# City of Burbank — City Council Compare records and positions simply between Jackie Waltman, Samantha Wick, Eddy Polon, and 10 more for City of Burbank — City Council at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds one of three at-large seats up this cycle. The seats are on Burbank's City Council. The council has five members, elected to four-year terms. They vote on the city budget, land use, and zoning. They also oversee Burbank Water and Power and the police and fire departments. Each year, the council selects one of its own to serve as Mayor. The Mayor is not a separately elected office. - Jurisdiction: City of Burbank - 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/burbank-city-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: September 1, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 91 out of 100 (Very strong), across 5 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Jackie Waltman** - **Samantha Wick** - **Eddy Polon** - **JT Parr** - **Nikki Perez** — Incumbent - **Jonathan Ontiveros** - **David Donahue** - **Nolan Southerland** - **Robbie Brody** - **Chris Yoosefi** - **Mike Van Gorder** - **Hovanes Tonoyan** - **Tamala Takahashi** — Incumbent A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Thirteen candidates are running for three of Burbank's five City Council seats on November 3. Two incumbents are seeking reelection. They are Mayor Tamala Takahashi and Councilmember Nikki Perez. A third incumbent, Zizette Mullins, announced she will not seek another term. There is no primary. All 13 go straight to November, and the three highest vote-getters win. Each winner serves a 4-year term on Burbank's 5-member council, which sets the city budget, land use and zoning, and oversees Burbank Water and Power, the police and fire departments, and other city operations. The council elects one of its own to serve as Mayor each year — a role separate from this election, not a directly elected office — and the two seats not up this cycle, held by Konstantine Anthony and Christopher Rizzotti, continue on their own term schedule. This cycle turns on how far Burbank leans into new housing and tenant protections: several candidates campaign on rent stabilization and tenant protections, others on preserving neighborhood character and pushing back on state and local housing mandates, and Waltman's platform centers on public safety and fiscal stewardship instead. Because the seats are citywide at-large, every candidate is on every voter's ballot; weigh the full field rather than a single race. ## Jackie Waltman Jackie Waltman spent 30 years in law enforcement and 20 years in Child Protective Services before retiring. They now serve on Burbank's Civil Service Commission. They served a prior term on its Tenant-Landlord Commission. Their statement centers on safe neighborhoods and funding police, fire and emergency services. They also name fiscal stewardship, infrastructure, and protecting local businesses. “Leadership begins with listening,” they say, “and making decisions based on facts, not politics.” **Strengths:** 50 years combined in law enforcement and child welfare. They also hold two prior city commission seats, on tenant-landlord and civil-service issues. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office. Their statement stays general on housing and land use. They name fewer specifics than several rivals on the field's dominant issue. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Samantha Wick Samantha Wick has lived in Burbank more than 23 years. They serve on the Planning Commission after two years chairing the Heritage Commission. They hold a bachelor's degree in urban planning and work in nonprofit leadership. They founded the city's original Buy Nothing Group. They call for “listening to our community” and leading “with transparency, integrity, and common sense.” **Strengths:** Direct land-use experience through the Planning Commission, plus a degree in urban planning. That is a hands-on housing and development background much of the field lacks. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office. Their statement emphasizes background and values over specific policy positions. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Eddy Polon Eddy Polon is a screenwriter and community advocate. They serve on the Transportation Commission and formerly ran Continental Kosher Bakery. They argue Burbank has long offered working people and young families a place to build a future. They campaign on more housing, paths to homeownership, and business support. They also want “a City Hall willing to act with urgency” on street safety. **Strengths:** Transportation Commission experience paired with small-business ownership. They focus on homeownership paths rather than housing in the abstract. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office. Their statement is more thematic than several rivals'. It names few concrete policy mechanisms. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## JT Parr JT Parr is a comedian running on a short, direct platform. They want to build more housing. They want to expand and improve public transportation. They want to create free places for people to gather. “I am not seeking endorsements,” they say. “I'm running because these issues matter to me, and I want to have skin in the game.” **Strengths:** A clear, specific three-point platform. It covers housing, transit, and public gathering space, stated without padding. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. Their statement is the shortest in the field and names no implementation detail. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. They explicitly decline to seek endorsements. That is distinctive in a 13-candidate field. ## Nikki Perez Nikki Perez is the incumbent seeking reelection. They are a renter, working mother and lifelong Burbank resident. They were recently appointed to the California Film Commission. Their statement credits their term with rent-control work, homeless-services funding, and nonprofit support. They pledge to continue on childcare affordability, park access, and emergency-services staffing. They also pledge protections for immigrant and LGBTQ+ residents. **Strengths:** A sitting councilmember's record to run on directly. They cite work on rent control, homeless-services funding, and a statewide Film Commission appointment. **Trade-offs:** As the incumbent, their record is also the target. No independent evaluation of their term beyond their own statement is available. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Jonathan Ontiveros Jonathan Ontiveros is a civil engineer with over a decade in the field. That includes three years with LA County Public Works. They are also a labor union director. Their family has been in Burbank more than 40 years. They campaign on modernizing housing policy while preserving neighborhood character. They also campaign on protecting local jobs and keeping streets, parks and neighborhoods safe. **Strengths:** A civil-engineering career plus labor-organization leadership. That is a technical infrastructure background paired with workforce advocacy. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## David Donahue David Donahue is a small-business owner with more than 35 years of Burbank civic involvement. They have chaired the Crisis House Anti-Slavery Program and led a local Council of Divers. They previously served as president of Vision Burbank and the Burbank Fair Housing PAC. They oppose the Olive Avenue traffic-lane reduction. They also oppose multistory apartments built without required parking. They want lower permit fees and easier access to local production tax credits. **Strengths:** More than 35 years of documented civic leadership across several distinct Burbank organizations. They also hold current seats on the Chamber of Commerce and the Realtors' legislative committee. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office. Their $1 billion infrastructure-impact figure on multistory-apartment parking is their own claim. It is not independently verified. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Nolan Southerland Nolan Southerland is a film editor and a member of the Motion Picture Editors Guild, IATSE Local 700. They have lived in Burbank over a decade with children in BUSD schools. They are active in the Burbank Tenants Union and leads Burbank Community Defense. They campaign on rent stabilization, tenant protections, and better transit and youth services. They say they take no money from landlords, corporations, fossil-fuel companies or law enforcement. **Strengths:** Sustained tenant-advocacy organizing predating this campaign, through the Burbank Tenants Union and Burbank Community Defense. They also state a no-corporate-money donor policy. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Robbie Brody Robbie Brody is an administrative law judge for the State of California. They are a former Deputy Director of Litigation at Bet Tzedek Legal Services. They have been in Burbank more than 25 years. They currently vice-chair the Parks and Recreation Board. They previously chaired both the Water and Power Board and the Art in Public Places Committee. They campaign on preserving neighborhood character, city services, and support for parks, libraries and local business. **Strengths:** Three separate city commission roles, including two chairmanships. They also have a legal-adjudication career built on solving disputes and mediation. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office, despite extensive appointed-commission experience. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Chris Yoosefi Chris Yoosefi is a small-business owner and U.S. Navy veteran. They served as a hospital corpsman and is active with the American Legion. Their statement is largely thematic. It is built around a “Dream Burbank” and “Vision 2030” framing. It does not name specific policy positions on housing, transit or public safety. **Strengths:** Military service as a Navy hospital corpsman plus small-business ownership. Their own statement calls it a record of “being the person others count on.” **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. Their statement stays thematic rather than naming specific policy positions. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This profile draws directly on their own filed candidate statement. ## Mike Van Gorder Mike Van Gorder is a housing policy analyst. They hold a master's degree in Housing and Community Economic Development from UCLA. Per the Burbank Leader, they describe themselves as “the guy that fights ICE on Instagram.” Their own candidate statement repeats that self-description. They cite Burbank's roughly $2,949 average two-bedroom rent, up 13% in two years. They campaign on renter protections, wages and benefits, and long-term planning. **Strengths:** A graduate credential specific to housing policy, plus statewide recognition in that field. Their platform cites specific local rent and price figures. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. Their statement is pointedly partisan. They close by calling to “abolish ICE,” a distinctive tone in this field. Read it directly yourself. ## Hovanes Tonoyan Hovanes Tonoyan is a Burbank native and cybersecurity professional with a political-science background, per the Burbank Leader. Their own candidate statement is filed with the city and linked from its Nov. 3, 2026 candidates page. That document could not be read. It returned a server error on every fetch attempt, direct and proxied alike. So no platform detail beyond this occupation and background summary is available. **Strengths:** A cybersecurity career and political-science background, plus lifelong roots in Burbank as a native resident. **Trade-offs:** They have no prior elected office or city commission seat. Their filed candidate statement could not be retrieved, so their platform is unknown. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This is one of the thinner records in the field. Weigh that gap as a sourcing limit, not a mark against them. ## Tamala Takahashi Tamala Takahashi is Burbank's Mayor. The council rotates that title among its own members. It is not a separately elected office. They are seeking reelection to their at-large council seat. Their own candidate statement is filed with the city and linked from its Nov. 3, 2026 candidates page. That document could not be read. It returned a server error on every fetch attempt, direct and proxied alike. So no platform detail beyond their incumbency is available. **Strengths:** A sitting council seat and the council's own current Mayor selection. That is direct incumbency and institutional standing. **Trade-offs:** As the incumbent, their record is the most relevant question for voters. Their filed candidate statement could not be retrieved to evaluate it. **Keep in mind:** No controversies surfaced about them. This is one of the thinner records in the field for a sitting officeholder. Weigh that gap as a sourcing limit, not a mark against them. ## Sources 1. [City of Burbank — November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election Candidates (City Clerk's Office: offices to be elected and the ballot-order candidate roster with occupations)](https://www.burbankca.gov/web/city-clerks-office/november-3-2026-candidates) 2. [Burbank Leader (Outlook Newspapers) — "Burbank City Council Hopefuls Begin Campaigns" by Jarret Liotta (confirms City Clerk and City Treasurer are each unopposed, with on-the-record quotes from both, and profiles all 13 City Council candidates)](https://outlooknewspapers.com/burbankleader/burbank-city-council-hopefuls-begin-campaigns/article_2bbab391-55b3-467d-ac37-b0202d6a111b.html) 3. [City of Burbank — City Council candidate statements (individually authored, city-hosted PDFs linked from the November 3, 2026 candidates page; each candidate's own words about their record and priorities). Successfully read for 11 of 13 candidates -- Jackie Waltman, Samantha Wick, Eddy Polon, JT Parr, Nikki Perez, Jonathan Ontiveros, David Donahue, Nolan Southerland, Robbie Brody, Chris Yoosefi, and Mike Van Gorder. Hovanes Tonoyan's and Tamala Takahashi's statements are linked from the same page but returned a server error (Cloudflare 522/520/408) on every fetch attempt tried this pass -- direct, and through three different CORS proxies, dozens of attempts spread over more than an hour -- so their content is not represented here.](https://www.burbankca.gov/web/city-clerks-office/november-3-2026-candidates) 4. [City of Burbank — Council-Manager Form of Government (confirms the 5-member City Council, the current officeholder roster, and that the Mayor and Vice Mayor titles rotate among council members rather than being separately elected)](https://www.burbankca.gov/council-manager-form-of-government) 5. [City of Burbank Electronic Filing System — campaign filings by election (the portal page linking each City Council candidate's entity-specific filings record; a JavaScript single-page app whose itemized filing list did not render for any tool used in this pass)](https://efile.burbankca.gov/public/search/campaign/by-election) ## The rest of the ballot City of Burbank — 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, "City of Burbank — City Council — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/burbank-city-council (sources last retrieved September 1, 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.