Desis On The Ballot: Seema Kanani for Milpitas City Council

Seema Kanani is a mother, licensed clinical social worker, frontline healthcare worker, and labor leader raised in Milpitas with nearly two decades of experience advocating for working families. Having attended local schools and now raising her own children in Milpitas, she outlines her candidate platform in this interview, highlighting safe neighborhoods, housing affordability, and smart infrastructure investment.

In an exclusive interview with India Currents, she shared why she is running for office. This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.

Why did you decide to run for office?

I’m running because Milpitas is home. I see an urgent need to unify our community and make governance more inclusive to reflect the values and voices of our residents. I grew up here, attended our schools, and now I’m raising my own family here. This community helped shape who I am, and I want future generations to have the same opportunity to build a life here.

For nearly two decades, I have worked as a licensed clinical social worker and frontline healthcare worker, helping individuals and families navigate some of the most difficult moments of their lives. As a labor leader, I have also advocated for workers, served at the bargaining table, and learned how important it is to listen, collaborate, and hold systems accountable.

 Over the years, I realized that many of the challenges my patients and families bring through my office doors—housing instability, financial stress, access to services, community safety—are shaped by decisions made at the policy level. I decided to run because I want to bring that direct-service perspective into local government and help make those systems work better for the people they are supposed to serve.

What do you see as your primary role as a Milpitas City Council member?

My primary role would be to represent residents, listen carefully to the people most affected by our decisions, and make sure city government is responsive, transparent, and accountable.  A huge part of good leadership is creating a culture of community and co-governance to bring about changes at the city level to improve the lives of each resident.

A councilmember also has a responsibility to be a good steward of public resources especially every tax payer dollar. That means asking difficult questions, understanding the long-term impact of decisions, supporting our city workforce, and making sure residents can see how their tax dollars are being used.

I believe good government requires both leadership and collaboration. You have to be willing to advocate strongly for the community while also bringing people together to solve problems.

If elected, your top priorities will be…

My priorities are safe neighborhoods, housing affordability and stability, and smart infrastructure and public spaces, with a focus on responsible spending and long-term planning.

On public safety, that means ensuring police, fire, emergency services, and other frontline departments have the staffing, resources, training, and support necessary to serve the growing population of residents effectively.

On housing, I want Milpitas to grow without losing the people who helped build this community. That includes preserving existing affordable housing, creating workforce and permanently affordable housing, and addressing displacement. Milpitas itself has identified affordable housing, vulnerable populations, and displacement prevention as significant components of its 2023–2031 Housing Element.

Regarding infrastructure, I want us to be proactive rather than reactive—maintaining our streets, parks, athletic fields, utilities and public facilities.  We need to make it easier and safer for people to walk, bike, drive and use transit. Milpitas already uses its five-year Capital Improvement Program to plan investments in streets, parks, water, sewer, storm drains and other public facilities; I believe those investments need consistent oversight and long-term planning.

What are the major challenges that your constituency is facing?

Affordability is one of the biggest challenges. Families who have lived here for decades are asking whether their children will be able to stay here, whether seniors can afford to remain in their homes, and whether teachers, caregivers, public employees, and other essential workers can afford to live in the community they serve.

Milpitas has been allocated 6,713 housing units for the 2023–2031 housing cycle, including substantial affordable-housing requirements, so the challenge is not simply whether housing gets built, but what kind of housing is built and who can actually afford it.

We also need reliable public services, safe neighborhoods, and infrastructure that keeps pace with the needs of the community and growing population. These issues are interconnected. Housing, public safety, transportation, economic development and fiscal sustainability cannot be addressed in isolation.

What sets you apart from your competitors in the race?

I bring a combination of lived experience, direct-service healthcare experience, and organizational leadership, including fiduciary stewardship of over $150 million budget annually.

As a labor leader, I have served on a bargaining team, represented workers during major negotiations, served as a strike captain, and communicated publicly on behalf of workers. I have also served as a California Democratic Party delegate, appointed by our Hon. Assemblymember Alex Lee.  I have served on the CDP Legislative Committee, and regularly participate in legislative advocacy at the county, State, and National levels.

The proudest distinction is that I was raised in Milpitas, graduated from Milpitas High School, and will soon watch my daughter walk across the graduation field of that same school. I have watched the city change, watched my parents age in their own home, and I continue to be a proud resident of my community that has given so much to generations of my family. I bring both a professional understanding of systems and a very personal stake in the future of this community.

What would be your one-minute pitch to voters?

I’m Seema Kanani. I’m an immigrant, a mother, a licensed clinical social worker, a frontline healthcare worker and a labor leader for working families—and Milpitas is the community that raised me.

I grew up here, attended our schools, and now I’m raising my family here. For nearly two decades, I have helped families navigate crises and complicated systems. As a labor leader, I have represented workers, negotiated at the bargaining table, and learned that lasting progress requires listening, collaboration, and accountability.

I’m running for Milpitas City Council because I want to bring that experience and compassion home. My priorities are safe neighborhoods, housing that allows working families and seniors to remain in our community, smart infrastructure, and a city government that is transparent and responsible with public resources.

For me, public service is not about a title. It is about listening to people, doing the work and being accountable for results.

Tell us about your family and background

I immigrated to the United States at the age of 11 and grew up in Milpitas. My parents worked incredibly hard to build a life for our family, and watching them shaped my understanding of sacrifice, opportunity, and what it means to take care of your community. 

I attended Milpitas schools, and today my own children are growing up here. There is something deeply meaningful about watching them experience the same community that helped raise me.

Professionally, I became a licensed clinical social worker because I wanted a career centered on helping people in a holistic way. I have spent nearly two decades working in healthcare, where I have seen firsthand how housing, employment, family stability, mental health and access to services affect people’s lives.

My South Asian heritage, immigrant experience, healthcare career, and labor advocacy have all shaped how I approach public service: listen first, understand the problem, bring people together, and then work toward a solution.

Are there any personal anecdotes you would like to share?

As a proud Indian American, dignity and opportunity for all people, regardless of their country of origin is at the core of my ethics and values. Immigrant rights and shaping policy is an ongoing effort I lead as an Immigration Workgroup Committee co-chair for SEIU-UHW.

While campaigning, one of the most meaningful things for me is knocking on doors in neighborhoods I have known since I was young. I can be talking with a resident about the future of Milpitas and suddenly realize that I walked that same street while walking to school, or remember what that part of the city looked like decades ago. Now my own children are growing up here, and I see the things that can be improved for all generations. Those moments remind me that local government is very personal. Decisions about a park, a streetlight, housing, public safety or a city service may look like line items or agenda items at City Hall, but for the person who lives on that street, they affect everyday life.

That perspective has stayed with me throughout this campaign. Milpitas isn’t simply the city where I’m running for office. It is the community that raised me, the place where I chose to raise my family, and the community whose future I care deeply about.