Candidate for
County Supervisor; County of San Mateo; Supervisorial District 3

Biography

Richard Gordon was first elected to fill a vacancy on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors in April of 1997. He was re-elected to his first full-term on the Board of Supervisors in 1998 and re-elected to a second term in March 2002.

As a County Supervisor, Richard Gordon has worked to achieve government accountability by leading in the development of the County's outcome based budgeting. As a member of the County's Transportation Authority, he worked with Alameda and Santa Clara Counties to secure tax dollars to re-build the Dumbarton rail crossing. Supervisor Gordon was instrumental in the formation of the County's Children's Health Initiative and the Pre-School for All Program. He has served as the founding Chair of the Housing Endowment and Regional Trust which has distributed $4 million to date to build affordable housing. Supervisor Gordon initiated the effort to buy forty-nine acres at Mirada Surf on the San Mateo County coast in order to save this precious open space from pending development.

Prior to his election to the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, Rich Gordon was a member of the County Board of Education. He was first elected to this Board in 1992 and was re-elected in 1996. From 1995 to 1997, Rich Gordon served as Vice President of the County Board of Education.

Rich Gordon received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1970 from the University of Southern California where he majored in Sociology. Supervisor Gordon served as a minister in the United Methodist Church and received his Masters of Divinity from Garrett Theological Seminary at Northwestern University in 1973.

In 1976, Rich Gordon began work in the nonprofit sector in San Mateo County. Originally with the YMCA and later with Youth and Family Assistance, Supervisor Gordon created some of the most innovative social programs for at-risk youth including Daybreak, the first suburban shelter for homeless youth in the country and MiMe's Café. A public-private partnership, MiMe's Café, is a full service restaurant in downtown Redwood City where the unemployed and homeless train for careers in culinary arts.

Since his election to the Board of Supervisors, Richard Gordon has represented the County on various Boards and Commissions. He presently serves on the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, the San Mateo First Five Commission, the Transportation Authority, and the Health Plan of San Mateo. Supervisor Gordon is currently the Second Vice President of the California State Association of Counties representing the interests of all 58 California counties in Sacramento.

Rich Gordon has been active with the Redwood City/San Mateo County Chamber of Commerce since 1991. During 1998, he served as Chairman of the Chamber's Board of Directors.

Supervisor Gordon is a third generation Californian + having been born and raised in San Mateo County. He currently resides in an unincorporated neighborhood in Menlo Park with his domestic partner of 23 years, Dr. Dennis McShane.