Lopez: The truth about candidates for Congressional District 16

The truth matters, and the ads you may see attacking Sam Liccardo, funded by Evan Low's campaigns and his corporate super PACs, are baseless – even ironic – lies.

These ads might lead you to believe that one of the candidates in the race has accepted tens of thousands of dollars from a waste company, California Waste Solutions, and its CEO David Duong, who is now under federal corruption investigation.

That's correct. But the candidate in question is not Sam Liccardo. It's his opponent, Evan Low, who has taken tens of thousands of dollars from both CWS and Duong over the last decade.

Liccardo never received money from CWS – or Duong – to support his two successful mayoral campaigns in 2014 and 2018, nor for his current congressional campaign. You can check the public records yourself.

Low, on the other hand, received $6,600 from Duong to finance his congressional campaign in late 2023. Although Low said he would repay that contribution when pressed by the media, CWS also donated $10,000 in 2024 to a super PAC supporting Low's primary campaign in that election cycle. Over the years, Low's Assembly campaigns have also received many thousands of dollars from Duong and California Waste Solutions.

An article published by this news organization, which Low cites, notes two contributions made “on behalf of Liccardo,” but does not say that Liccardo himself asked for the contributions or even knew about the contributions. The company participated in a now-defunct voting committee that worked to protect open space from luxury real estate developers. The committee, led by then-Mayor Liccardo, also received support from the Sierra Club, the Democratic Party and neighborhood organizations.

Yes, Liccardo voted to extend the company's trash contract — but so did every other voting council member, which is hardly “controversial.”

There is enough negativity in our politics and the truth matters. The 16th Congressional District and our communities deserve a representative who sticks to the facts.

Sergio Lopez is the vice mayor of Campbell.