Madison Nguyen’s election-night party wasn’t exactly hard to find. Blue-and-white “Re-elect Madison Nguyen” fliers appeared with increasing regularity as Metro neared M Cafe on Burdette Drive in San Jose, a hip Asian joint that serves coffee while showing sports on TVs.

Apparently, the Nguyen campaign had more posters and fliers than it knew what to do with, because the inside of the large room was stuffed with banners and campaign materials.

The South Bay Labor Council and its legions were out in full force in the lobby of the swank California Theater for political siblings Xavier and Nora Campos. Familiar faces sampled the fancy spread of sesame chicken, quiche, brie and fruit while watching results roll in around a large computer screen mounted by the entrance.

At 10:30pm, the mood was celebratory, despite the fact that what once seemed like a safe dynastic succession had turned into a November runoff and some candidates, like Forest Williams, fared worse than expected.

The big action of the night was downtown at Agenda, where a packed house celebrated Jeff Rosen’s thin lead in the District Attorney’s race.

Around 11pm, Rosen mercifully decided to cut up and pass out his victory cake, even though it would be a few hours or more before anyone could claim victory.

If Rosen pulled it out, and it looked like he would, it would become the first time in almost a century that a challenger had toppled an incumbent DA.

Our timing was impeccable as we strolled into Judge-elect Vanessa Zecher’s bash at the Brit, where the bar crowd was transfixed by the Lakers-Celtics game.

We interrupted a well-known senior judge to ask what he thought about the DA’s race. “We were just talking about that,” he said, calling it too close to call. “If she [Carr] wins, she’ll have a tough row to hoe.”

Larry Pegram’s supporters cheered at the Cambrian Round Table Pizza when the first results popped up, even though the San Jose City Council District 9 candidate trailed Donald Rocha by more than 1,500 votes.

“Anytime you’re in the money, it’s good,” said Pegram with a grin. Volunteers flipped around the channels on the flat-screen TVs looking for a news broadcast.

We sped to Los Gatos, where they keep the Christmas tree lights up year round, declining Democratic Central Committee candidate Oliverio’s offer to race us in his Saturn.

We knew this was one race Pierluigi would lose, even as our trusted assistant checked election results from a mobile laptop passenger side.

Over at District Attorney Dolores Carr’s re-election party at the Britannia Arms on Almaden, it was nearly impossible to distinguish Carr backers from the juiced-up Celtics-Lakers game watchers.

Waiters jostled through the crowd with pitchers and canapés while Carr’s husband, John, checked polls on an iPad.

Down Highway 85, at the Summit Steakhouse, Teresa Alvarado’s roughly 50 guests had swamped the bar area and practically cleaned out steam trays of what looked like enchiladas.

Alvarado herself stood at the center of a crowd of people in the middle of the dimly lit room. “It’s going really good,” said Alvarado, as someone handed her a seltzer water. “We’ve done our best.”

We made it to the Gordon Biersch brewing facility on Taylor Street, where we parked alongside some beer pallets and wended our way through a labyrinth of bottling machinery to Sheriff Laurie Smith’s rooftop shindig.

The atmosphere was festive and the food top flight, so we washed down some penne and salad with a sturdy ale. San Jose Councilman Oliverio arrived seconds behind us and revealed that he was locked in a tight race for one of six seats on the Democratic Central Committee.

As 8pm rolled around at O’Flaherty’s Irish Pub on San Pedro Square, where the Sam Liccardo’s victory party was taking place, Tim Hennessey, Liccardo’s Republican opponent, walked by the crowded pub. The former Johnny V’s bouncer-turned-candidate approached Kyra Kazantzis, a local lawyer and Liccardo campaign volunteer, as she was strolling into the party.

“He asked me, ‘Is that Sam Liccardo’s party?’” she said. When she responded yes, “He said, ‘I’m Sam’s running mate, Tim Hennessey.’” He then bid adieu and walked away in his immaculate suit.

It looks like the irrepressible Robert Cortese has picked a pet issue to back this election season: repealing San Jose’s fireworks ban. Two Tuesdays ago, the magnificently-coiffed karaoke king of San Jose-turned District 9 council candidate turned up at the San Jose City Council meeting. Sensing an infringement on every pyrotechnically inclined, red-blooded American’s right to handle gunpowder while partying, he pleaded for the council to change its ban on explosives. By the looks of his Facebook page, he’s also trying to drum up a grassroots effort to bring fireworks back to the city.

Last Thursday, Fly was intrigued by the “No Parking” signs up and down a three-block stretch of South First Street—right in front of Metro’s office—as they purported to be clearing the area for a movie called Church Girl. That vaguely pornographic contraction turns out to be short for I’m in Love With a Church Girl, a Christian film starring Jeffrey Atkins, better known as Ja Rule. Fly immediately buzzed off hoping to “holla, holla,” (as Ja Rule implored us to do in his big hit).

Last week, Mayor Chuck Reed entered into a very Chamber of Commerce–friendly wager with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley: If the Sharks lose the series against the Blackhawks, a basket of the finest San Jose–made foods and beverages will arrive on Daley’s desk; if the Sharks win, Reed will be elbow deep in Eli’s Cheesecake and Vienna Beef.

And whether or not this currency is anywhere near as interesting as the classics—first-born sons or freshly shaved heads—the list Reed came up with was weak sauce.

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed seems to be headed for a showdown with the city’s unions over the way union pay negotiations are settled. In a May 5 San Jose Rotary Club speech, Reed called publicly for a revision of the City Charter in an audacious move to wrest power away from the unions representing the city’s firefighters and police force. Harking back to his days as a labor lawyer, Reed pointed to a clause in the Charter that forces the city into binding arbitration if and when negotiations with the unions break down.

District 2 Supervisor George Shirakawa Jr. proved himself to be a gentle giant at this morning’s Board of Supervisors meeting, shedding more than a few tears over the controversial Arizona immigration law, SB 1070.

“I’ve tried to suppress my emotions, so hopefully they won’t come out,” he said in opening, but to no avail. Face reddening, the poor guy basically lost it.

Calling Santa Clara County Sheriff Laurie Smith “an absolute jewel,” California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appeared on the elected official’s behalf at a May 5 Los Gatos fundraiser that may have raised close to $100,000 by some early estimates. Smith called it her most successful fundraiser ever.
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