It’s a rare alignment of San Jose’s political stars: Two influential organizations on opposite sides of San Jose’s labor-business political divide have endorsed the same candidate in the District 7 City Council race.
Incumbent Councilmember Bien Doan has won support from both the Silicon Valley Biz PAC and South Bay Labor Council. Doan — a longtime union member and former fire captain who has been a consistent vote for business friendly policies — is battling to hold onto his seat for a second term. The labor council has also endorsed two of his rivals in the race, City Hall staffer Hanh-Giao Nguyen and union member Rafael Garcia.
Doan’s campaign has trumpeted the twin endorsements as he makes the case to voters that he will lead as a solution-oriented consensus builder.
“These endorsements mean a great deal to me because they reflect how I lead and how I treat people,” Doan told San José Spotlight. “When everyone comes together, we win.”
San Jose’s business and labor coalitions — rough groupings of ideologically aligned candidates and organizations — have clashed in recent years over some of the city’s most pressing policy decisions, including how to shelter homeless people, how to fund affordable housing and when to raise taxes.
While candidates for city council occasionally enjoy some backing from both labor and business, an outright dual endorsement is exceedingly rare.
“If I had to throw a percentage out there, it would be maybe 1% of the time,” Victor Gomez, who heads the Silicon Valley Biz PAC, told San José Spotlight.
Even for Gomez — whose group also endorsed Doan during his successful 2022 run to unseat then incumbent Maya Esparza — news of the labor council’s endorsement raised some question marks.
“Of course, when you see this endorsement from labor, you think, ‘What enticed them to make that decision?’” Gomez said.
Ultimately, Gomez said his group remains impressed with Doan’s track record, including his longstanding skepticism of tax hikes.
“(Doan) understands it from our perspective,” Gomez said. “We’re happy to see him advocate for the taxpayers of the city.”
The labor council announced its three-way endorsement of District 7 candidates in a Facebook post Monday.
“All three District 7 candidates demonstrate strong commitments to workers’ rights, fair wages, and community-driven labor policies,” the group wrote.
The labor council didn’t endorse Doan in 2022. But for this year’s endorsement, Executive Officer Jean Cohen cited Doan’s support for “worker-focused measures,” such as Med 30, a drug oversight program in the city’s fire department, wage theft protections and his work supporting “good faith” contract negotiations with city workers.
“Our endorsement reflects Councilmember Doan’s record in office,” Cohen told San José Spotlight.
Doan highlighted his own union credentials, noting he was a member of San Jose Firefighters Local 230 over his 27-year career as a firefighter.
“Most of my life, I’ve been a union member,” he said. “Because of that experience, I understand why worker protections matter.”
In addition to Nguyen and Garcia, Doan is also facing a challenge from East Side Union High School District Trustee Van Le.
According to the most recently released campaign finance records, Le is leading in donations so far with a $65,217 fundraising haul, including $19,800 in loans she made to herself. She said she has received endorsements from several local education leaders, including fellow East Side Union High School District Trustee J. Manuel Herrera.
Doan has raised $23,746. Nguyen has raised $6,950.
Garcia, who has not yet filed paperwork for his run, could not immediately be reached for comment.
Le and Nguyen are leading figures in San Jose’s Vietnamese community, who have publicly clashed with Doan.
“I am running to serve the residents of District 7, who need real action and real solutions to the day-to-day issues impacting their lives right now,” Nguyen told San José Spotlight.
Le reiterated her campaign’s top priorities — improving neighborhood safety, expanding housing options and supporting families.
“Endorsements reflect the priorities of organizations, not the lived experience of District 7 residents,” Le told San José Spotlight. “Voters deserve leadership that is accountable to them first, not to any political bloc.”
Contact Keith Menconi at [email protected] or @KeithMenconi on X.