# San Jose City Council, District 7 Compare records and positions simply between Van Le or Bien Doan for San Jose City Council, District 7 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on San Jose's 10-member City Council. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. - Jurisdiction: City of San Jose - Election: November 3, 2026 California general election - Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements. - Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/san-jose-council-7 - Full ballot: this page covers one race. Every contest on a voter's own ballot, by address, with the same breakdown for each: https://voteorelse.com/ - Sources last retrieved: October 6, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 92 out of 100 (Very strong), across 5 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Van Le** - **Bien Doan** — Incumbent A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Incumbent Bien Doan faces Van Le in the District 7 runoff: Doan took 47.8% of the June vote — just short of the majority that would have ended the race — and Le 22.4% (per San Jose Spotlight's report on the certified count). The winner holds one of ten district seats on the San Jose City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside a citywide-elected mayor. The term is four years. Both candidates are prominent in the district's Vietnamese community (per the Spotlight), so the contest turns on record and role rather than identity: a sitting councilmember running on public safety against a school-district trustee making her fourth run at the seat. Doan needs only a sliver beyond his June share; Le needs nearly everyone who voted against him. ## Bien Doan The sitting councilmember, prominent in San Jose's Vietnamese community, with an emphasis on public-safety improvements (per the Spotlight). His 47.8% in June led the field. **Strengths:** Incumbency and a June share within a few points of winning outright (per the Spotlight). **Trade-offs:** A majority of June voters still chose someone else; runoffs consolidate opposition as often as they ratify leaders. **Keep in mind:** Public safety is his stated center of gravity — evaluate what changed in the district on his watch, not the emphasis alone. ## Van Le An East Side Union High School District trustee and a three-time previous candidate for this seat (per the Spotlight). She took 22.4% in June. In her Vote411 questionnaire she describes more than 40 years of public service, including work for the City of San José and its Redevelopment Agency, current service as president of the school board, and over 25 years as a small business owner. She also describes herself as an immigrant and long-time resident. Her three stated priorities are safe neighborhoods, lasting solutions to homelessness, and support for working families and small businesses. On safety she names faster emergency response, action on illegal dumping and blight, and careful use of public-safety resources. On homelessness she wants closer work with the County, a clear account of where the money goes, and permanent housing over temporary fixes. For families and small businesses she names less red tape. **Strengths:** Elected experience on a major school board and persistence in her fourth campaign for the seat (per the Spotlight); by her own account, 40 years of public service. **Trade-offs:** Three prior losses for this office, and a June share less than half the incumbent's. **Keep in mind:** Repeat candidacies read two ways — commitment to the district, or a ceiling the district has already set. Her service record is her own account in a candidate questionnaire. ## Sources 1. [Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters — Official results certified, June 2, 2026 primary (certified June 30, 2026)](https://vote.santaclaracounty.gov/official-results-certified-june-2-2026-statewide-direct-primary-election) 2. [Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters — Official Final Election Results, June 2, 2026 primary](https://results.enr.clarityelections.com/CA/Santa_Clara/126487/web.345435/) 3. [San Jose Spotlight — Six council candidates advance to November (July 2, 2026)](https://sanjosespotlight.com/six-san-jose-council-candidates-advance-to-november/) 4. [City of San Jose — eDisclosure, the City Clerk's own electronic campaign-finance filing system (distinct from the state's NetFile network): each candidate's most recent 2026 semi-annual FPPC Form 460 summary (period 06/01 or 06/02/2026-06/30/2026, filed late July/early August 2026), read directly off the rendered filing pages for contributions to date, expenditures, ending cash on hand, and outstanding debt](https://efile.sanjoseca.gov/public/search/campaign) 5. [League of Women Voters -- Vote411 voter guide, 'San José City Council, District 7' race (statewide All Races list): each candidate's self-submitted ballot designation and campaign contacts, plus answers to the League's two questions -- top three priorities and qualifying background. Answers on file from Le. Capture in data/nov-2026/sources/vote411/san-jose-council-7.json.](https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote) ## The rest of the ballot San Jose City Council, District 7 is one contest among the many a California voter decides on November 3, 2026 — Congress, the Legislature, county, city, and school board races differ by address. Vote or Else builds the full list for any California address and breaks down each contest the way this page does, with no account and without storing the address: https://voteorelse.com/ ## How to cite this page Vote or Else, "San Jose City Council, District 7 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/san-jose-council-7 (sources last retrieved October 6, 2026). Link the canonical page above rather than this Markdown file. Coverage is updated as the race develops, so quote it with its retrieval date.