Alkesh Desai Gets Elected fair and Square- No Coin Toss This Time

SF Bay Area, California: No coin toss to get elected this time for Alkesh Desai as the San Jose resident and educator got elected unambiguously to the Berryessa Union School district on February 5th , as he polled 46.19 percent or  6,266 votes to his nearest rival John Coyle, who got 27.09 percent or 3,675 votes in a special election held on February 5th.

Desai is the same candidate who made headlines all over on August 11 last year, when an appointment to the seat of Governing Board member of Berryessa School was decided by a coin flip, as mandated by California state law, and Desai correctly called correctly. While Desai did serve 17 days in office, the appointment was vacated as a signature petition was launched by citizens, on an unrelated charge that not all qualified candidates were considered for the position by the Board.

 Actually State Law requires the drawing of “lots” to decide such a deadlocked issue and a coin toss is equally acceptable  andDesai says, “ All respondents agreed to the special election at that time, although the additional cost of nearly $60,000 was an unnecessary expense to the school district, according to many of us.”  In the re- election on February 5th, the original loser of the coin toss John Neighbors did not file for candidacy but two others did.

Desai was very pleased with the results , as the results showed a clear cut win over his two rivals, who were locked in close contest, saying, “This was a grassroots campaign and along with two dozens volunteers and many well wishers, we knocked on more than 1000 doors often in the rain and called on thousands of voters, and this has resulted in an clear cut victory for me, especially as I remain committed to representing all of Berryessa community, working with all the BUSD board members, and making a Difference for All Children.”

Desai works in Information Technology and is an adjunct faculty member at Golden Gate University and teacher at the San Francisco Art Institute, and has served on the Berryessa District Advisory Committee and Site Councils at Independence High, Summerdale and Piedmont Middle School, where his child is a student. Desai has also served as a San Jose Small Business Development Commissioner and as a Board member of  Berryessa Citizens Advisory Council.

San Jose City Councilmember Kansen Chu, whose vacant seat Desai won, had endorse his candidacy and said, "Desai will bring fresh ideas and dimensions of creativity to the Board," adding to the rich list of endorsements which Desai received, including from San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed, Berryessa School Board President Rudy Nasol, etc

Gujarat-born Desai raised and spent about $5,000 on the campaign and $2,000 for the ballot statement said, “It was very tough to defeat a candidate (Coyle), and whose wife is Chinese and who is in San Jose for last 40 years and won and served the same position  in 2002 to 2006.  I am glad that it took a clear cut victory and not just a coin toss to win the position.”