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City of Berkeley · Statewide General Election

Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board

Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.

This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.

On the ballot

This person would hold one of five seats up this cycle on Berkeley's nine-member Rent Stabilization Board, which regulates rent increases and eviction protections for the city's rent-controlled units. A 4-year term, decided by plurality vote -- not ranked-choice.

Six candidates -- including incumbents Ida Martinac and Nathan Mizell -- are running for five open Rent Stabilization Board seats: vote for up to five, and the five highest vote-getters win. A third incumbent, Vanessa Marrero, did not qualify for the ballot.

This person would hold one of five seats up this cycle on Berkeley's nine-member Rent Stabilization Board, which regulates rent increases and eviction protections for the city's rent-controlled units. A 4-year term (commissioners generally serve a maximum of two, per the Rent Board's own rules), decided by plurality vote -- not ranked-choice.

Rent Board Commissioner Vanessa Marrero, one of three incumbents whose terms expire this cycle, did not qualify for the ballot: Berkeleyside reported the county Registrar found her nomination-signature petition two signatures short of the 20 required for an incumbent seeking reelection by the Aug. 7, 2026 deadline. Marrero told Berkeleyside she is pursuing a legal challenge, saying a disability-accommodation request for more time was wrongly denied; the City Clerk's office told Berkeleyside the filing deadline is set by state law and the city had no authority to extend it. Both accounts are Berkeleyside's own attributed reporting; as of this dataset's retrieval, Marrero is not on either official candidate list.

Avery Arbaugh

Avery Arbaugh chairs the Berkeley Tenants Union and previously served on the city's Labor Commission; her ballot designation is Tenant Union Organizer. She ran unsuccessfully for a Rent Board seat in 2024; no 2026 Form 460 was on file for her current campaign as of this dataset's retrieval.

Strengths

Direct tenant-organizing leadership and a prior Labor Commission appointment give her a tenant-advocacy record distinct from the sitting incumbents.

Trade-offs

Her 2024 Rent Board run was unsuccessful, and no 2026 fundraising record was located in this pass to gauge this run's traction.

Keep in mind

Chairing a tenant-advocacy organization is itself a real credential, not evidence of how she would vote on any specific Board matter.

Carole Marasovic

Carole Marasovic is an attorney who chairs the city's Homeless Services Panel of Experts and serves on the Peace and Justice Commission and Community Health Commission; her ballot designation is Attorney/City Commissioner. Her committee, Carole Marasovic for Rent Board 2026, reported $0 in contributions and $0 in expenditures for the first half of 2026.

Strengths

The field's broadest current commission portfolio -- homelessness, peace and justice, and community health -- spanning issues that intersect with housing stability.

Trade-offs

Her H1 2026 Form 460 shows zero fundraising activity, an active but currently dormant campaign committee.

Keep in mind

An attorney and multi-commission volunteer background is broad civic experience, not itself Rent Board-specific policy experience.

Ida Martinac

Ida Martinac is a sitting Rent Stabilization Board commissioner seeking reelection; her ballot designation is Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner. No 2026 Form 460 was on file for her committee as of this dataset's retrieval, only initial organizing paperwork filed in May 2026.

Strengths

Current Board service gives her direct institutional knowledge of the Rent Board's work and a completed term to run on.

Trade-offs

No 2026 fundraising record was located in this pass, so there's no way to compare her campaign's traction to the other five candidates'.

Keep in mind

Incumbency here means a partial term or a prior election win, not automatic reelection -- five seats and six candidates means one candidate will not return.

Nathan Mizell

Nathan Mizell is a sitting Rent Stabilization Board commissioner seeking reelection; his ballot designation is Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner. An interim Jan. 1-May 10, 2026 campaign-finance report on file for his committee shows $0 in contributions and $0 in expenditures for that window.

Strengths

Current Board service and an extensive multi-cycle campaign-finance filing history dating to his first Rent Board run.

Trade-offs

His most recent filing on record shows no fundraising activity through early May 2026.

Keep in mind

Like Martinac, his incumbency reflects a prior win, not a guarantee -- one of the two incumbent commissioners running, plus challenger candidates, will not win one of the five seats.

Vylma Ortiz

Vylma Ortiz is an attorney and meditation teacher; her ballot designation is Attorney/Meditation Teacher. No 2026 Form 460 was on file for her campaign as of this dataset's retrieval, only initial organizing paperwork filed in May 2026.

Strengths

A legal background relevant to the Rent Board's adjudicative petition process.

Trade-offs

No fundraising record and no prior city commission service were located in this pass.

Keep in mind

This dataset found no independent news coverage of her candidacy beyond Berkeleyside's own roundup.

Derek Rodriguez

Derek Rodriguez is a UC Berkeley student and Army veteran; his ballot designation is Student/National Guardsman. No 2026 Form 460 was on file for his campaign as of this dataset's retrieval, only initial organizing paperwork filed in May 2026.

Strengths

A distinct background among the six candidates, combining current student status with military service.

Trade-offs

No fundraising record and, as a current student, likely the shortest local civic-service record in the field.

Keep in mind

This dataset found no independent news coverage of his candidacy beyond Berkeleyside's own roundup.

Source review: Very strong (92/100) · 8 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with several source types checked for context.

  • berkeleyca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Berkeley -- City Clerk Mark Numainville's signed "Nominees for Public Office" notice for the Nov. 3, 2026 General Municipal Election (dated Aug. 19, 2026): lists all 23 candidates across all seven Berkeley races in ballot order with their exact ballot designations -- Auditor, Council Districts 1/4/7/8, Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner, and School Board Director.
  • alamedacountyca.gov (opens in a new tab)Alameda County Registrar of Voters -- own JSON API behind its "Candidate List" web app (electionId 260 = General Election - 11/03/2026, Official): the candidatelist/260 endpoint returns every race category countywide with no County category at all (zero Board of Supervisors/row-office/judicial seats on the Nov. 2026 general), and the racelist/260/600 endpoint names all 46 City-category races countywide, including the exact seven Berkeley races (four Council districts, Auditor, Rent Stabilization Board, School Directors) with their raceIds and vote-for-N seat counts -- confirming Alameda County publishes a unified countywide candidate document, unlike Santa Clara County.
  • alamedacountyca.gov (opens in a new tab)Alameda County Registrar of Voters -- the same candidatelist app's per-race candidate-detail view (POST to /rov_app/candidatelist/ with electionId=260 and each Berkeley raceId), queried directly for all seven Berkeley races: returns each candidate's exact ballot designation, filing agency, and on-ballot status -- the same roster as the City Clerk's own Notice of Candidates, independently confirming all 23 names and designations.
  • berkeleyca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Berkeley -- "Candidate Information" elections page: states which offices are elected on the presidential cycle (Mayor; Council Districts 2, 3, 5, 6) versus the gubernatorial cycle (Auditor; Council Districts 1, 4, 7, 8) -- both alongside Rent Board and School Board, which are elected every cycle -- and states the vote-threshold rule: Mayor/Auditor/Council require ranked-choice majority; Rent Board/School Board are decided by plurality.
  • berkeleyca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Berkeley -- "Voting Information" elections page: states in full how Berkeley's ranked-choice voting works for Mayor, City Council, and Auditor (voters may rank up to five choices; last-place elimination repeats until one candidate has a majority) and that Rent Stabilization Board and School Board are decided by plurality vote instead, "typically multiple candidates elected at each election."
  • berkeleyside.org (opens in a new tab)Berkeleyside -- "Election 2026: Who's running for Berkeley City Council, school board and more" (originally published Aug. 14, 2026, updated Aug. 19, 2026 to report Fred Feller's withdrawal from the District 8 race), read in full: profiles every 2026 candidate across all seven Berkeley races by name, occupation, and background; reports incumbent Rashi Kesarwani (D1), Cecilia Lunaparra (D7), and Lori Droste's since-2022 successor context are not seeking reelection; and reports Rent Board incumbent Vanessa Marrero's disqualification from the ballot over a signature shortfall and her stated plan to challenge it.
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)City of Berkeley's own NetFile-hosted public campaign-finance portal (aid=BRK), queried directly via its own QuickNameSearch and filings/byCandidate JSON API for all 23 2026 candidates, with each candidate's most recent 2026 FPPC Form 460 (the Jan. 1-June 30, 2026 semi-annual statement) downloaded directly via the portal's own CampaignDocuments/download endpoint and read for its actual reported totals. Real H1 2026 totals (monetary contributions raised / total expenditures / public-financing matching funds received, where applicable): Jenny Wong (Auditor) $6,916 / $1,109; Laura Babitt (D1) no 2026 committee Form 460 on file yet, only a Form 410/501 -- her filings show active participation in the city's public-financing matching-funds program; Ross Bernet (D1) $4,449 / $209; Moni Gangopadhyay (D1) $3,307 (incl. $500 nonmonetary) / $2,163; Steve Kromer (D1) no committee located; Daria Wrubel (D1) $120 / $0; Igor Tregub (D4) $10,287 / $3,405, plus $20,670 in public matching funds; Majdi "Gaith" Abuhamdieh (D4) no Form 460 on file, only a Form 410/501; Aidan Hill (D7) $1,102 / $257 on his current District 7 committee (a separate, older "Aidan Hill for Berkeley City Council 2022" committee also remains on file from a prior run, not further researched here); Syrak Micael (D7) $5,698 / $4,444, plus $12,600 in public matching funds; Mark Humbert (D8) $1,630 / $56; Michael Wallman and Fred Feller (D8) no Form 460 on file, only a Form 410/501 each; Mari Mendonca (D8) an active committee reporting $0 contributions and $0 expenditures this period; Carole Marasovic (Rent Board) an active committee reporting $0 contributions and $0 expenditures this period; Avery Arbaugh (Rent Board) no 2026 Form 460 on file, only records from an unsuccessful 2024 Rent Board run; Ida Martinac (Rent Board) no 2026 Form 460 on file yet, only a Form 410/501; Nathan Mizell (Rent Board) an interim Jan. 1-May 10, 2026 report showing $0 contributions and $0 expenditures; Vylma Ortiz and Derek Rodriguez (Rent Board) no Form 460 on file, only a Form 410/501 each; Sandy Park (School Board) $1,860 / $138; Jennifer Shanoski (School Board) $5,410 / $662, plus $19,140 in public matching funds; Ka'Dijah Brown (School Board) filed her new 2026 committee's organizing paperwork July 23, 2026, after the H1 reporting window closed, so no H1 2026 Form 460 exists for it yet.
  • en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia's Berkeley, California article -- 2020 census population (124,321), the 4th-largest city in Alameda County.

Last updated September 1, 2026.