turnto23.com (opens in a new tab)23ABC/KERO (turnto23.com), byline Sam Hoyle -- "Kern residents to weigh City Council elections in November 2026 General Election": a city-by-city roundup of every Kern County municipal race this cycle, citing the Kern County Elections website as its own source; names California City's four contests and all ten candidates -- Mayor (Marquette Hawkins, Incumbent, 2-year term, vs. Isaac Barcelona), At-Large Council (Ron Smith, Incumbent, vs. Jeanie O'Laughlin and Karina Perez), At-Large Council Short-Term (Dawn Ferguson, Elexis Shaw, John Fischer), and Treasurer (Keith Middleton, Incumbent, vs. Inishia White)
en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia's California City, California article: 2020 census population 14,973; 203.70 square miles (third-largest city by land area in California); founded 1958 as a planned Mojave Desert community, incorporated 1965; infobox names Marq Hawkins as the sitting Mayor and Jim Creighton as Mayor Pro Tem
cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)A negative-result campaign-finance search: California's Cal-Access candidate/filer search returned only an empty, unrenderable page for every query attempted this session, for all ten California City candidates -- the same recurring bot-detection failure mode documented elsewhere in this dataset. Documents the absence of a reachable financial-disclosure source for these four contests, not any candidate's actual finances
bakersfieldnow.com (opens in a new tab)BakersfieldNow/KBAK -- "California city council starts 2-week process to fill seats after resignations" (July 14, 2025): reports two council seats vacated by the resignations of Jesse Hightower (after inflammatory remarks to a resident during a heated meeting over a $1,000 African American Mayors Association subscription) and Michael Kulikoff, and that Mayor Marquette Hawkins moved for a 2-week public-interview vetting process rather than a $50,000 special election or immediate appointment; applicants had to be California City residents
turnto23.com (opens in a new tab)23ABC/KERO (turnto23.com) -- "Former gang member, retired LAPD officer cleaning up Cal City" (June 4, 2024): profiles John Fischer, a retired LAPD officer and longtime California City resident, and Tomas Estarella, a former gang member, painting over graffiti around town; quotes Fischer directly ("This is my community and I don't want graffiti in my community")
southkernsol.org (opens in a new tab)South Kern Sol -- "California Primary Election Results 2026" (June 3, 2026): its own results tally for "City of California City Councilmember" records Shawn Bradley defeating Isaac D. Barcelona 510-503 (50.35%-49.65%) in the June 2, 2026 special election for a vacated council seat -- independent confirmation that Barcelona is an active, named Cal City political figure ahead of his Nov. 2026 mayoral run, and that Bradley's seat is already resolved (not on this ballot)

Last updated September 1, 2026.

City of California City

California City Council, At-Large (Short Term)

This person would hold a second, separate at-large seat on the California City Council. This seat is different from the regular four-year at-large seat also on this ballot. It carries only the rest of an unfinished term, not a full four years. Two Council seats opened after resignations in July 2025. The Council filled both by appointment in September 2025.

Three candidates are running for California City's second at-large Council seat. They are Dawn Ferguson, Elexis Shaw, and John Fischer. This is a short-term seat. It carries the rest of an unexpired term, not the usual 4 years.

This is a separate contest from the ordinary 4-year at-large Council seat also on this ballot. Two Council seats were vacated by resignation in July 2025 -- Jesse Hightower (after inflammatory remarks to a resident during a heated meeting) and Michael Kulikoff -- and the Council filled both by appointment that September rather than an immediate special election. This dataset could not independently confirm which of the two 2025 vacancies this particular short-term seat traces back to, or why none of its three current candidates carries an incumbent flag in the county's own list.

A separate vacancy on the Council did go to a special election this past June, which a different candidate (not on this ballot) won outright -- a reminder that Council turnover has been a defining feature of this term.

Dawn Ferguson

Dawn Ferguson is a candidate for this short-term seat. No background information was found for them.

Elexis Shaw

Elexis Shaw is a candidate for this short-term seat. No background information was found for her.

John Fischer

John Fischer is a candidate for this short-term seat. He is a retired LAPD officer and longtime California City resident. In June 2024, 23ABC/KERO featured him covering graffiti around town. He worked alongside Tomas Estarella, a former gang member.

Your pick

A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.

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