A native of Orange County, Silva earned his Bachelor of Arts in Business from San Jose State University and a master's degree from Chapman University.
He was an economics teacher in the Garden Grove Unified School District from 1966 until 1994, when he was elected to the Orange County Board of Supervisors.
Silva served on the Huntington Beach City Council from 1988 until 1994, when he was elected to the Board of Supervisors.
Silva served three terms as a member of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, representing the second district from 1995 to 2006, when he was elected to the State Assembly.
Silva is a former member of the Orange County Transportation Authority, Orange County Sanitation District, South Coast Air Quality Management District, and LAFCO.