Susan Ellenberg
Supervisor • District 4
Term expires: 2027-01-04
Susan Ellenberg is one of Silicon Valley's most dedicated advocates for children, families, and social justice — a former attorney, educator, and school board trustee whose career has been shaped by a deeply personal conviction that government's highest calling is ensuring that every family has stability, safety, and opportunity. She assumed office on January 1, 2019, and her current term ends on January 4, 2027. She is currently running for reelection in 2026.
Raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in a family that valued education, hard work, and civic engagement, Ellenberg developed a deep belief in the power of community and the responsibility we all share to lift one another up. She is a graduate of Barnard College and Columbia University School of Law. After completing her law degree, she moved to San José in 1991, where she built her legal career as a real estate and land-use attorney.
Her transition from law to public service began the way so much civic leadership does — through her children. When she became a mother, Ellenberg stepped back from her legal career and became deeply involved in her children's schools as a volunteer and advocate. She taught social justice and civic engagement for six years to middle school students at Yavneh Day School, and those lessons became a jumping-off point for her own next move: "I decided that the best way to influence policy that impacted students was to run for a seat on the school board." Ellenberg served on the San José Unified School District Board of Trustees from 2014 to 2018, and as the Board President in 2018.
In 2018, Ellenberg won an open seat on the Board of Supervisors in District 4, where she represents a diverse population of more than 400,000 residents in the unincorporated neighborhoods of Cambrian and Burbank, plus the cities of Campbell, Santa Clara, and nearly a dozen neighborhoods in San José. She defeated former San José City Councilmember Don Rocha in the general election and was reelected outright in the 2022 primary.
In office, Ellenberg has made children, families, and public safety her central priorities. She has set in place new policies prioritizing children and families, directed funding to promote the stability of children and families, and led the creation of the County's first Children's Budget. Her 2024 State of the County address, themed "Building Safe Communities," focused on holistic approaches — including mental health and substance use disorder treatment, justice reform, and housing for the most at-risk populations, with the conviction that "safety starts with meeting people's basic needs."
Ellenberg serves as Chair of the County's Public Safety and Justice Committee and Vice Chair of the Finance and Government Operations Committee. She is President of the California State Association of Counties and a board member of Joint Venture Silicon Valley and FIRST 5 Santa Clara County. She is also an American Leadership Forum Senior Fellow and has been a consistent voice for drug treatment over incarceration for non-violent offenses, immigrant rights, and expanded mental health services.
Susan and her husband Steve, an attorney, live in San José with their two dogs, Lacey and Peaches, and have three young adult children: Zach, Molly, and Naava. In her limited free time, she enjoys hiking, reading, and crossword puzzles. Her career arc — from Pittsburgh to Columbia Law School to San José classrooms to the County boardroom — reflects a belief that every stage of life offers a new arena in which to fight for fairness and opportunity.
District staff
Appointments
Vice Chair
Finance and Government Operations Committee
Chair
Public Safety and Justice Committee
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