Prior to being elected as Mayor in November 2014, Mr. Liccardo served as councilmember for District 3 from 2007-2014, where he focused on improving public safety, revitalizing the downtown, expanding affordable housing, and making San José an environmental leader.
He served in several regional leadership roles during his tenure as a councilmember, including as President of the Santa Clara County Cities Association, Chair of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, and on the executive boards of the Association of Bay Area Governments and Association and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. He is a senior fellow of the American Leadership Forum, and of the Aspen Institute’s Rodel Fellowship.
Prior to winning election to City Council, Sam served in the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office as a prosecutor of sexual assault and child exploitation crimes and as a federal prosecutor. His work in the community includes teaching government and political science at San José State University, co-founding an innovative program to mentor children, serving on the boards of several affordable housing organizations, and advocating for a successful countywide transit ballot measure in 2000 that is helping to bring BART to San José.
Mr. Liccardo grew up in Saratoga, California. He graduated from Bellarmine College Prep, and earned his B.S., magna cum laude, from Georgetown University in 1991 and his M.S. in Public Policy and J.D. from Harvard University in 1996.
San Jose
