George Casey is a lifelong South San José resident, attorney, urban planner, and civic servant who has represented District 10 on the San José City Council since late 2024. His election marked a deeply personal homecoming — he moved to District 10 at the age of 5, attended Santa Teresa Elementary, Bernal Intermediate, and Bellarmine College Preparatory, and is now raising his own kids in the West Santa Teresa Foothills on the very same streets where he grew up.
Growing up as a Black man in the Almaden and Blossom Hill valleys, Casey was the first in his family to feel truly safe and accepted in their own community. That experience has profoundly shaped his commitment to making San José work for all of its residents. "I want my kids, nieces and nephews — if I'm lucky enough to win — to see that as people of color we have a place here, we have a voice here," Casey has said. His family has deep roots in the area, with three generations still living in the district.
Casey is one of the most credentialed members of the San José City Council on issues of housing and land use. He earned his bachelor's degree from Santa Clara University, then went on to earn his law degree from Santa Clara Law, a master's degree in Urban Planning from San José State University, and a master's degree in Real Estate from UC Berkeley — three graduate degrees that give him an unusually comprehensive technical foundation for the challenges facing a growing city. After working at a major law firm, he joined the startup world as senior counsel, and most recently served as senior counsel and vice president at Unlock Technologies, a financial services company.
Before running for council, Casey channeled his expertise in urban planning and law into civic service. He served a four-year term on the San José Planning Commission, concluding in June 2024, where he developed a reputation for thorough analysis of land use and housing decisions. His tenure on the commission gave him detailed insight into the bureaucratic obstacles slowing housing production in San José, and he became a vocal advocate for sensible development that adds homes without overwhelming neighborhood infrastructure.
The motivation behind his council run was deeply personal. A few years ago, his mother's purse was snatched. Despite video evidence of the crime, police told the family they lacked the resources to pursue it — an experience that left Casey feeling helpless and determined to change the system. That moment crystallized his concern that San José, once regarded as the safest big city in the nation, had lost its way on public safety.
Casey won the November 2024 general election against incumbent Arjun Batra with roughly 58% of the vote and was appointed to begin his term early on December 10, 2024, since the district faced a gap in representation. His current term runs through December 31, 2028. He ran as an independent moderate, earning endorsements from Mayor Matt Mahan, the San José Police Officers' Association, Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, and Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility.
In office, Casey has focused on public safety, homelessness, housing affordability, and neighborhood blight. He supports tiny homes and prefabricated housing as rapid solutions to homelessness, while insisting those sites require drug treatment, mental health services, and job training. He has also proposed a police officer down payment assistance program to help officers afford to live in the city they serve. Casey describes himself as a pragmatic consensus-builder, a bridge between the council's factions who applies a results-driven, common sense lens to the issues facing District 10 — the Santa Teresa and Almaden areas of South San José.
