As a fellow minority woman who has served in elected office for nearly a decade — including as mayor of a prominent city today— I found the recent portrayal of the assessor’s race as “a contest between two minority women” to be strikingly off the mark. This framing trivializes the issues at stake and overlooks the candidate who has defined the debate and captured voters’ confidence: Rishi Kumar.
Frequently in politics, the candidate with the strongest name recognition statistically has the best chance of winning. Large-scale media visibility often drives that momentum — and Rishi is clearly poised. His media presence have vastly outweighed those of his opponents combined.
The assessor’s race is not about who holds which realtor license or certification. Larry Stone wasn’t certified when elected in 1992, and the next assessor will also have a year to earn certification just like he did. This race is about leadership, accountability and the courage to challenge the status quo. In this respect, Rishi stands apart as a reform candidate who calls out inefficiency and fights to return taxpayer dollars to the people.
Rishi’s message of fiscal reform and accountability has resonated. As chair of the No on Measure A campaign, he has been a visible and consistent voices in county politics — appearing in nearly 25 television and newspaper stories to explain why unchecked spending and mismanagement cannot be solved by another tax increase, echoing the minds of voters who are weary of waste and inflation.
While other candidates speak broadly about modernizing an outdated office, Rishi is the only one with hands-on experience applying automation to reduce inefficiencies, resolve stuck property appeals and modernize manual appraisals. Doing this requires proven executive experience — not on the job training with just a year of experience, as a couple of candidates have claimed.
Unlike opponents who emphasize tenure in government and a realtor license, Rishi brings something rarer in local politics — executive leadership. A chief financial officer and software C-suite executive, he has managed large teams, overseen complex budgets, cut costs and led modernization efforts in both the private and public sectors. As a mechanical engineer by training and the author of a book on artificial intelligence, he brings the vision and experience needed to modernize the Santa Clara County Assessor’s Office to deliver accurate assessments efficiently that fund our schools and essential services.
At the Cupertino candidate forum, Rishi pledged to trim $10 million from the department’s budget within five years. One of his signature ideas is to automate property-value reassessments during market downturns, sending money back to homeowners when values decline — a direct, people-first innovation that reflects his practical, tech-driven mindset.
During his two terms on the Saratoga City Council, Rishi earned the highest vote count in the city’s 70-year history — a reflection of his independence and record of standing up for residents. He took on powerful corporations — from San Jose Water Company to PG&E — to fight rate hikes, demonstrating the persistence and integrity that taxpayers deserve from their assessor.
Experience matters — but the right kind of executive leadership matters more. Ultimately, this election is about who can bring fresh energy, innovation and effective management to the assessor’s office. Rishi Kumar has both the vision and the record to deliver measurable results for the people of Santa Clara County.
Liangfang “Liang” Chao, Ph.D. (Princeton University) is the mayor of Cupertino, now serving her seventh year on the Cupertino City Council and one of the signers of the official counterarguments to Measure A. She has endorsed Rishi Kumar in his run for Santa Clara County assessor.
