The Gilroy Measure C quarter-cent sales tax for public safety is heavily favored by voters in the initial results posted by the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters office, but the count is shy of the two-thirds majority needed for passage.
As of 12:15am Nov. 6, 60.97% of the votes counted—or 7,353 votes—marked “yes” for Measure C, according to the registrar’s website. “No” votes so far number 6,011 ballots.
The revenue-generating measure requires a two-thirds majority vote—or about 67 percent—in order to be enacted.
Elections officials will continue to count ballots over the coming weeks that were cast in person or dropped off on election day. Mayor Marie Blankley, a vocal supporter of Measure C, expressed her thanks to the electorate’s support for the public safety funding initiative so far.
“While we don’t yet know the final results, thank you to all who supported Measure C,” Blankley said on Nov. 6.
Gilroy City Council member Zach Hilton, who also voted with the council majority to place the measure on the Nov. 5 ballot, said he remains “hopeful” that Measure C’s approval will reach two-thirds after all the ballots are counted.
“From the 2020 election (we know) the initial results compared to the final tally went up by about 5,000 votes. So I’m hopeful that that spread remains the same (and) hopeful that Measure C will eventually hit that threshold. It’s a very good head start,” Hilton said.
Approved by a majority of the city council earlier this year for the Nov. 5 ballot, Measure C reads, “To generate funding that cannot be seized by the State, but stays in Gilroy and is dedicated to public safety (police, fire and ambulance) services and public safety infrastructure projects, shall Gilroy enact a 0.25 percent (one-quarter of one percent) transactions and use tax; and include a citizen oversight committee and annual audits for the tax?”
