Domingo Candelas is a proud product of the district he represents — born, raised, and still living within the boundaries of District 8, the Evergreen and Southeast San José communities that shaped him. He assumed office on January 30, 2023, after being appointed by his council colleagues to fill the seat vacated by Sylvia Arenas, who was elected to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. He subsequently won a full term in the November 2024 general election, defeating Tam Truong, with his current term running through December 31, 2028.
Candelas is one of five siblings born to immigrant parents who came to Silicon Valley from Zacatecas, Mexico in search of the American Dream. From an early age, his family instilled in him the values of hard work, perseverance, and integrity. He grew up in the Brigadoon neighborhood in Southeast San José and attended Evergreen Valley High School, where he later secured his first internship at City Hall under then-Councilmember Sam Liccardo. That early exposure to local government helped set the course for his career in public service.
Candelas completed his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and his Master's in Public Administration at San José State University, becoming a first-generation college graduate. After finishing his graduate degree, he built an impressive career in government affairs and public policy. From 2012 to 2019 he worked as District Director for State Senator Jim Beall, developing and implementing policy objectives and building coalitions with elected officials, agencies, and stakeholder groups. Among his accomplishments in that role, he helped support the passage of Senate Bill 1 — the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017 — which allocates billions of dollars annually to fix roads and bridges across California, including in San José.
After his time in the State Senate, Candelas moved to Valley Water, the Santa Clara Valley Water District, where he tackled water and environmental issues, collaborated with cities to expand the use of advanced purified water in the region, and led a major creek beautification initiative with the City of San José and several nonprofit organizations. He then became Stanford University's Director of Local Government Affairs, working with a wide range of stakeholders — chambers of commerce, advocacy organizations, and university schools — to support Stanford's academic mission while deepening his understanding of policy advocacy.
District 8 encompasses Evergreen and a good portion of Southeast San José — a largely residential, family-oriented community with significant immigrant populations and a mix of working-class and middle-class neighborhoods. Since taking office, Candelas has focused on affordable housing, homelessness, and public safety as his core priorities. He has advocated for increased police staffing and patrols in the Evergreen neighborhood, and championed a catalytic converter anti-theft ordinance that the City Council unanimously passed, targeting a crime that had spiked sharply during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Candelas is also an elected delegate to the California Democratic Party and has served on trail advocacy boards including Save Our Trails and Friends of Five Wounds Trail. Outside of his official duties, he is known for staying close to his roots — living near the same Evergreen neighborhood where he grew up, and bringing a constituent-first philosophy to his work. His district office welcomes residents in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese, reflecting the rich diversity of the more than 100,000 people he represents. Widely regarded as a collaborative, pragmatic voice on the council, Candelas has positioned himself as a bridge between the city's progressive and moderate factions, with an approach grounded in the lived experience of the immigrant families he has always called his neighbors.
