Patrick Kwok
Age: 64
Occupation: Engineer

"I came to America 40 years ago and found it really is the land of opportunity," Cupertino Mayor Patrick Kwok said. "I learned if you work hard you can achieve your goals."

Kwok has achieved many of his goals since arriving as an immigrant in San Francisco's Chinatown, and he sees his political service as a logical next step.

"You can't always take; you have to contribute, too," he said.

For this reason, Kwok is running as an incumbent for the city council and has been actively involved in Cupertino's civic life.

"I have served on the planning commission for three years, which provided land use experience, and have four years on the city council and have been a vice-mayor," Kwok said. "None of the other candidates have that kind of experience."

If elected, Kwok plans to draw on that background to help guide Cupertino. In particular, he would make hiring an economic development manager a top priority as means of attracting and retaining businesses. Kwok also values providing businesses with a solid foundation.

"We have to give the businesses a base," he said, referring to the approval of movie theaters at Vallco Fashion Park. "That base can then provide an engine for economic development."

Kwok also advocates looking at projects on a case-by-case basis. In that regard, he said he does not support the growth measures proposed by the Concerned Citizens of Cupertino because they are too restrictive.

"One of the problems is that we wouldn't attract the first-class hotels; we have to have the flexibility to do that," he said.

Even so, he says he has learned from experience on the city council.

"The measures do have some merit, and have sent a message to elected officials that voters will not tolerate sprawl and massive buildings," he said. "None of the council's decisions are perfect and we have to be good at consensus building."

In addition to business, Kwok also says he would work closely with schools and support preserving open space and adding more parks in Cupertino.

His environmental advocacy is an outgrowth of his professional career as an engineer with the city of San Jose's environmental services department.

Raised in Hong Kong by his ship steward father, Kwok came to the United States for the chance to go to college. Since, he has earned two master's degrees, one in public administration from California State University East Bay and one in civil engineering from San José State University, while also raising six children of his own—all of whom he is proud to say have college degrees.

He now sees the city council as one more way to give back.

"The bottom line is my passion to serve the community better and do the work promised," he said.

Dolly Sandoval
Age: 44
Occupation: Teacher

Dolly Sandoval points to her parents' strong work ethic and values as setting a tone for her life.

"My parents taught me that if you do, good things will happen to you," she said. "And I believe that."

Raised in Sunnyvale by her father, who was a laborer and immigrant from Mexico, and her Hawaiian-Portuguese mother, who worked on an assembly line, Sandoval became the first in her family to earn a college degree.

After graduating from Fremont High School, she worked for two years until a supervisor suggested she take classes at De Anza College. Since then, education and leadership have been at the center of her life.

While attending De Anza, Sandoval served as the student representative on the board of trustees. She later earned an undergraduate degree in mathematics and a teaching certificate from the University of California-Santa Cruz.

She has been a teacher at Los Gatos High School for 17 years and along the way dedicated her free time to political involvement. She first followed up on her student service by being elected to the board of the Foothill-De Anza Community College district—a position she held for 10 years.

She then ran for city council, getting elected in 2001. "It's knowing I can have an impact," she said of her reason to run again for city council.

Sandoval cited Apple Computers' involvement in recycling the community's computers as one such achievement in the past.

If elected, Sandoval would advocate for an economic development officer, the environment and the schools.

"We are on the losing end of revenue," she said of Cupertino's declining sales taxes, "and we need to compete with other cities [who have economic development managers]."

She would also back looking at development projects on an individual basis.

"We need to evaluate the best use of the building," she said citing a recent example where a church leased an obsolete building and converted it into a swimming pool.

"The council needs to look at the surrounding neighborhood and see if it makes sense in that spot," she said.

Sandoval said she opposed the growth measures on the November ballot, especially because they could have unintended consequences and leave the city with costly bills.

"We have competing needs," she said.

For Sandoval, those needs include extending library hours, adding more school resource officers, creating more affordable housing for teachers and addressing environmental issues such as the future of the 1,000-foot quarry at the Hanson-Permanente cement plant.

"The council is going to need the community's help in addressing these issues," she said. "I am all about rolling up sleeves to do the work and bringing people together."