East Palo Alto Election Results

The voters spoke! East Palo Alto election night was successful for all the candidates and measures we were supporting. Measure C, the one I was specifically working on passed! It was a tough fight since a competing measure had to be defeated. But in the end, through the hard work of the EPA Fellowship of Faith and Peninsula Interfaith Action (PIA) we were successful. A local newspaper article stated:

"Mayor Ruben Abrica was celebrating his re-election to the City Council along with the passage of Measure C, a crime prevention initiative.

"The results show a willingness by the community to sustain what we're doing to reduce crime," he said Wednesday.

Measure C needed two-thirds approval to pass, and squeaked by with 68 percent of the vote. The measure will create a parcel tax for 10 years that will split funds between the Police Department and community groups.

The city's measure was in direct competition with Measure D, a similar initiative that would have granted all of the funds to the Police Department.

Abrica questioned the motive behind Measure D, since it was being touted by the same organizers of Measure E.

The measure lost after receiving only about 20 percent of the vote.

"The community saw through those two measures," Abrica said.

The funding Measure C will provide community groups is the missing link to fighting youth crime in the city, said Dr. Faye McNair-Knox, director of One East Palo Alto, a local nonprofit.

Some projects like after-school programs have had funding problems, McNair-Knox said. Measure C will hopefully solve some of those issues, she said.

"We think this is a huge step forward for the community," McNair-Knox said.

Read the entire story here.

In the other races, Ruben Abrica and David Woods were both reelected to the city council. Larry Moody from Menlo Park Presbyterian was elected to the school board. All very good things for our efforts in the city.