Who I Am

About Rob

I am honored to serve as the Mayor of Los Gatos, the town where I grew up and have spent most of my life. Like so many who call Los Gatos home, I deeply value our connection to nature, our vibrant downtown, our exceptional schools, our safe neighborhoods, and our strong sense of community.

As your Mayor, I am focused on protecting what makes Los Gatos special while thoughtfully addressing the challenges we face, like housing, traffic, affordability, financial uncertainty, and street safety.

I have spent my time on the Town Council focused on passing the Housing Element, making Los Gatos’ streets safer, bolstering public safety and emergency preparedness, creating programs for young leaders people in town, investing in the Homeless Hotel Program, helping small businesses, securing funding for Los Gatos nonprofits, passing balanced budgets, and providing consistent communication to the Los Gatos community.

Government Experience:

Town of Los Gatos, Mayor and Councilmember
Santa Clara County Cities Association, Executive Board Member
Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG); Executive Board Member
Valley Transportation Authority (VTA); Alternate Director
Town of Los Gatos, Los Gatos Policy Committee, Chair
West Valley Sanitation District; Board Member and Chair
League of California Cities Peninsula Division; Board Member
Town of Los Gatos Housing Element Advisory Board; Board Member (Former)

Community Experience:

Los Gatos CERT (Community Emergency Response Team); Team Member
Leigh High School Wrestling Team; Assistant Coach
Kyle J. Taylor Foundation (youth cardiac health nonprofit); Board Member
Democratic National Committee (DNC) Delegate
California Democratic Party; Delegate
Certified Emergency Medical Responder (EMR)
Los Gatos Chamber of Commerce; Board Member (Former)

Professional Experience:

I bring with me a variety of professional experiences. As Mayor, I’m working to leverage my relationships with our state and federal partners to secure funding and support for Los Gatos. Unbeknownst to many, serving as Mayor is largely a volunteer position. If I had the means, I would be a full-time Mayor, I absolutely would, but I work in order to pay rent.

Santa Clara County (current): I work for Santa Clara County Supervisor Margaret Abe-Koga as her Health Policy Aide. In this role, I oversee all health policy for the Supervisor, including the County’s four hospitals, 14 clinics, behavioral & mental health, public health, and more. I help Supervisor Abe Koga represent the 400,000 residents of Santa Clara County District 5.
California State Assembly: I served as the Senior District Representative for Assemblymember Gail Pellerin. I met with individuals to resolve their concerns and helped constituents navigate complicated state agencies. I was proud to support the Assemblymember's legislation regulating artificial intelligence disinformation, providing affordable housing for farmworkers, protecting foster children, ensuring daycare pool safety, and limiting unfair rental fees.
San José Conservation Corps: I was the Special Projects Manager at a local environmental nonprofit focused on providing well-paying jobs to underserved youth in San Jose. I managed our tiny homes program, oversaw leases and contracts, and executed the first-ever statewide local Conservation Corps conference.
Non-profit experience: I previously managed an 80-resident homeless shelter at the height of the pandemic. Prior to that, I oversaw a 30-person California Climate Action Corps program that reduced food waste and processed e-waste and compost. I also spent time with the United Nations Foundation working on vaccine advocacy.
Legislative Offices: I interned in the offices of Congresswoman Anna Eshoo, Assemblymember Evan Low, and State Senator Bob Wieckowski.
Other: I worked as a substitute teacher at local public schools. I also worked on political campaigns, including leading a ballot measure to ban fracking in SLO County and a competitive congressional campaign.

Education:

Having grown up in Los Gatos, I attended local public schools. As a younger Councilmember, I value this experience and am privileged to have this background for my service. I grew up in East Los Gatos and attended:

Noddin Elementary
Union Middle School
Leigh High School (go Longhorns!)

I went on to attend Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo and earned my Bachelor of Arts in Political Science (Magna Cum Laude) with an emphasis in Public Service and Urban Planning.

Hear Rob's State of the Town Address