Los Gatos Weekly-Times Monte Sereno Councilmember Jack Lucas (center, with glass) and Assemblyman Jim Cunneen (right, rear) check the Web for election results at a party at the Toll House Hotel. Photograph by George Sakkestad Nesbet, Jackson and Lucas win seats on MS council Term limits measure sails to big victory By Jeff Kearns In a very tight race, Monte Sereno voters decided to keep incumbents Suzanne Jackson and 12-year councilmember Jack Lucas, and brought 29-year-old trademark attorney Barbara Nesbet onto the council as well. How big a role Councilmen Joel Gambord and Gordon Knight played in the race is hard to say. But voters clearly favored the three candidates they did not endorse. In the last week of the campaign, the two councilmen, who have been open about looking for a third vote on the council, sent out a flier endorsing Erin Garner, Rosemary Scher and Tom Williams. Measure J, the term-limits proposal pushed by Gambord and Knight earlier this year and put to a vote by the council, passed by an overwhelming margin of 68 percent--825 yes votes, 389 no votes. Nesbet was the top vote-getter, with 669 votes, or 18.5 percent. Nesbet, who takes the seat vacated by Dorothea Bamford, was followed by Jackson with 649 votes, or 18 percent. Jackson was trailed very closely by Lucas, who earned 634 votes, or 17.6 percent. Scher came in with 527 votes, or 14.6 percent; Williams with 505, or 14 percent; and Garner at 481, or 13.3 percent. Jim Rubnitz, who dropped out of the race after his name was added to the ballot, still received 145 votes, or 4 percent. Lucas and Jackson, attending an election-night victory party for Rep. Tom Campbell and Assemblyman Jim Cunneen at the Toll House Hotel, both said they were excited to win but were dismayed at the negative climate of the campaign. On election day, Jackson said, all but two of her signs were torn down. "I'm not saying anything about that," she fumed. "But this campaign was so negative ... I've never seen anything like this in Monte Sereno. It was a vendetta campaign." Jackson, 56, and Lucas, 67, both said they were shocked by the flier sent out to Monte Sereno voters by Gambord and Knight just days before the election. The flier not only endorsed Williams, Scher and Garner, it blasted Lucas and Jackson. Along with Nesbet, they sent out their own flier, which didn't say anything about Gambord, Knight or the other candidates. Instead, it touted their efforts for a "reasonable, effective and responsive government in Monte Sereno." The costs of the flier were covered by Jackson's campaign. Lucas said the '98 race was one of the most negative campaigns Monte Sereno has ever seen, but he saw an ironic silver lining: "I think that hit piece that came out against Suzanne and me did more to help me than some of my own fliers." He added: "I want to bring the council back into a cohesive unit. We might not always be a 5-0 vote, but we can still get together and work for the good of Monte Sereno." Nesbet said she was overjoyed at winning her first election. "I'm incredibly excited. It certainly sends a message to people who desire to use hit pieces as a way to gain political power--it doesn't work," she said. "An open, fair government that's for the community as a whole instead of granting individual favors through things like 'wiggle room,' " she added, taking aim at one of Gambord's pushes. Scher, 36, said she was appalled by the divisiveness of the political process in the city. "This whole election has been a real eye-opener for me," she said. "One side wants to instill fear in the other side, one side has to be evil and one side has to be the do-gooders, but both sides are trying to work toward the same thing in roundabout ways." Scher said that her main mission as a candidate was to look at all issues objectively, not to take sides. "I hope the current division in our community will lead to lively debates that will strengthen our community, not further divide it," she said. Scher said she wasn't sure about her future in Monte Sereno politics, and that she wasn't sure about making another run in 2000. Williams, 49, a high-tech CEO, said he wasn't sure if he would be running again or getting involved with other aspects of city government. "Basically, all the candidates put down their agenda, the people have spoken and mandated the agenda," he said about the election results. "Now, it's the duty of the council to follow through on those platforms that the voters have signed up for." Garner, a 39-year-old environmental engineer, could not be reached for comment. [ Back to Contents Page | Los Gatos Weekly-Times Home Page | Archives ] This article appeared in the Los Gatos Weekly-Times, November 4, 1998. ©1998 Metro Publishing, Inc. All rights reserved.