public policy); Georgetown University (bachelor’s degree, government)

Other offices served: San Jose City Council (2007-2014)

Notable quote: “Innovators came to the Silicon Valley because we presented low barriers to entry—an egalitarian, open-source ethos that welcomed and celebrated immigrants, geeks and eccentrics. Increasingly, we’ve erected barriers—financial, regulatory and even cultural—to the new and the ambitious. There’s much we need to do to reduce those barriers, but here’s a simple place to start: Let’s stop blaming tech.” (Source: Medium.com)