# Bakersfield City Council, Ward 3 Compare records and positions simply between Kathryn Halling, Seth Hewett, and 3 more for Bakersfield City Council, Ward 3 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person would hold one of seven ward seats on Bakersfield's City Council. The Mayor is elected separately and directly. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Bakersfield is a Kern County city of about 403,000 residents. Terms are four years and staggered. Roughly half the seven wards are up every two years. Wards 1, 3, 4, and 7 are up this cycle. Wards 2, 5, and 6 were elected in 2024 and are not up. Mayor Karen Goh is not on this ballot. She was last elected in 2024, and her term runs through 2028. Bakersfield has no elected City Clerk or City Treasurer. Both are appointed positions. - Jurisdiction: City of Bakersfield - 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/bakersfield-council-3 - 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: October 6, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 83 out of 100 (Strong), across 11 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Kathryn Halling** - **Seth Hewett** - **Juan Carlos "JC" Llamas** - **Pedro Naveiras** - **Cassie Bittle** A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. A genuinely open, five-way race: 20-year incumbent Ken Weir isn't running again, and Cassie Bittle, Kathryn Halling, Seth Hewett, JC Llamas, and Pedro Naveiras are competing to replace him. No run-off -- the plurality winner takes the seat. This person would hold one of seven ward seats on Bakersfield's City Council, alongside a separately, directly elected Mayor. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this Kern County city of about 403,000 residents. The term is four years. Bakersfield has no separately elected City Clerk or City Treasurer; both are appointed positions. This is the shard's only open seat among Bakersfield's four races up this cycle: incumbent Ken Weir announced in June 2026 he would not seek reelection after 20 years on the Council. Because of that, Ward 3's candidate-filing period was extended to Aug. 12, five days past the other three wards' deadline. A sixth potential candidate, Regina Velasquez, pulled nomination papers for this seat but never returned them -- she is a qualified candidate for a different office this cycle, Kern County Board of Education Trustee Area 3, a separate contest elsewhere on this ballot. A seventh name, Johnny Olaguez, is listed by Ballotpedia as a filer who did not make the ballot. ## Cassie Bittle A Bakersfield Planning Commissioner and local business owner (her family owns KC Steakhouse), Bittle is a Ridgeview High School graduate who has lived downtown for 14 years. She joined the Downtown Business Association in 2018 and has collaborated with Flood Ministries, a nonprofit serving people living on the streets. Her stated platform centers on homelessness, jail beds and housing, and the city's upcoming General Plan update. She was endorsed at her June announcement by Kern County Supervisor Jeff Flores and Downtown Business Association board member Cathy Butler. **Strengths:** A sitting Planning Commissioner's direct familiarity with land-use process, an early and well-attended campaign launch, and endorsements from a county supervisor and a downtown business leader. **Trade-offs:** Planning Commission experience is advisory, not legislative -- it doesn't carry a voting record on budget or ordinance questions the way a prior Council seat would. **Keep in mind:** Her family restaurant sits on F Street, the same downtown corridor her Supervisor endorser praised her for improving -- a direct, disclosed stake in the district she'd help govern, not a hidden one. ## Kathryn Halling A local business owner endorsed by Assemblymember Stan Ellis (R-Bakersfield) and McFarland Mayor Saul Ayon. In her Vote411 questionnaire she describes herself as a bookkeeper and small-business owner, a former educator, a wife and a mother, and says running a business taught her to balance a budget and cut unnecessary waste. Her three stated priorities are safety; fiscal discipline and transparency; and infrastructure, listed under the heading "Core Responsibilities First." She adds that she would hold city government to the same budget discipline and transparent spending she says families and businesses practice, while supporting public safety and responsible development. **Strengths:** By her own account, small-business budgeting experience and a background as a former educator, with a short, plain list of priorities: safety, fiscal discipline and infrastructure. **Trade-offs:** Her priorities answer is a four-line list without specifics, so a voter gives up detail on what she would fund first or how she would handle land use. **Keep in mind:** Her case rests on her own questionnaire; her work as a bookkeeper, business owner and educator was not independently confirmed. ## Seth Hewett A 26-year-old "City Hall Fellow" in Policy & Operations for the Bakersfield Fire Department, Hewett holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from Westmont College and a Master of Public Administration from USC's Sol Price School. He launched his campaign on his 26th birthday, Jan. 5, 2026, at the Kern County Rescue Mission, and is Kern Kiwanis President-Elect. His platform includes an AI-powered city-budget transparency portal, a revived citizen emergency-preparedness training program, and video public comment for Council meetings. **Strengths:** Current, inside experience with city operations via his Fire Department fellowship, graduate training in public administration, and a detailed policy platform published on his own campaign site. **Trade-offs:** At 26, with no prior elected experience, he would be the least tenured member of a Council whose other three 2026 races all feature multi-term or long-serving incumbents. **Keep in mind:** His current City Hall Fellow role sits inside city government (Fire Department) rather than outside it, which is a source of direct operational knowledge but also means a Council seat would change his relationship to his own current employer. ## Juan Carlos "JC" Llamas A professional fighter who announced their candidacy in February 2026 -- a year before the nomination period even opened -- and was certified as a candidate in early August. No further independent biographical detail was found beyond their occupation and the timeline of their filing. **Strengths:** The earliest campaign announcement of any candidate in this race, suggesting sustained commitment to the run. **Trade-offs:** No independent reporting on their platform, prior civic involvement, or policy positions was found this session. **Keep in mind:** A professional-fighting career is a genuinely different background from the other four Ward 3 candidates (business owner, city fellow, prosecutor) -- whether that outsider profile appeals to you is a values question this dataset can't answer for you. ## Pedro Naveiras A federal prosecutor and former Kern County deputy district attorney. No further independent biographical detail was found beyond their legal career. **Strengths:** A legal and prosecutorial background that touches directly on public-safety policy, one of this race's live issues (Bittle and Smith elsewhere on this ballot both cite jail capacity, for instance). **Trade-offs:** No independent reporting describes their campaign platform, endorsements, or stated priorities for the Council seat specifically. **Keep in mind:** A federal prosecutor's job is distinct from city governance -- budget, land use, and ordinance-writing are not core prosecutorial work, so their legal background is relevant but not a direct preview of their Council performance. ## Review notes - Seth Hewett's own campaign site (hewettwilldoit.com): Hewett, 26, is a Bakersfield Fire Department "City Hall Fellow" in Policy & Operations, holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from Westmont College and a Master of Public Administration from USC's Sol Price School, launched his campaign Jan. 5, 2026 at the Kern County Rescue Mission, and is Kern Kiwanis President-Elect; platform pages describe an AI-powered city-budget transparency portal, a revived citizen emergency-preparedness training program, and video public comment for Council meetings. may have more bias because it is an advocacy voter guide compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources. ## Sources 1. [Ballotpedia -- "City elections in Bakersfield, California (2026)": the full November 3, 2026 City Council candidate roster by ward -- Ward 1 (incumbent Eric Arias, Mercy Peña), Ward 3 (Cassie Bittle, Kathryn Halling, Seth Hewett, Juan Carlos "JC" Llamas, Pedro Naveiras; Johnny Olaguez listed separately as not making the ballot), Ward 4 (incumbent Bob Smith, Ryan Crowl), and Ward 7 (incumbent Manpreet Kaur, Angie Valdez) -- with an Aug. 7, 2026 filing deadline](https://ballotpedia.org/City_elections_in_Bakersfield,_California_(2026)) 2. [Ballotpedia -- "Bakersfield, California": its City Council table gives a "Date term ends" year for every sitting member -- Wards 1, 3, 4, and 7 all read 2026, Wards 2, 5, and 6 all read 2028 -- and its election-history section states that in 2014, three cycles (12 years) prior on the same staggered rotation, "Wards 1, 3, 4 and 7 were up for election"; also confirms Mayor Karen Goh's term runs through 2028 after a combined Mayor-and-Council election in November 2024, and that the Nov. 3, 2026 City Council filing deadline was Aug. 7, 2026](https://ballotpedia.org/Bakersfield,_California) 3. [The Bakersfield Californian -- "Local election filing closes, with six potential candidates for Ward 3" (Peter Segall, Aug. 7, 2026): confirms Wards 1, 3, 4, and 7 are up this cycle, that Ward 3's filing period was extended to Aug. 12 because incumbent Ken Weir was not running, and transcribes the full candidate roster "listed online by the Kern County Elections Division as of 5 p.m. Friday" for every Bakersfield ward race -- names City Clerk Julie Drimakis as the office confirming candidate status](https://www.bakersfield.com/news/local-election-filing-closes-with-six-potential-candidates-for-ward-3/article_9fd8aab6-a8d5-4ec0-bf01-1fb95bb2c4ec.html) 4. [The Bakersfield Californian -- "City Council incumbents draw challengers ahead of Aug. 7 filing deadline" (July 31, 2026): earlier-stage filing status for all four Bakersfield ward races -- Ward 3 already the most competitive with four declared candidates and no certified incumbent bid; Ward 4 incumbent Bob Smith ("serving since 2012") facing challenger Ryan Crowl; Ward 1 incumbent Eric Arias facing Mercy Peña, a Greenfield Union School District trustee; Ward 7 incumbent Manpreet Kaur facing Angie Valdez](https://www.bakersfield.com/news/city-council-incumbents-draw-challengers-ahead-of-aug-7-filing-deadline/article_c05e2155-8529-4fef-a9bc-7452dfcec7ab.html) 5. [Wikipedia -- "Bakersfield City Council": a 7-member council elected from single-member wards to staggered 4-year terms, presided over by a directly elected Mayor; names the current roster by ward and party and the council's standing committees](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakersfield_City_Council) 6. [Kern County Elections Division -- its own "November 3, 2026, General Election" landing page, confirming the election date and linking to (but not itself substituting for) the county's "Candidate List" and "Contest/Candidate Proof List" documents; fetched via an Internet Archive Wayback Machine snapshot from Aug. 28, 2026 after the live site's WAF returned HTTP 403 to every direct automated fetch, the same block already documented elsewhere in this dataset for Kern County's own Board of Education filing](https://web.archive.org/web/20260828045357/https://www.kernvote.com/elections/upcoming-elections/november-3-2026-general-election) 7. [The Bakersfield Californian -- "Packed race for Ward 3 gives any candidate a chance" (Peter Segall, Aug. 12, 2026): reports Ward 3 has no run-off, so the plurality winner takes the seat; JC Llamas, a professional fighter, announced in February and was certified "last week"; Cassie Bittle, a local business owner, announced in June with an endorsement from Kern County Supervisor Jeff Flores; Kathryn Halling, a local business owner, is endorsed by Assemblymember Stan Ellis and McFarland Mayor Saul Ayon; Pedro Naveiras is a federal prosecutor and former Kern County deputy district attorney; Seth Hewett, a 26-year-old master's student, was still awaiting signature verification as of this piece; Regina Valasquez pulled but never returned nomination papers](https://www.bakersfield.com/news/packed-race-for-ward-3-gives-any-candidate-a-chance/article_ae315cfd-3037-4edc-99c6-33f017ee62cb.html) 8. [The Bakersfield Californian -- "Bittle announces run for Ward 3 Bakersfield City Council seat" (John Cox, June 24, 2026): Cassie Bittle is a Bakersfield Planning Commissioner and a graduate of Ridgeview High School who has lived downtown 14 years; her family owns KC Steakhouse; she joined the Downtown Business Association in 2018 and has collaborated with Flood Ministries; her platform names homelessness, jail beds and housing, and the city's General Plan update; endorsed at her announcement by Kern County Supervisor Jeff Flores and Downtown Business Association board member Cathy Butler](https://www.bakersfield.com/news/bittle-announces-run-for-ward-3-bakersfield-city-council-seat/article_0cfcf741-4c18-4a46-b789-22617349382c.html) 9. [Seth Hewett's own campaign site (hewettwilldoit.com): Hewett, 26, is a Bakersfield Fire Department "City Hall Fellow" in Policy & Operations, holds a B.A. in Communication Studies from Westmont College and a Master of Public Administration from USC's Sol Price School, launched his campaign Jan. 5, 2026 at the Kern County Rescue Mission, and is Kern Kiwanis President-Elect; platform pages describe an AI-powered city-budget transparency portal, a revived citizen emergency-preparedness training program, and video public comment for Council meetings](https://hewettwilldoit.com) 10. [Ballotpedia -- Ken Weir: confirms he assumed office in 2006, his current (final) term ends in 2026, and that he "did not run for re-election to Bakersfield City Council Ward 3" this cycle after 20 years on the Council; separately confirms he lost a 2024 run for California State Assembly District 32](https://ballotpedia.org/Ken_Weir) 11. [League of Women Voters -- Vote411 voter guide, 'City of Bakersfield City Council Member, Ward 3' race (statewide All Races list): each candidate's self-submitted ballot designation and campaign contacts, plus answers to the League's questions -- top three priorities; qualifying background, experience and education. Answers on file from Kathryn Halling. Capture in data/nov-2026/sources/vote411/bakersfield-council-3.json.](https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote) ## The rest of the ballot Bakersfield City Council, Ward 3 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, "Bakersfield City Council, Ward 3 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/bakersfield-council-3 (sources last retrieved October 6, 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.