Review note: Angely Andrade Vallarta's own campaign site ("Angely Andrade Vallarta for Costa Mesa City Council- District 4"): her own framing of her candidacy, Planning Commission role, and platform and Fisher Derderian's own campaign site ("Fisher Derderian for Costa Mesa City Council District 4"): his own framing of his candidacy, Arts Commission role, and platform may have more bias because they are advocacy voter guides compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources.
- ocvote.gov (opens in a new tab)OC Registrar of Voters — Contest/Candidate Proof List, General Election 11/3/2026 (169 contests, 430 candidates filed)
- costamesaca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Costa Mesa — Mayor & City Council page: term limits (Mayor, 2-year terms, 2-term cap; Council, 4-year terms, 2-term cap) and the sitting roster (Mayor John Stephens; Council Members Mike Buley D1, Loren Gameros D2, Andrea Marr D3, Manuel Chavez D4/Mayor Pro Tem, Arlis Reynolds D5, Jeff Pettis D6)
- latimes.com (opens in a new tab)LA Times/Daily Pilot — "Costa Mesa Council race will see 8 candidates square off for 4 open seats, including mayor": confirms 4 council members terming out in December and 8 total candidates across the 4 open seats, all already serving in city civic roles; retrieved as search-engine snippets, latimes.com itself is not directly fetchable in this pass
- angely4costamesa.com (opens in a new tab)Angely Andrade Vallarta's own campaign site ("Angely Andrade Vallarta for Costa Mesa City Council- District 4"): her own framing of her candidacy, Planning Commission role, and platform
- fisher4costamesa.com (opens in a new tab)Fisher Derderian's own campaign site ("Fisher Derderian for Costa Mesa City Council District 4"): his own framing of his candidacy, Arts Commission role, and platform
Last updated August 31, 2026.
City of Costa Mesa
Costa Mesa City Council, District 4
This person holds your district's seat on Costa Mesa's 6-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside the citywide-elected mayor. The term is four years, capped at two consecutive terms.
Angely Andrade Vallarta and Fisher Derderian are running for Costa Mesa's open District 4 seat. Incumbent and Mayor Pro Tem Manuel Chavez is term limited and cannot run again. Whoever gets the most votes on November 3 wins, with no runoff.
This person holds District 4's seat on Costa Mesa's 6-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside the citywide-elected mayor. The term is four years, capped at two consecutive terms.
Both candidates already sit on city commissions -- Andrade Vallarta on Planning, Derderian on Arts -- and both campaign on neighborhood safety and quality of life, with Andrade Vallarta's platform leaning more toward housing and infrastructure and Derderian's toward fiscal accountability and city-hall responsiveness.
Angely Andrade Vallarta
Angely Andrade Vallarta is Director of Corporate Engagement at Orange County United Way. Their platform centers on affordable housing, public safety, and walkable neighborhoods. They also sit on the city's Planning Commission and have worked in government finance.
Fisher Derderian
Fisher Derderian is founder of Dux Culturae, a consulting firm. His platform centers on neighborhood safety, smart growth, and quality of life for families. He also serves on the city's Arts Commission and helped start its Poet Laureate Program.
Your pick
A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.