Palo Alto voters will decide more than City Council and school board seats this November. Two special district races on the ballot shape flood protection along San Francisquito Creek, water rates and open space preservation, yet both have flown under the radar while higher-profile contests dominate attention.

The nomination filing deadline for most local races is Friday, Aug. 7. If an eligible incumbent has not filed, the deadline extends to Wednesday, Aug. 12.

Valley Water District 7: Eisenberg vs. Dailey

The marquee matchup pits incumbent Rebecca Eisenberg, a Palo Alto resident, against Los Altos Councilman Pete Dailey, who is giving up his south Los Altos District 2 council seat to make the run, the Palo Alto Daily Post reported Tuesday.

Valley Water District 7 covers Palo Alto, Mountain View and Los Altos. Palo Alto property owners pay a Valley Water tax, but the agency doesn't supply the city's drinking water, which comes from San Francisco's Hetch Hetchy system. Valley Water's primary role here is funding flood control along San Francisquito Creek.

That role carries real dollars. A $15.5 million Newell Road Bridge replacement, funded partly by Valley Water, broke ground in May and is expected to finish in spring 2027. The project is part of the San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority's broader "Reach 2" effort to protect Crescent Park and surrounding neighborhoods from a repeat of the devastating 1998 flood, which measured 7,200 cubic feet per second. A Dec. 31, 2022, flood revealed the channel holds roughly 25% less water than engineers previously believed, forcing the JPA to revise its plans.

Eisenberg has been a vocal critic of Valley Water's handling of creek funding. At a board meeting on Aug. 12, 2025, she told colleagues the agency's decision to withhold $604,000 in planning funds from the creek authority was unethical.

"It's unethical, and I think low integrity … This is starting to sound, as the kids say, 'sus,'" Eisenberg said at that meeting, according to the Daily Post's coverage.

Her tenure has been turbulent. In March 2024, the Valley Water board censured Eisenberg and stripped her of all committee assignments, including her seat on the San Francisquito Creek JPA, according to Palo Alto Weekly editor Gennady Sheyner, who reported the action on X.

Valley Water also approved a rate increase that took effect July 1, adding an estimated $5.63 per month to the average North County household's bill.

Dailey has not made public statements about hi s policy priorities for the seat.

Midpen Open Space Ward 2: Kishimoto so far unchallenged

Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District Ward 2, which covers Palo Alto, Los Altos, Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Cupertino and Stanford, has only one candidate so far: incumbent Yoriko Kishimoto.

With the filing deadline three days away, any challenger would need to file by Aug. 7 to force a contested race.

Former Palo Alto Mayor Karen Holman, who serves on the Midpen board representing Ward 5, faces challenger Shannon Ramiro of Sunnyvale in a separate race. Ward 5 stretches along the bay from East Palo Alto to Sunnyvale.

What's next

As we reported Aug. 3, four candidates have filed for three Palo Alto City Council seats. The PAUSD board race filing deadline has already been extended to Aug. 12.

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Vote-by-mail ballots begin going out Oct. 5.