Kansen Chu

Kansen Chu (Chinese: 朱感生; pinyin: Zhū Gǎnshēng born October 27, 1952) is a Taiwanese-born American politician. A Democrat, Chu was a member of the California State Assembly from 2014 to 2020, for the 25th District, which encompasses parts of the South and East Bay regions of the San Francisco Bay Area.[1][2]

Kansen Chu
朱感生
Kansen Chu
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 25th district
In office
December 1, 2014 – December 7, 2020
Preceded byBob Wieckowski
Succeeded byAlex Lee
Member of the San Jose City Council from District 4
In office
2007–2014
Preceded byChuck Reed
Member of the Berryessa Union School District Board of Trustees
In office
February 10, 2021 – 2022
Personal details
Born (1952-10-27) October 27, 1952
Taipei, Taiwan
NationalityAmerican
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseDaisy Chu
Children2
ResidenceSan Jose, California
Alma materCalifornia State University, Northridge (MS)
OccupationComputer programmer, restaurant owner, politician

In 2019, Chu announced that he would not seek reelection for State Assembly in 2020, instead running for the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. He lost to Otto Lee in the general election.[3]

On February 10, 2021, Chu was appointed to the Berryessa Union School District Board of Trustees to fill a vacant seat. His current term ends in 2022.[4]

Chu ran for the 24th Assembly district seat in the redrawn 2022 election, but was defeated in the primary by incumbent Alex Lee.[5]

Early life

In 1952, Chu was born in Taipei, Taiwan.

Education

Chu earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from National Taipei University of Technology. Chu earned a master's degree in Electrical Engineering from California State University, Northridge.[6]

Career

In 1978, Chu became a microdiagnostics microprogrammer at IBM, where he worked for 18 years. In 1989, Chu became an owner of a Chinese restaurant, until 2007.[6]

In 2002, Chu began his political career as a member of Berryessa Union School District board of education.[7]

Prior to being elected to the Assembly in 2014, Chu was a San Jose City Councilman representing District 4. He is a member of the California Asian & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus. He was the first Taiwanese-American elected to the San Jose City Council.

2000 Council

In 2000, Chu was defeated by Chuck Reed for the District 4 council seat.

In his first year on the council, Chu initiated landmark legislation to require citywide green building standards, ban the use of plastic bags, and mandate the installation of automatic heart defibrillators across San Jose.

2002 Berryessa Union School Board

In 2002, Chu was elected to the Berryessa Union School Board. As a school board member, he championed stronger curricula, better education materials, and improved public access to school board meetings.

Chu has served on the Berryessa Union School Board for 5 years, Santa Clara Valley Metro YMCA, Vietnamese Voluntary Foundation, Shin Shin Education Foundation, and Advisory Board of Californians for Justice. Kansen has also served on the Santa Clara County Mental Health Board, Private Industry Council under Job Training Partnership Act, Neighborhood Accountability Board of Berryessa, the KNTV Channel 11 Community Board, Asian Law Alliance, and many other advisory commissions and boards. He continues to serve on the board of Vision New America, dedicated to advancing youth involvement in civics and government.

Departing the California Assembly

On May 13, 2019, Chu announced that he would be a candidate for the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors in 2020. He will not be seeking reelection to the Assembly.[8]

Election history

2014 California State Assembly
See also: 2014 California State Assembly elections
California's 25th State Assembly district election, 2014
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kansen Chu 16,672 30.6
Republican Bob Brunton 12,699 23.3
Democratic Armando Gomez 9,218 16.9
Democratic Teresa Cox 9,104 16.7
Democratic Craig Steckler 6,835 12.5
Total votes 54,528 100.0
General election
Democratic Kansen Chu 57,718 69.4
Republican Bob Brunton 25,441 30.6
Total votes 83,159 100.0
Democratic hold

2016 California State Assembly
See also: 2016 California State Assembly election
California's 25th State Assembly district election, 2016
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kansen Chu (incumbent) 61,980 75.5
Republican Bob Brunton 20,146 24.5
Total votes 82,126 100.0
General election
Democratic Kansen Chu (incumbent) 107,821 72.8
Republican Bob Brunton 40,280 27.2
Total votes 148,101 100.0
Democratic hold

2018 California State Assembly
See also: 2018 California State Assembly election
California's 25th State Assembly district election, 2018
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Kansen Chu (incumbent) 36,417 51.8
Republican Bob Brunton 16,391 23.3
Democratic Carmen Montano 15,345 21.8
Libertarian Robert Imhoff 2,127 3.0
Total votes 70,280 100.0
General election
Democratic Kansen Chu (incumbent) 98,612 74.3
Republican Bob Brunton 34,193 25.7
Total votes 132,805 100.0
Democratic hold

Personal life

In 1976, Chu moved to the United States. Chu's wife is Daisy Chu. They have two children. Chu and his family live in San Jose, California.[6]

References
  1. "Assemblymember Kansen Chu /Legislative Technology & Innovation Caucus". catechcaucus.legislature.ca.gov. California, U.S.: California State Legislature. Archived from the original on 2019-03-23. Retrieved 2019-04-18.
  2. Archive, ABC7. "Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Salutes: Kansen Chu /ABC7 San Francisco Archive /abc7news.com". abc7news.com. New York, U.S.: ABC News. Retrieved 2019-04-18.
  3. "Election 2020 Santa Clara County Election Results". KQED. December 2020. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  4. "NOTICE OF BOARD APPOINTMENT". Board Member Information. Berryessa Union School District. February 11, 2021. Retrieved August 9, 2021.
  5. "Current Assembly District 24 Candidate Kansen Chu on mental health in schools". 20 May 2022.
  6. "Kansen Chu's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  7. "School Board Candidate Wu Fredericks Picks Up Another Endorsement - Assemblymember Kansen Chu adds his support to school board candidate". pasadenanow.com. November 2, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2020.
  8. "2 School Trustees Announce Bids for Kansen Chu's Assembly Seat". San Jose Inside. 2019-05-15. Retrieved 2019-06-19.
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