Sam Liccardo
| Sam Liccardo | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| 65th Mayor of San Jose | |
|
Assumed office January 1, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Chuck Reed |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 16, 1970 Saratoga, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Jessica Garcia-Kohl |
| Alma mater |
Georgetown University Harvard University |
Samuel T. "Sam" Liccardo (born April 16, 1970) is an American politician from California, currently serving as Mayor of San Jose, California.[1] Before his election to the city council in 2006 he served as a criminal prosecutor in the District Attorney’s office. Liccardo was elected mayor in November 2014.
Biography
One of five children to Salvador and Laura Liccardo, Sam Liccardo grew up in Saratoga, California and graduated from Bellarmine College Prep.[2] In 1991, he graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University, and subsequently enrolled in graduate studies at Harvard University. In 1996, Sam graduated from Harvard Law School with honors, and also earned a master's degree in public policy from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, before returning to the Bay Area.
After working in a private law firm, Liccardo became a federal criminal prosecutor at the United States Attorney’s Office, and then handled dozens of felony trials in the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. There, he primarily prosecuted sexual assault and child exploitation crimes.
Licardo is married to Jessica Garcia-Kohl (above), a non-profit education consultant. They live east of Downtown in Northside, located near the neighborhood grocery store that his grandparents operated decades ago. His maternal ancestors were among the first Mexican settlers in the Bay Area, and his maternal grandmother emigrated from Ireland.
Career
Liccardo previously taught government and political science at San José State University and served on the boards of several affordable housing organizations.
Liccardo has also served 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 the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. He is a member of the American Leadership Forum, and of the Aspen Institute’s Rodel Fellowship.
He was twice elected to the San José City Council from the 3rd District, encompassing the city's downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods.
Mayoral tenure
Taking office at the age of 44, Liccardo became one of the youngest mayors in the city’s modern history. In the early months of his term, he worked to forge a tentative agreement for pension and retiree healthcare reform with public safety unions; launch a summer jobs program for hundreds of teens living in gang-impacted neighborhoods; expand innovative after-school programs for children from in low-income communities, announce new international flights to Beijing, secure an expanded presence of major tech companies in San Jose, and successfully conclude lengthy negotiations to keep the National Hockey League’s Sharks franchise in San Jose.
See also
References
- ↑ "City of San Jose". City of San Jose. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
- ↑ http://www.mercurynews.com/scott-herhold/ci_26622611/herhold-sam-liccardos-roots-go-back-beginning-california. Missing or empty
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External links
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