Even\u00a0before their arrival\u00a0to the city, the 49ers have sought to put their thumb on the scale of local politics by funneling millions of dollars towards city races<\/a> \u2013 astronomical sums for a city the size of Santa Clara. This year, the 49ers have continued those efforts, directing over $2.6 million to the mayoral race and one city council race, according to most recent campaign finance filings.<\/p>\n Amid the political fray, six candidates seek the mayor\u2019s seat in Santa Clara: Kathy Watanabe<\/a>, 67, a former city councilmember and planning commissioner; Gary Ferraris<\/a>, 59, a union leader and former city worker; Karen Hardy<\/a>, 65, a current city councilmember; David Kertes<\/a>, 56, with a background in marketing and sales; Kevin Park<\/a>, 56, a current city councilmember; and Mike Wiltberger<\/a>, a research scientist who did not respond to requests to be interviewed.<\/p>\n This year, the 49ers are spending\u00a0$1.8 million\u00a0in support of Ferraris and opposing Watanabe and Kertes.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t ask them for any of that, and I told them I was running whether they support me or not,\u201d said Ferraris, pointing out that as a union leader, he had opposed them on an issue involving prevailing wages. Even so, he maintained that his experience in labor negotiation meant he was willing to have an \u201copen mind\u201d and \u201cfocus on what we have in common\u201d even in cases where there was disagreement.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Kertes said that the 49ers \u201cdon\u2019t want anybody that\u2019s going to ask questions,\u201d and instead wanted to be \u201cthe fox guarding the henhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n Watanabe took those critiques further, voicing \u201cgrave concerns \u2026 about how the 49ers management wants to take control of the city.\u201d She also cast doubt on Ferraris\u2019s assertions of independence. \u201cHe will do their bidding, that\u2019s what happens when you take money from the 49ers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Current councilmember Park echoed the concerns about the 49ers\u2019 intervention, saying it had a chilling effect, discouraging some potential candidates from running for fear that they would face well-funded opposition from the 49ers. \u201cThis is a very bad sign for the city,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The 49ers framed their spending quite differently.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are proud to once again support a diverse slate of candidates running for city leadership \u2014 consensus builders who will tackle the affordability crisis, and manage the city\u2019s finances responsibly while investing in the city\u2019s future,\u201d wrote a spokesperson for the 49ers when asked why they are spending on the races.<\/p>\n Despite the candidates\u2019 concerns, they each acknowledged that\u00a0a productive relationship with the 49ers was essential to the city.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat I don\u2019t want to do is keep fighting and going back and forth on the agreement that\u2019s in place right now. That\u2019s what we have. We have a marriage right now. We need to make it work,\u201d said Kertes.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the city continues to grapple with hundreds of millions of unfunded infrastructure improvements, even after passing a $400 million dollar bond measure<\/a>\u00a0to help the city pay for improving failing infrastructure, from outdated fire stations to a beleaguered aquatic center<\/a>.<\/p>\n For Ferraris, the bond measure showed a failure of prior city leaders to adequately plan. \u201cThe fact that we had to go out and get a $400 million bond \u2026 is unacceptable,\u201d he said. He suggested setting up compounding savings for large infrastructure projects to help ensure that they could be maintained over time.<\/p>\n He did not outline specific plans to grow the city\u2019s revenue or name specific ways to cut costs, but suggested being \u201cbetter stewards of what we have.\u201d<\/p>\n Park argued that there is enough money in the city\u2019s budget to pay for its operations, but that the budget needs more scrutiny, noting that Santa Clara has a far larger general fund than similarly sized cities. \u201cWe have to do an assessment on how things are being run \u2026 You have to prioritize what is essential,\u201d said Park. Though he did not specify what might get cut, he said his approach distinguished him from his peers on the council. \u201cI\u2019m the person that\u2019s looking at cutting spending.\u201d<\/p>\n Watanabe, however, disagreed with that approach, saying \u201cI don\u2019t know that there\u2019s room to cut anything.\u201d Instead, she proposed reaching out to the business community and waiving fees for developers to encourage more investment in the city.<\/p>\n Hardy touted her role in negotiating for the city to make more money off of concerts held at Levi\u2019s Stadium. She recommended streamlining construction projects to make them more affordable for the city and \u201ctrying to put the brakes\u201d on increases in wages for firefighters and police officers.<\/p>\n Finally Kertes said he would push to increase the cap on business license taxes for large businesses, and use the money to help with programs for small businesses such as reducing fees. He also recommended making a rainy-day fund to help pay for infrastructure.<\/p>\n District 2<\/p>\n Two candidates face off in the race for District 2, which includes the city\u2019s civic center and borders San Jose to the East.<\/p>\n Kimberley Williams<\/a>, 48, is an administrator in higher education with a history of involvement in the local and state Parent Teacher Association and the school board.<\/p>\n She hopes to help boost production of low-income housing, especially by building near transit. \u201cWe\u2019re still really underproducing \u2026 affordable housing,\u201d she said. \u201cIf we can\u2019t provide the housing for our city workers, for our teachers, for our public safety workers. What does our city look like 10 years from now?\u201d<\/p>\n She added that she hopes to improve financial planning for infrastructure projects and boost civic engagement, in part by providing automated translation at city meetings.<\/p>\n Yvonne Inciarte<\/a>, 37, works in the office of Representative Ro Khanna and argues her background in government has prepared her to take on a role at city council.<\/p>\n Inciarte also noted that affordability \u2013 and particularly housing affordability \u2013 was a top priority, highlighting the need for student and teacher housing, and voiced concerns of community members displaced by the high prices.<\/p>\n She did not outline a plan for housing affordability, but rather she positioned herself as an\u00a0advocate for \u201ccommunity input\u201d in housing and other decisions.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to have input from everyone \u2026 so that we can make sound decisions,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The race also has garnered over $700,000 from the 49ers in support of Williams and in opposition to Inciarte.<\/p>\n Williams said the move was a surprise to her. \u201cI actually strongly believe that there is too much money in politics,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m not comfortable with that amount of money being spent to support me.\u201d<\/p>\n Even so, she said the current relationship with the 49ers needed to be on \u201cmore solid ground.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt means that we are able to hold them accountable, but that we don\u2019t just revert to conflict for conflict\u2019s sake,\u201d said Williams.<\/p>\n Inciarte said the 49ers\u2019 spending to \u201cmanipulate voters and push a corporate agenda with no end in sight\u201d should concern \u201cevery Santa Clara resident.\u201d<\/p>\n Of the 49er\u2019s, Inciarte added that she would be \u201chappy to have conversations with them \u2026 but we have to make sure that Santa Clarans are not being taken advantage of.\u201d<\/p>\n District 3<\/p>\n Two candidates are vying to represent District 3, which sits in a compact region towards the western edge of the city, bordering Sunnyvale.<\/p>\n Eric Crutchlow<\/a>, 66, works in cybersecurity and serves as chair of the city\u2019s planning commission.<\/p>\n \u201cI love Santa Clara, and I basically want to make sure that we\u2019re doing the best that we can for my neighbors,\u201d said Cruchlow.<\/p>\n In response to concerns around the city\u2019s struggle to maintain its infrastructure, he proposed creating a committee dedicated to planning how to maintain its facilities and fund that maintenance.\u00a0He added that he would advocate for meetings that are run more efficiently \u2013 noting the tendency of city council meetings to run into the late hours of the night. He also noted that he would push for data centers to be considered \u201cin the aggregate\u201d rather than individually, given that Santa Clara houses a disproportionate number of data centers<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Yvonne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/SJM-L-SANTACLARAD2-1.jpg\")
Yvonne Inciarte, left and Kimberley Williams are candidates for the Santa Clara City Council District 2. (Photos courtesy of candidates)\u00a0<\/p>\n![\"Candidates](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/SJM-L-SANTACLARAD3-10XX.jpg\")
Candidates for the City of Santa Clara council, District 3, from left, Eric Crutchlow and Kyle Madej in the November 2026 election. (Photos courtesy of the candidates)\u00a0<\/p>\n