# Cathedral City Council, District 4 Compare records and positions simply between David Koslow, Rick Saldivar, or Ernesto Gutierrez for Cathedral City Council, District 4 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on Cathedral City's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years. The council selects one of its own members to serve as Mayor and another as Mayor Pro Tem -- the titles rotate rather than being separately elected. - Jurisdiction: City of Cathedral City - 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/cathedral-city-council-4 - 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 3, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 78 out of 100 (Mixed), across 5 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **David Koslow** - **Rick Saldivar** - **Ernesto Gutierrez** — Incumbent A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Incumbent Mayor Pro Tem Ernesto Gutierrez, on the council since 2018, seeks reelection to the District 4 seat against two repeat challengers from his 2022 race: retired art gallery owner David Koslow and College of the Desert program specialist Rick Saldivar. This person holds your district's seat on Cathedral City's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years. The council selects one of its own members to serve as Mayor and another as Mayor Pro Tem — the titles rotate rather than being separately elected. Gutierrez is campaigning on his record: public safety, infrastructure repair, code enforcement, neighborhood beautification, and addressing homelessness. Koslow and Saldivar are both repeat candidates, having also challenged Gutierrez for this same seat in 2022 and lost. ## Ernesto Gutierrez Ernesto Gutierrez was first elected to the Cathedral City Council in November 2018 and currently serves as Mayor Pro Tem. Born in Mexico, he immigrated to the U.S. at age 14 and has lived in the desert for nearly 40 years. He earned his degree from College of the Desert, works as a real estate and mortgage broker, and has owned and operated Tortilla's Restaurant in Cathedral City since 1996. His stated priorities are public safety, repairing local infrastructure, code enforcement, neighborhood beautification, and addressing homelessness. **Strengths:** Two full terms of council experience plus a long-running local business (Tortilla's Restaurant since 1996) that predates his time in office. **Trade-offs:** As the incumbent, his record on the priorities he campaigns on — infrastructure and homelessness among them — is now something voters can judge directly rather than take on faith. **Keep in mind:** Both of his challengers this year also ran against him in 2022 and lost; this is their second attempt at the seat. ## David Koslow David Koslow is a retired art gallery owner running for the District 4 seat. They previously ran against Gutierrez for the same seat in 2022 and lost. No independent biography or platform statement beyond their occupation, as reported by the Desert Sun, was found in the time available for this profile. **Strengths:** A second campaign for the same seat suggests sustained interest in representing District 4. **Trade-offs:** No prior elected or appointed public service found, and no independently reported platform beyond their occupation. **Keep in mind:** This is their second run against the same incumbent, having lost in 2022; voters can weigh what, if anything, has changed since then. ## Rick Saldivar Rick Saldivar is a program specialist for College of the Desert's Rising Scholars program, which supports formerly incarcerated and system-involved students. Saldivar previously ran against Gutierrez for the District 4 seat in 2022 and lost. No independent biography or platform statement beyond their occupation, as reported by the Desert Sun, was found in the time available for this profile. **Strengths:** Professional experience supporting formerly incarcerated students could inform a focus on reentry and youth services if elected. **Trade-offs:** No prior elected or appointed public service found, and no independently reported platform beyond their occupation. **Keep in mind:** This is their second run against the same incumbent, having lost in 2022; voters can weigh what, if anything, has changed since then. ## Sources 1. [Riverside County Registrar of Voters — 2026 Annual Election Calendar (lists every November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election office by city, including "City of Cathedral City: City Council District 3 / District 4 / District 5 / City Treasurer")](https://voteinfo.net/sites/g/files/aldnop371/files/2026-02/Annual%20Election%20Calendar%202026.pdf) 2. [The Desert Sun — "See who's running for mayor and city council in Coachella Valley" (Tom Coulter and Sam Morgen, Aug. 13, 2026; names every qualified candidate in each Cathedral City council/treasurer race with a one-line occupation/background note)](https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/politics/elections/2026/08/13/election-2026-whos-running-for-mayor-city-council-palm-springs-area/91221615007/) 3. [City of Cathedral City — Mayor & Council (official roster: Mayor Raymond Gregory/District 5, Mayor Pro Tem Ernesto Gutierrez/District 4, Councilmembers Lamb/District 1, Ross/District 2, Gordon/District 3, plus City Treasurer Greg Jackson)](https://web.archive.org/web/20260518041924/https://www.cathedralcity.gov/government/mayor-council) 4. [City of Cathedral City — Councilmember Gutierrez (official bio: District 4, term 2022-2026, first elected Nov. 2018; real estate/mortgage broker, owner of Tortilla's Restaurant since 1996)](https://web.archive.org/web/20251115063425/https://www.cathedralcity.gov/government/mayor-council/councilmember-gutierrez) 5. [Riverside County NetFile — Cathedral City candidate-name searches](https://netfile.com/public/ctriv/campaign/search-entities) ## The rest of the ballot Cathedral City Council, District 4 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, "Cathedral City Council, District 4 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/cathedral-city-council-4 (sources last retrieved September 3, 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.