Meet The Dublin Candidate: Daniel Hor

DUBLIN, CA — Patch reached out to all candidates running for mayor and city council in Dublin, and reprinted their answers to our questionnaire verbatim.

In Dublin, three candidates are running for mayor, including incumbent Sherry Hu. Four candidates are running for Council District 2, in the northeastern part of the city; and two candidates are running for District 4 in the southeast, including incumbent Kashef Qaadri.

Dublin switched to district-based elections in 2024, and this is the first year that Districts 2 and 4 are electing their own candidates.

Below, read the responses of Daniel Hor, a UX researcher and former journalist running to represent District 2.

What is your educational background?

I have a Master’s in Psychology and a Bachelor’s in Computer Science. My educational background provides a solid foundation for understanding issues in society as well as complex, technical systems through an analytical, data-driven, and people-centered approach.

What is your professional background?

I am a user experience researcher with more than a decade of professional experience conducting research to uncover user needs, design practical solutions, and improve products, experiences, and systems for real people. Prior to my career in tech and UX, I spent seven years as a news copy editor and a writer at a national newspaper. That journalism background instilled in me an appreciation of good communication, transparency, and understanding different perspectives.

Have you ever held public office, whether appointive or elective?

I have not held elected public office. However, I have served Dublin in appointed civic leadership roles. I am currently the secretary on the Dublin Unified School District’s Citizens Bond Oversight Committee, and a treasurer for the Shamrock Hills School Parent Faculty Club, and have served in several temporary committees for our city and school district. These roles give me direct experience advocating for residents and serving public interests.

What are the top three issues facing Dublin right now?

The top three issues in Dublin are growth management, budget management, and keeping our quality of life high. Dublin is still growing and has development projects planned for the near future. While I generally support growth that can bring in good money, jobs, and facilities for our residents, we need to ensure that this growth is adequately supported with infrastructure and city services that grow along with our population. Taking steps to balance our budget is also important – with an operating deficit projected in a few years, it’s important we start taking steps now to prepare for that. Finally, Dublin has been a safe and welcoming city that has kept many of us here for decades and drawn many more in recent years. It’s vital that we continue to keep people safe, keep city services working well, and keep maintaining our standard of living even as we grow and face future challenges.

What is one specific action you would prioritize during your first year in office?

I will prioritize maintaining the systems and processes that have worked well for our city in getting us where we are today, and finding ways to improve areas that need them. It’s clear from our continued high quality of life and overall resident satisfaction that people are generally happy with life in Dublin. While I believe in promoting change when warranted, there is also merit in proceeding carefully and maintaining a system that already works. As the saying goes, “if it ain't broke, don’t fix it”.

Dublin continues to add housing and consider new developments. How should the city determine where additional growth belongs, and how should it ensure that transportation, schools and other infrastructure keep pace?

Growth must be handled purposefully, with strong consideration for people’s needs, and with infrastructure growth built into the plan. As Dublin’s growth efforts shift towards medium- and higher-density residences as well as affordable housing, building such projects near key transit facilities like our two local BART stations, bus services, and main roads will help provide residents with easy access to local and regional locations and alleviate the need for new transportation infrastructure. Additionally, planning growth projects as “transit-oriented development” – with mixed-use development of commercial spaces and residences within a compact, walkable area – will also help. City leaders must also continue close, transparent cooperation with our Dublin Unified School District counterparts and other agencies to ensure that aspects like school capacity, public safety, and city services are accounted for.

What is your vision for Downtown Dublin, and what concrete action would you take to create a more distinctive, walkable and economically successful city center?

I generally support the city’s plan for a Downtown Dublin project within walking distance to the West Dublin / Pleasanton BART station as detailed in our “Downtown Dublin Preferred Vision”. As the vision already accounts for elements that residents desire, like a town square focal point, pedestrian-friendly areas, and vibrant retail and dining spaces, I will focus on supporting the implementation of a project that retains as much of that vision as feasible. Additionally, I will also support measures that can attract and make it easier for unique local and independent businesses to set up shop within Downtown Dublin, to create a distinctive attraction that adds character to our city. I will also support coordination with LAVTA / Wheels to encourage use of public transportation from within Dublin and neighboring cities to Downtown Dublin.

How do we best ensure Dublin remains a safe community?

We can ensure Dublin remains a safe community by continuing our support and coordination with our Dublin police and fire departments as well as our city’s public safety initiatives like the earthquake emergency preparedness program to ensure they are well resourced to handle the needs of our growing city. Additionally, we should also continue investing in and implementing projects that improve traffic safety, like our city’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan, traffic infrastructure projects and upgrades, as well as resident outreach to understand any additional needs, like local traffic safety concerns between residential neighborhoods and nearby parks and schools.

Why do you feel you're a better candidate than your opponents?

I bring a unique combination of civic leadership through my community involvement in Dublin and technical, analytical, and people-focused skills through my professional background as a user experience researcher and former journalist. My interests in serving our community are already proven through my volunteer work, and I see my candidacy for city council as a natural progression of that same spirit of civic duty. I believe that progress starts with you and me, and requires ordinary people getting involved to build the kind of society we want for our future.