Two East Palo Alto measures, a bond measure to fund a new civic center and another to establish term limits for City Council members, both appeared headed for approval in early election results.
Measure O is a $125 million bond measure that would fund the construction of new facilities like a city hall and library and improvements to the city’s water and flood infrastructure.
As of the latest update to ballot counts Friday, the measure received 72% approval. In order to pass, it needs at least two-thirds approval.
Measure CC also received significant support from voters and was at about 67% approval as of Friday. The measure needs a simple majority to pass.
The measure proposes limiting council members to no more than three consecutive terms in office. After three consecutive terms, a council member would have to take at least a two-year break before being able to run again.
Tens of thousands of ballots yet to count
The San Mateo County Elections Division had about 100,000 ballots left to count as of Friday and around 179,539 ballots had been tallied.
“Ballots are still being counted, but the margins are strong,” said Mayor Webster Lincoln in a social media post.
Lincoln put forth Measure CC against the wishes of Vice Mayor Ruben Abrica and Councilmember Carlos Romero. When the City Council voted in May to put the measure on the November ballot, Abrica felt that the measure was targeting him since he’s a longtime councilmember who was on the first council when the city incorporated in the 1980s.
Romero at the time thought that Measure CC would draw voters’ attention away from Measure O. A survey evaluating residents’ perspectives on Measure CC conducted before the election found majority support among voters.
Election results won’t be certified until Dec. 3, but Lincoln said that designing and planning is already underway for the new civic center, which will include a renovated library, police station, city offices and recreation facilities if Measure O is passed.
The next scheduled update to the results will be published by 4:30 p.m. Monday, the county’s elections division said.
