. .
City Councilman Peter Arellano, a doctor at Kaiser Permanente, announced through a press release on Wednesday that he is officially declaring his candidacy for mayor.
Arellano joins Councilman Dion Bracco, Councilman Perry Woodward and Santa Clara Valley Water District Director Don Gage in the race. Current Mayor Al Pinheiro’s term expires this year and he has said he will not run.
Arellano, a Democrat who was first elected to the council in 1999, announced the formation of an “Exploratory Committee” on March 3, and since then there was speculation in the community that he would pursue a campaign for mayor.
Most recently, Arellano ran for the South County seat on the county board of supervisors, but lost.
Arellano will address his staff and supporters at the Joe’s Italian Restaurant on Saturday, where he will discuss his candidacy and campaign, and outline plans for Gilroy.
After “long and thoughtful” deliberation, Arellano is seeking friends and supporters of his past four council campaigns to help form an Exploratory Campaign Committee “since I do not take this endeavor lightly,” he wrote in his email.
Arellano said that he will focus on a future that is “environmentally responsible, economically viable,” and “emphasizes prevention, respects employees, provides expanded programs for our youth and builds community through our diversity.”
According to his email, if elected in November Arellano would be the first person of “Mexican-American background to hold the office in all of Gilroy’s history.”
Find additional information on http://www.facebook.com/TeamPeterArellano
About Peter Arellano
A graduate of Stanford University Medical School who currently works as a physician at Kaiser Permanente, Peter Arellano was first elected to Gilroy’s City Council in 1999.
He ran again in 2003 and lost, but was re-elected in 2005 and 2010.
During the 2010 elections – where Arellano raked in the third highest number of votes at 2,860 – he proposed building downtown parking lots behind neighborhood blocks to deal with parking problems, and touched on the importance of infusing money into the projects of the Department of Parks and Recreation to keep youth busy and out of trouble.
During his three terms serving on City Council, Arellano consistently fought for prevailing wages for workers who build city projects. He also supported a failed ordinance that would have allowed medical marijuana dispensaries to operate in Gilroy.
Arellano ran in 2010 for a seat on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and lost. His current term expires in November 2014.
Arellano has two daughters and is a lifelong resident of Gilroy. He is 61.
