# Chula Vista City Council, District 1 Compare records and positions simply between Carolina Chavez or Greg Martinez for Chula Vista City Council, District 1 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on Chula Vista's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside the directly elected Mayor. The term is four years. - Jurisdiction: City of Chula Vista - 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/chula-vista-council-1 - 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: October 7, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 87 out of 100 (Strong), across 9 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Carolina Chavez** — Incumbent - **Greg Martinez** A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Incumbent Councilmember Carolina Chavez faces Greg Martinez, a CPA and small-business owner, after Chavez led June's five-candidate primary with a plurality — 43.4% to Martinez's 23.9% — short of a majority. Chula Vista's charter sends the top two from any 3-or-more-candidate primary to a November runoff regardless of the leader's share, so the race continues even though three other candidates were eliminated in June. This seat holds one of Chula Vista's four district seats on a council that also includes the directly elected Mayor: city ordinances, the budget, and land-use decisions. The term is four years. Chavez, elected in 2022, separately ran for San Diego County Supervisor, District 1 in a 2025 special election, finishing fourth in that race's primary with 7.7% of the vote. Martinez has not previously run for or held elected office in Chula Vista. ## Carolina Chavez The incumbent, on the council since December 2022 and a candidate for San Diego County Supervisor, District 1 in a 2025 special election, where she placed fourth in a seven-candidate primary field. Her campaign's stated priorities include neighborhood safety, workforce-housing solutions, small-business support, a proposed District 1 senior center, and expanding access to city services and homelessness assistance (per her campaign site). **Strengths:** On the council since 2022; led a 2025 countywide bid for County Supervisor District 1, finishing fourth in a seven-candidate primary field. **Trade-offs:** That Supervisor run drew just 7.7% of the primary vote, well behind the two finalists who advanced to that race's runoff. **Keep in mind:** She and Martinez are the top two of five June candidates; her 43.4% share was the largest but short of a majority. ## Greg Martinez A challenger, certified public accountant and small-business owner (Greg Martinez CPA Inc.), running as a self-funded fiscal watchdog, per the San Diego Union-Tribune's coverage of the race. He has not previously run for elected office in Chula Vista. In his Vote411 questionnaire he describes more than 20 years in finance, accounting and technology, a tax practice that prepares hundreds of returns a year, and service on the city's Measure P Citizens' Oversight Committee and his homeowners association board. His three stated priorities are public safety, meaning support for police and fire and enforcement of the camping ban; affordability, where he says he would oppose a mileage tax and favor smart growth; and infrastructure and fiscal responsibility, meaning road repair and transparent budgeting. He says he does not view climate change as a crisis but backs stormwater upgrades, more tree canopy, heat and storm preparedness, and electric-vehicle charging. For the long term he points to the bayfront and an eastside university and innovation district, plus strong reserves. **Strengths:** A CPA who describes 20-plus years in finance and service on the Measure P oversight committee, by his own account; he runs on budgeting skill and transparency. **Trade-offs:** He says he does not see climate change as a crisis, a gap if you want the city to set stronger climate targets. He has not held elected office. **Keep in mind:** His experience is self-described, and his committee seat was an oversight role, not a vote on the Council. He placed second in June with 23.9%, nearly 20 points behind Chavez. ## Review notes - San Diego County Democratic Party -- Democratic Candidates in the 2026 General Election: Imperial Beach Mayor, Matthew Leyba-Gonzalez; City Council District 1, Jose Lopez Eguino; City Council District 3, O'mar Diallo may have more bias because it is an advocacy voter guide compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources. ## Sources 1. [County of San Diego Registrar of Voters — Candidate List, November 3, 2026 General Election](https://www.sdvote.com/content/dam/rov/en/election/nov-3-2026-gubernatorial-general-election/candidate-list.pdf) 2. [City of Chula Vista, City Clerk — Elections (November 3, 2026 General Election candidates: Mayor, City Council Districts 1 and 2, City Attorney)](https://www.chulavistaca.gov/departments/city-clerk/elections) 3. [California Secretary of State — CAL-ACCESS committee search (Chula Vista Mayor, Council Districts 1/2, and City Attorney candidates, 2026)](https://cal-access.sos.ca.gov/Campaign/Committees/list.aspx) 4. [Ballotpedia — Carolina Chavez](https://ballotpedia.org/Carolina_Chavez) 5. [Ballotpedia — Gregory Martinez](https://ballotpedia.org/Gregory_Martinez) 6. [San Diego Union-Tribune — Five candidates seek Chula Vista's District 1 council seat (2026-05-02)](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/05/02/five-candidates-seek-chula-vistas-district-1-council-seat/) 7. [San Diego County Democratic Party — Democratic Candidates in the 2026 General Election](https://www.sddemocrats.org/candidates-2026g) 8. [City of Chula Vista NetFile — public campaign-disclosure search](https://netfile.com/public/CCV/campaign/search-entities) 9. [League of Women Voters -- Vote411 voter guide, 'City of Chula Vista City Council Member, District 1' race (statewide All Races list): each candidate's self-submitted ballot designation and campaign contacts, plus answers to the League's questions -- If elected, what are your top three priorities?; What background, experience and/or education qualify you for this elected office?; What actions, if any, would you take to address the threats facing the City due to climate change, including actions to reduce the effects of climate change on public health?; Give at least one other example of how you would use your time in this office to position the City to meet a long-term challenge, while still responding to immediate crises.? Answers on file from Greg Martinez. Capture in data/nov-2026/sources/vote411/chula-vista-council-1.json.](https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote) ## The rest of the ballot Chula Vista City Council, District 1 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, "Chula Vista City Council, District 1 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/chula-vista-council-1 (sources last retrieved October 7, 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.