The national election news was downright depressing for many in the Bay Area, but there was a lot of cause for celebration among local candidates Tuesday night. At a handful of election night parties, they thanked volunteers, smiled for the cameras and were careful to be grateful and optimistic — whether they were ahead or behind.
While the official vote tabulating is still happening, we can report the most important results already: Namely, which parties had the best food, decor, crowd and drinks. Of course, this is purely subjective — and based entirely on where I was able to make it over a few hours Thursday night.
Michael Mulcahy, running for a San Jose City Council seat, held his election night party at Hapa’s Brewery on Lincoln Avenue in San Jose on on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
The hotspot of the night was Suspiro at Santana Row, where former San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo was celebrating his win over Assemblymember Evan Low in the U.S. House’s 16th district. The swanky nightspot — right on the edge of Liccardo’s new district — was packed to the brim with Liccardo supporters and a phalanx of media cameras. The wine was good, if a bit pricey at $23 a glass, and what food there was went quickly — but nobody seemed to mind much.
There was a bit more breathing room at Hapa’s Brewing Co. on Lincoln Avenue, where Michael Mulcahy celebrated an early but substantial lead over Olivia Navarro to succeed Dev Davis on the San Jose City Council. Unsurprisingly, there was a lot of cross-pollination between the Liccardo and Mulcahy crowds — but the Willow Glen party gets the prize for having the best beer of the night (and the supporters there included Gordon Biersch co-founder Dan Gordon, who knows a thing or two about beer).
Betty Duong, running for Santa Clara County supervisor, laughs with supporters at the South Bay Labor Council’s election night party at the IBEW Hall in San Jose on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
The South Bay Labor Council party at the IBEW Hall on Canoas Garden Avenue was the first stop for many labor-backed Dems, including eventual winners like state Sen. Dave Cortese, Assemblymembers Ash Kalra and Gail Pellerin, as well as Assembly candidate Patrick Ahrens and Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors candidate Betty Duong. And while the news wasn’t good for everyone, the party featured a couple of trays from King Eggroll — a San Jose staple that gets the nod for appetizer of the night.
Duong, who pulled out to an early lead over former San Jose City Councilmember Madison Nguyen to succeed Cindy Chavez, arrived at her campaign headquarters on South Fifth Street to a shower of confetti. Her party took the cake for most fun with a bounce house, a piñata and an actual sheet cake with Duong’s photo on it — and everything was colored hot pink (including Duong’s outfit).
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Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
