Born at Alexian Brothers Hospital, Pamela has lived throughout San José and at her current home in the Vista Park neighborhood since 2006. She is a second-generation immigrant and Chicana whose growing family has established roots across San José and Santa Clara County.

Pamela has been a trailblazer in her family; she was the first to earn a Bachelor’s degree and empowers first-time voters in her family and community to activate their civic engagement. Pamela is inspired by San José’s strong sense of community, enriched by its diverse residents and resources.

With over a decade of experience in the field of education, Pamela’s career began as a preschool teacher—driven by her love for nurturing young minds. During this period, she experienced firsthand the struggles faced by many educators and families; the unlivable wages of $16 per hour made it challenging to make ends meet and find room for professional growth in the competitive environment of Silicon Valley. Combining her passion for creating a better world for children with her expertise in policy and community development, Pamela has found her path towards creating positive change in the lives of young ones while supporting the needs of families and all of our community members.

For more information, please review the Pamela Campos for City Council website.

Joe grew up in Salinas, where his parents and grandparents were farmworkers, and he would frequently join them in the fields to pick crops in the summers and after school. He came from a strong and supportive family, but one evening as a kid he got off on the wrong track – spending some time in juvenile hall for stealing a radio.

The love of his family, meeting his wife, and the support of his community got him straightened out quickly. That experience taught Joe a lesson he always remembered – people can turn their lives around with hard work, and by taking personal responsibility for their actions.

After working briefly for the United Farm Workers union, Joe went on to San José State, and then to a career in law enforcement, where he always worked to give everyone a second chance – but only if they would work to hold themselves accountable. He went on to serve three terms on the Santa Clara County Grand Jury fighting waste and fraud in government, as a commissioner on the Human Services Commission and on the San José Board of Fair Campaign and Political Practices Commission working to clean up politics and government.

For more information, please review the Joe Lopez for City Council website.

Domingo Candelas has lived in San José’s Council District 8 his whole life. Domingo’s parents immigrated here from Zacatecas Mexico and started a small HVAC business in 1989 that helped raise their family of seven in San José.

After completing his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, and later his Master’s in Public Administration from San José State University, he went on to work for California Senator Jim Beall from 2012 - 2019, where he developed and implemented policy objectives, strategies, and operating plans for the Senator’s office, including assisting in the passage of Senate Bill 1, the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, where billions of dollars are allocated annually to fix and repair roads and bridges across the state, including San José.

Domingo has been involved in various trail advocacy boards such as Save Our Trails and Friends of Five Wounds Trail as well as the Santa Clara County League of Conservation Voters. While serving as San Jose’s District 8 Councilmember, Domingo has been laser focused on the most pressing issues in our community: the desperate need for more affordable housing for working families, support for our homeless communities to transition them from the streets into shelter and services, and improved public safety.

For more information, please review the Domingo Candelas for City Council website.