The Sunnyvale City Council has voted unanimously to declare the Council seat vacated by Mason Fong vacant and fill the vacancy by appointment versus election. The Council also approved the public application and appointment process.
Interested candidates must submit an application and Statement of Economic Interests (FPPC Form 700) by Thursday, Jan. 20, 2022, at 4 p.m. To be eligible for the appointment, candidates must be a registered voter in Sunnyvale for at least 30 days and be aged 18 or older when applying.
After confirming the candidates’ eligibility, the City will publish their applications on the City’s website.
The Council is scheduled to interview eligible candidates to fill Fong’s seat at public meetings on Monday, Jan. 31 and Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2022.
After interviewing eligible candidates, the Council is scheduled to make the appointment on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022. The appointed council member will serve until the Jan. 3, 2023, Council meeting.
The Council’s decisions avoid having to hold a costly special election to fill the vacancy before the general election in November 2022. Available election dates had significantly different costs, ranging from approximately $230,000 to $3 million.
The City is changing to a district-based election system and Seat 3 is one of the three remaining at-large seats. At-large Seats 1, 3 and 5 will change to district-based seats in the Nov. 8, 2022, general election.
At-large Council Seat 3 is vacant due to former Councilmember Mason Fong’s resignation, effective Nov. 14, 2021.
Fong resigned to take a job with Governor Gavin Newsom. As of November, he joined Gov. Newsom’s office as Deputy Director of External Affairs.
Fong was elected to the Sunnyvale City Council in November of 2018 at the age of 27. At the time, he was the youngest member of the City Council ever elected and only the third Asian American elected to the Council in the City’s history.