# Brea City Council Compare records and positions simply between Andrew Herrera, Cecilia Hupp, Blake Perez, and 2 more for Brea City Council at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds one of three at-large seats on Brea's City Council. These seats are up this cycle. The council has five members in all. Terms are four years and staggered. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. An appointed city manager runs day-to-day operations. The council picks one of its own members to serve as Mayor. Brea elects its whole council at-large. In 2022, the City Council considered switching to district elections. This followed a 2019 California Voting Rights Act challenge. The council voted against the switch. - Jurisdiction: City of Brea - Election: November 3, 2026 California general election - Seats: 3 - Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements. - Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/brea-council - 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: 89 out of 100 (Strong), across 7 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Andrew Herrera** — Consumer Relations Manager - **Cecilia Hupp** — Councilmember/Business Owner · Incumbent - **Blake Perez** — Public Affairs Manager - **Blair Stewart** — Retired Firefighter/Councilman · Incumbent - **Steven C. Vargas** — Councilman/Business Owner · Incumbent A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Five candidates are running for three at-large seats on Brea's City Council: incumbents Cecilia Hupp, Blair Stewart and Steven C. Vargas against challengers Andrew Herrera and Blake Perez. Vote for up to three -- no runoff. Council seats carry 4-year terms; winners join two sitting councilmembers not up for election this year to make five votes on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside an appointed city manager who runs day-to-day operations. The council selects one of its own members to serve as Mayor. Brea elects its council entirely at-large: in 2019 the city received a notice alleging its at-large system violated the California Voting Rights Act, and rather than litigate it explored switching to by-district elections -- but at its April 5, 2022 meeting the City Council voted not to proceed with that change, so all five seats remain citywide races. Three incumbents are seeking new terms against two challengers for the same three seats: Mayor Cecilia Hupp (first elected 2014), Blair Stewart (elected 2022) and Steven C. Vargas (elected 2014 after an earlier 1998-2002 term) all filed for re-election, facing Andrew Herrera, a consumer relations manager, and Blake Perez, a public affairs manager. With three incumbents and two challengers competing for three seats in an at-large, vote-for-up-to-three contest, the practical choice is less which incumbent to keep and more whether either challenger should displace one of them. ## Cecilia Hupp Cecilia Hupp is Brea's Mayor and the longest-serving of the three incumbents, first elected to the council in November 2014 and re-elected in 2018 and 2022; she previously served as Mayor in 2017 (the city's Centennial Year) and again in 2022. She and her husband Scott opened S&S Home Loans in Brea in 1983, and she has worked in the mortgage industry for more than three decades. Per her own council biography, she has championed senior affordable housing and overseen development at La Floresta, Brea Place and Central Park Village, the conversion of former railroad tracks into the 50-acre Tracks at Brea trail, and the 57 Freeway/Lambert Road interchange project, while describing herself as "a fiscal conservative who believes in prudent spending, as well as transparency in government" -- citing a $10 million PARS irrevocable trust and a 25% fiscal reserve policy. **Strengths:** Twelve years on the council across three terms, including two stints as Mayor. Housing and infrastructure work at La Floresta, Brea Place, Central Park Village, and the Tracks at Brea trail. **Trade-offs:** Her own biography documents accomplishments rather than a platform for a new term. Her long incumbency means no independent critique of her tenure turned up. **Keep in mind:** No independent news coverage of her 2026 campaign was found. No campaign finance figures are available for any candidate in this race. See Financial info. ## Blake Perez Blake Perez is a challenger who filed under the ballot designation "Public Affairs Manager," qualifying for the ballot on July 23, 2026 per the county's own filing record. They hold no city office, and no independent profile, platform statement, or news coverage was found for them in this pass beyond their filed occupation. **Strengths:** A public affairs background. That could bring communications and outreach instincts to a council seat. No record of prior civic or elected experience was found. **Trade-offs:** No campaign statement, platform, or news coverage was found. Voters have no confirmed sense of their priorities beyond their filed occupation. **Keep in mind:** No independent news coverage of their 2026 campaign was found. No campaign finance figures are available for any candidate in this race. See Financial info. ## Andrew Herrera Andrew Herrera is a challenger who filed under the ballot designation "Consumer Relations Manager," qualifying for the ballot on July 28, 2026 per the county's own filing record. They hold no city office, and no independent profile, platform statement, or news coverage was found for them in this pass beyond their filed occupation. **Strengths:** A consumer relations background. That could bring constituent-service instincts to a council seat. No record of prior civic or elected experience was found. **Trade-offs:** No campaign statement, platform, or news coverage was found. Voters have no confirmed sense of their priorities beyond their filed occupation. **Keep in mind:** No independent news coverage of their 2026 campaign was found. No campaign finance figures are available for any candidate in this race. See Financial info. ## Blair Stewart Blair Stewart was elected to the council in November 2022 and served as Mayor in 2025. He has spent 25 years as a Hazardous Materials Firefighter for the Torrance Fire Department, also serving as a Certified Film Safety Officer and Recruitment Specialist, and is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran (eight years' service, four active and four reserve, honorably discharged as Sergeant E5 in 1999). A Brea Olinda High School graduate and lifelong Brea resident, per his own council biography he sits on the city's Development Committee, the Wildlife Corridor Conservation Authority, and the Hillside Open Space Education Coalition, and serves as 2nd Vice President of the League of California Cities' Orange County Division. **Strengths:** A 25-year career as a hazardous materials firefighter. A Marine Corps veteran. One term already, including a year as Mayor in 2025. A regional League of California Cities leadership role. **Trade-offs:** His own biography documents his career and committee seats rather than priorities for a new term. No independent news coverage of his 2026 campaign was found. **Keep in mind:** No independent news coverage of his 2026 campaign was found. No campaign finance figures are available for any candidate in this race. See Financial info. ## Steven C. Vargas Steven Vargas first served on the council from 1998 to 2002, was elected again in November 2014, re-elected in 2018 and 2022, and served as Mayor in 2021. He holds a bachelor's degree in science and technology from Excelsior College and, per his own council biography, worked for the County of Orange's Third District and as an Outreach Coordinator for the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration before a two-decade career as a Construction Safety Specialist at Chevron. He holds the rank of Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy Reserve's Civil Engineering Corps, has been activated five times since 9/11 including a 2008-09 Iraq deployment, and currently serves as Adjutant of Brea's American Legion Post 181. **Strengths:** The longest public safety and civic resume in the field. Prior county and federal staff roles. Two decades at Chevron. He still serves in the Navy Reserve, including a wartime deployment. **Trade-offs:** His own biography documents his career and community roles rather than priorities for a new term. No independent news coverage of his 2026 campaign was found. **Keep in mind:** No independent news coverage of his 2026 campaign was found. No campaign finance figures are available for any candidate in this race. See Financial info. ## Sources 1. [OC Registrar of Voters -- Contest/Candidate Proof List, General Election 11/3/2026 -- City of Brea section (pages 77-79 of 188, downloaded directly and parsed locally with pypdf since a plain fetch returns undecodable PDF stream data): confirms Member City Council (Contest 5012, District ID *505 Brea) as the city's single November 2026 race -- not split by district, Vote for 3, 5 qualified candidates -- naming incumbents Cecilia Hupp, Steven C. Vargas and Blair Stewart, and each candidate's filed ballot designation and filing date](https://ocvote.gov/fileadmin/user_upload/data/candlog/GEN2026/candlog.pdf) 2. [City of Brea -- Elections page: confirms "a five-member City Council that is elected at-large," 4-year terms, three at-large seats up in the November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election, and names all five qualified candidates (Andrew Herrera, Cecilia Hupp, Blake Perez, Blair Stewart, Steven C. Vargas)](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/524/Elections) 3. [City of Brea -- City Council page: names the sitting five-member at-large council (Mayor Cecilia Hupp, Mayor Pro Tem Marty Simonoff, Christine Marick, Blair Stewart, Steven Vargas)](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/511/City-Council) 4. [City of Brea -- Districting Background page: a May 2019 notice alleged the city's at-large system violated the California Voting Rights Act; the city explored a by-district transition rather than litigate, but at its April 5, 2022 meeting the City Council voted not to proceed, leaving the city fully at-large](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/1581/Background) 5. [City of Brea -- Mayor Cecilia Hupp official council-member biography: first elected Nov. 2014, re-elected 2018 and 2022, Mayor in 2017 and 2022; co-founder of S&S Home Loans (1983); housing and infrastructure record (La Floresta, Brea Place, Central Park Village, the Tracks at Brea trail, 57/Lambert interchange); regional committee seats](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/Directory.aspx?EID=3) 6. [City of Brea -- Blair Stewart official council-member biography: elected Nov. 2022, Mayor in 2025; 25-year Hazardous Materials Firefighter for Torrance Fire Department; U.S. Marine Corps veteran; Brea Olinda High School graduate; city and regional committee seats](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/Directory.aspx?EID=2) 7. [City of Brea -- Steven Vargas official council-member biography: council service 1998-2002 and again from Nov. 2014 (re-elected 2018, 2022), Mayor in 2021; prior County of Orange and federal staff roles; two decades as a Construction Safety Specialist at Chevron; U.S. Navy Reserve Lieutenant Commander, activated five times since 9/11 including a 2008-09 Iraq deployment](https://www.cityofbrea.gov/Directory.aspx?EID=5) ## The rest of the ballot Brea City Council 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, "Brea City Council — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/brea-council (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.