Sam Liccardo still remembers his first taste of how politics could heal — or hurt — a community. He was 17, interning in Washington, D.C., for Congressman Norman Mineta, a family friend whose boyhood years had been spent behind the barbed wire of a Japanese-American internment camp.
Mineta’s story stuck with him. So did the long hours watching Congress finally pass the Civil Liberties Act of 1988, offering a formal apology and reparations to survivors like Mineta.
“It was a front row seat to America wrestling with the demons of its past,” Liccardo said. “That whole thing demonstrated to me how much politics really is personal.”
That experience was pivotal in shaping his view of politics. For Liccardo, the work of politics was not just about policies or legislation — it was personal, and it had the power to heal or harm communities. It also showed him that change often takes time and persistence, a lesson that would serve him well in his future political career.
After eight years as San Jose’s mayor and a brief hiatus from public office, Liccardo now serves as the Representative of California’s 16th District. But he still approaches politics the same way he did back then: as a deeply personal project, one built on relationships, persistence and the slow work of change.
When Liccardo first took office as mayor in 2015, San Jose was still recovering from the aftershocks of the Great Recession of 2008. He focused much of his tenure on building affordable housing, tackling homelessness, and reducing restrictions on small businesses — all while managing the pressures of one of the fastest-growing tech hubs in the country.
“It’s helpful to have folks in Washington who understand the nuts and bolts of how federal policies affect local communities,” Liccardo said. “And [who understand] how you put policy into action as we grapple with everything from the housing crisis to climate change, the changes that … require a lot of local communities moving together.”
Liccardo’s time as mayor taught him how to connect policy to the needs of real communities — insight he now brings to his work at the national level. As he transitions into his new role in Congress, he’s focused on understanding the unique challenges of his district’s diverse population.
“I just got into office, and we’re starting to get the wheels turning now,” he said. “But at the end of the day, you have to deliver something for your community.”
For college and high school students dreaming of making a difference, Liccardo’s advice is straightforward: Just jump in. He suggests that nonprofits offer an accessible way to get involved, especially for those passionate about a particular issue but unsure where to begin.
“If there’s a passion that you have that’s aligned with the work of that nonprofit, I’d say, sign up and volunteer,” Liccardo said. “That’s how I got engaged in some issues and learned an enormous amount about how people were grappling with those challenges and how adequate or inadequate the responses were.”
Liccardo admits that today’s generation has inherited a tougher world — rising housing costs, barriers to accessing higher education, a planet in crisis. But he says that makes their voices even more important.
“There’s plenty to be angry about, and I admire those who are willing to rise above the anger and roll up their sleeves and push for all the things that younger adults deserve in a community like ours,” Liccardo said.
In the whirlwind of Capitol Hill, Liccardo tries to hold onto the lessons he learned early: relationships matter, persistence matters and the work — however slow — is worth doing.
“[Politics] is about people and building those relationships, and how those relationships matter, and that you can actually have an impact,” Liccardo said. “You can see real change.”
