After an unsuccessful bid for the state Assembly District 25 seat last year, longtime Santa Clara Unified School Board Member Jim Canova has decided to make another run for Sacramento –– this time for the open District 10 State Senate seat.
District 10, which is represented by Sen. Bob Wieckowski, encompasses parts of Alameda County, Santa Clara, San Jose, and Milpitas.
Canova, who announced his candidacy to The Beat on Friday, said it’s a dream of his to serve in the state legislature. And with Wieckowski terming out in 2022, Canova said now there’s an opportunity to make it happen.
Canova has served on the Santa Clara Unified School Board since 1992, where he’s known for bringing people together –– a skill he says will come in handy if he’s elected to the state legislature.
“We don’t listen to each other, and I think if you listen to someone long enough, you’re going to find something you agree on,” he said. “I think we need to be better listeners than talkers. There’s something wonderful and magical about getting people on the same page for a good purpose and then seeing that purpose through.”
Canova is running on the platform of a “New California Dream,” which he says was sparked by how the pandemic has changed the lives of millions of Californians.
“When I hear other politicians talk, they talk pre-pandemic,” he said. “They’re talking about prescriptions and solutions to a world that existed before the pandemic, and I think the pandemic has created a situation where we can reimagine our future in really profound ways.”
The school board member said he wants the state to provide children with more educational options, including hybrid learning and career technical programs. Canova has also been a longtime proponent of affordable housing and an advocate for mobile homeowners owning the land on which they live. He’s also a small business owner.
Canova’s official endorsers include former Santa Clara Unified Superintendent Paul Perotti, MetroEd Silicon Valley Career Technical Education Superintendent Alyssa Lynch, Campbell Union High School Board Member Linda Goytia, and former Milpitas City Council candidate Demetress Morris.
“Jim Canova is a man with integrity and passionate about causes,” Lynch said in a statement on Canova’s website. “He thinks globally, stands up for what is best for his local community and Silicon Valley with a vision of it being an affordable, safe place for children to grow up, work in, and live to maintain an attractive vibrant community.”
So far, five other candidates have filed paperwork for the 2022 Senate District 10 race, including Fremont Mayor Lily Mei and Hayward City Councilwoman Aisha Wahab.
