# Azusa City Council, District 1 Compare records and positions simply between Mark A. Caro, Patricia "Trish" Gonzales, or Andrew N. Mendez for Azusa City Council, District 1 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on Azusa's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years. - Jurisdiction: City of Azusa - Election: November 3, 2026 California general election - Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements. - Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/azusa-council-1 - Full ballot: this page covers one race. Every contest on a voter's own ballot, by address, with the same breakdown for each: https://voteorelse.com/ - Sources last retrieved: August 31, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 84 out of 100 (Strong), across 8 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Mark A. Caro** - **Patricia "Trish" Gonzales** - **Andrew N. Mendez** — Incumbent A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Three candidates are running for the District 1 seat on Azusa's City Council. Incumbent Andrew N. Mendez faces Mark A. Caro and Patricia "Trish" Gonzales. The current term of Mendez ends November 2026. This is the first election under the district lines Azusa redrew in 2024. Whoever gets the most votes wins outright. There is no primary or runoff. The winner joins Azusa's 5-member City Council for a 4-year term — one of five votes on the city's budget, ordinances, and land-use decisions. Day-to-day operations run through an appointed city manager, not any single council member, and the council separately selects one of its own to serve as the largely ceremonial Mayor. With one sitting councilmember on the ballot against two first-time candidates, the practical choice is whether Mendez's council record should continue or be replaced by a first term for Caro or Gonzales. Azusa's own election filings describe no candidate as ballot-eligible to claim "incumbent" status in District 1 this cycle — a consequence of the 2024 redistricting, not a sign Mendez is new to the seat. ## Mark A. Caro Caro is a first-time candidate for Azusa City Council. They live in the city's Villa Azusa community. They have taken part in city planning matters. The city's own council agenda record shows a public comment from Caro backing the Azusa Greens Redevelopment Project. Their own campaign statements have floated growing the city's cultural offerings. Those ideas include a new music venue and a yearly music festival. **Strengths:** Caro has taken part in city government directly. That includes public comment on a major local redevelopment project. **Trade-offs:** They have held no elected or appointed government job. There is no record to weigh against their campaign statements. **Keep in mind:** Their public platform leans on cultural and economic ideas more than a record in office. Most of the job is budget and land use votes. How they would approach those is untested. ## Patricia "Trish" Gonzales Gonzales is a first-time candidate for Azusa City Council. Community records list Gonzales as Board President of the San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center for the current term. That nonprofit serves people with developmental disabilities. They are also an active member of the Azusa Eagles, a fraternal and civic organization. No detailed council policy platform was found in public materials as of this writing. **Strengths:** Gonzales has led outside city government. That includes a current term as a nonprofit board president. They are also visible in local civic life. **Trade-offs:** They have held no elected or appointed government job. No detailed policy platform was found in public materials as of this writing. **Keep in mind:** Nonprofit board leadership speaks to running an organization. It says little about their stand on the budget and land use questions the council votes on. ## Andrew N. Mendez Mendez holds the District 1 seat now and is running again. Their current term ends November 2026. They were raised in Azusa. Their campaign site cites work on infrastructure and support for local businesses in office. Their stated platform spans economic growth and public safety. It also covers programs for youth, working families, and seniors, plus a balanced city budget. **Strengths:** Mendez is the only candidate here with a council voting record. Their stated platform spans economic growth, public safety, and family and senior programs. **Trade-offs:** Azusa's filings list no ballot-eligible incumbent for District 1 this cycle. That is a technicality tied to the districts redrawn in 2024. It does not erase their tenure or show on the ballot. **Keep in mind:** Their record on District 1 votes is the more useful comparison. Their platform's priorities are stated in terms common to most council campaigns. ## Review notes - Andrew Mendez for Azusa City Council (District 1 re-election campaign site) may have more bias because it is an advocacy voter guide compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources. ## Sources 1. [City of Azusa — Certified List of Qualified Candidates, General Municipal Election, November 3, 2026](https://www.azusaca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/51836) 2. [City of Azusa — Election Information (nomination period, unofficial candidate list, districting note)](https://www.azusaca.gov/1532/Election-Information) 3. [City of Azusa — City Council (current members, districts, term-end dates)](https://www.azusaca.gov/72/City-Council-Members) 4. [Andrew Mendez for Azusa City Council (District 1 re-election campaign site)](https://andrewforazusa.com) 5. [City of Azusa — Jan. 20, 2026 City Council agenda packet (public comment log naming Mark Caro's support for the Azusa Greens Redevelopment Project)](https://azusa.granicus.com) 6. [San Gabriel/Pomona Regional Center — FY2025-2026 Board of Directors (Trish Gonzales, Board President)](https://www.instagram.com/sgp_rc/) 7. [City of Azusa — Campaign Statements (FPPC filing-officer page; committee status by officeholder, no dollar figures online)](https://www.azusaca.gov/1881/Campaign-Statements) 8. [CA Secretary of State — Cal-Access committee record, Mendez for Azusa City Council 2022 (Filer ID 1393328)](https://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/Detail.aspx?id=1393328) ## The rest of the ballot Azusa City Council, District 1 is one contest among the many a California voter decides on November 3, 2026 — Congress, the Legislature, county, city, and school board races differ by address. Vote or Else builds the full list for any California address and breaks down each contest the way this page does, with no account and without storing the address: https://voteorelse.com/ ## How to cite this page Vote or Else, "Azusa City Council, District 1 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/azusa-council-1 (sources last retrieved August 31, 2026). Link the canonical page above rather than this Markdown file. Coverage is updated as the race develops, so quote it with its retrieval date.