# El Cerrito City Council

Compare records and positions simply between Kimberly White, Carolyn Wysinger, Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili, and 3 more for El Cerrito City Council at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person would hold one of El Cerrito's five at-large City Council seats. El Cerrito is a charter city in Contra Costa County. An appointed City Manager runs day-to-day operations. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Terms are four years and staggered. Whichever two candidates get the most votes win. El Cerrito does not use ranked-choice voting or a June primary. The Council picks the Mayor from its own members each year. Voters do not elect the Mayor directly. The City Clerk is an appointed official, not an elected one. El Cerrito also has no elected City Treasurer.

- Jurisdiction: City of El Cerrito
- Election: November 3, 2026 California general election
- Seats: 2
- Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements.
- Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/elcerrito-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 7, 2026
- Source-objectivity score: 90 out of 100 (Very strong), across 14 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology

## On the ballot

- **Kimberly White** — Executive Advisor
- **Carolyn Wysinger** — City Councilmember/Educator · Incumbent
- **Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili** — Accessibility Product Manager
- **Forrest M. Lanning** — Earthquake Resilience Engineer
- **Wally Nowinski** — Clean Energy Marketer
- **Gabe Quinto** — Incumbent

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

Two incumbents and four challengers are running for El Cerrito's two open at-large City Council seats: Mayor Gabe Quinto and Councilmember Carolyn Wysinger are both seeking reelection, against Kimberly White, Wally Nowinski, Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili, and Forrest M. Lanning.

This person would hold one of El Cerrito's five at-large City Council seats. The city has a council-manager charter government with an appointed City Manager. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. El Cerrito is in Contra Costa County and has about 26,000 residents. Terms are four years and staggered. The Council picks the Mayor from among its own members each year. Gabe Quinto holds that title now. Voters do not elect a Mayor directly. The City Clerk is an appointed elections official, not a separately elected office. El Cerrito has no elected City Treasurer.

Two seats are open this cycle. Whichever two candidates get the most votes win. No ranked-choice voting or June primary is documented for El Cerrito. Two of the six qualified candidates run together as a self-described joint ticket. Kimberly White and Wally Nowinski share a campaign website. A seventh prospective candidate filed a committee under the name "McDougall" in July 2026. That name never appears among the county's qualified candidates or the city's own official candidate list. That person is not built here as a candidate.

## Kimberly White

A lifelong Bay Area resident who put down roots in El Cerrito in the early 2000s; their filed ballot designation is "Executive Advisor." They're the founder of their own management-consulting agency, advising public agencies on financial management and performance, and serve on El Cerrito's Financial Advisory Board. Their candidate statement says they previously held a senior leadership role inside a public agency where they led a team that saved more than $100 million over five years with no layoffs, and earlier worked as Director of Finance at a management-consulting firm that partnered with hospitals. They hold a B.S. in Accounting and graduate degrees in both Finance and Strategic Management. White is running as part of a joint ticket with fellow candidate Wally Nowinski, sharing the campaign site 2votes4changeec.com.

**Strengths:** A financial management consulting background directly relevant to city budgeting. White also serves on the city's own Financial Advisory Board.

**Trade-offs:** The $100 million savings figure comes from their own statement. So does their prior public agency role, which they do not name. Neither is confirmed here.

**Keep in mind:** See this contest's financial note below for their committee's contribution history.

## Wally Nowinski

A first-time candidate; their filed ballot designation is "Clean Energy Marketer." Nowinski and their wife bought their first home in El Cerrito in 2023 and are raising a newborn daughter there; their statement says they run the consumer team at Impulse Labs, a San Francisco electronics company, and earlier helped grow a startup to 140 employees without outside investment. They say they helped lead the opposition to a proposed library parcel tax that voters defeated by a 70-30 margin, criticizing the measure's cost and a senior exemption they say almost no senior could actually qualify for. Nowinski is running as part of a joint ticket with fellow candidate Kimberly White, sharing the campaign site 2votes4changeec.com.

**Strengths:** A specific, locally checkable claim. Nowinski says they led opposition to a 2026 ballot measure that did fail at the polls.

**Trade-offs:** Nothing here could verify the 70 to 30 margin or their claim that they led the opposition. They are a first-time candidate with no prior record.

**Keep in mind:** See this contest's financial note below for their committee's contribution history.

## Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili

An 18-year resident and homeowner in El Cerrito; their filed ballot designation is "Accessibility Product Manager." Their statement says they have spent more than a decade as a product leader in accessible technology, translating standards and the needs of people with disabilities and older adults into practical product solutions, and that they have contributed to international accessibility standards and served on nonprofit boards. They also say they serve as president of an 850-member cycling club. Their statement frames their candidacy around listening to residents who feel unheard after what they call the most polarized primary election they've seen in their time in El Cerrito.

**Strengths:** A long local residency of 18 years. Jawili's decade-plus specialty is accessible technology product leadership, relevant to public-facing city services.

**Trade-offs:** Their accessible technology work and cycling club leadership come from their own statement. No independent record confirming them was found.

**Keep in mind:** See this contest's financial note below. No contribution or expenditure activity is on file for their campaign beyond a bare registration filing.

## Gabe Quinto

The sitting Mayor -- selected by their council colleagues rather than elected directly to that title -- seeking another council term; their filed ballot designation is simply "Incumbent." They grew up in El Cerrito and graduated from El Cerrito High School and CSU Long Beach. Their candidate statement credits their tenure with an S&P bond-rating upgrade to A+, expanded wildfire-prevention efforts and community policing, and the state's 2026 Prohousing Community designation for El Cerrito under Governor Newsom. They also serve on the Bay Area Air Quality Management District's board.

**Strengths:** Direct incumbency with specific claims a voter could confirm. Quinto points to an S&P bond rating upgrade and a state Prohousing designation.

**Trade-offs:** Their list of accomplishments is entirely self-reported. No independent reporting evaluating their tenure as Mayor or Councilmember was found.

**Keep in mind:** Their statement lists endorsements from Rep. Garamendi, Sen. Arreguín, Asm. Wicks, and Supervisor Gioia. It also lists the Contra Costa Labor Council. See the financial note below.

## Carolyn Wysinger

An incumbent Councilmember and El Cerrito High School graduate seeking another term; their filed ballot designation is "City Councilmember/Educator." A former high-school teacher, their candidate statement credits their tenure with strengthening the city's S&P bond rating to A+, increasing government transparency, and sustaining emergency medical and fire response times while strengthening wildfire prevention.

**Strengths:** Direct incumbency with a specific claim a voter could confirm. Wysinger points to an S&P bond rating upgrade.

**Trade-offs:** Their list of accomplishments is entirely self-reported. No independent reporting evaluating their tenure on the council was found.

**Keep in mind:** Their statement lists endorsements from the Sierra Club, the Contra Costa Labor Council, and the Contra Costa Building Trades Council. It also lists Rep. Garamendi and Supervisor Gioia. See below.

## Forrest M. Lanning

A first-time candidate and Bay Area native; their filed ballot designation is "Earthquake Resilience Engineer." They hold a degree in Architectural Engineering from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) and later conducted earthquake-engineering research at Stanford University. Over a career spanning more than two decades, they have worked overseas on post-earthquake and tsunami recovery in New Zealand, Indonesia, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Costa Rica, and Colombia, with organizations including USAID, the United Nations, and the World Bank, on projects rebuilding and retrofitting schools and other infrastructure. Lanning and their wife, Sara, live in El Cerrito.

**Strengths:** A specific, technical background in structural and earthquake resilience engineering. It is distinct from the other five candidates' occupations.

**Trade-offs:** Lanning's overseas career and academic credentials come from their own statement. No independent employer or university record confirming them was found.

**Keep in mind:** No campaign finance committee is on file for them at all. See this contest's financial note below.

## Sources

1. [City of El Cerrito -- City Clerk's official "November 2026 Candidates" page: names the six-candidate field for the two open City Council seats, with each candidate's filed ballot designation, qualification date, and a link to their own Candidate Information Packet](https://www.elcerrito.gov/1782/November-2026-Candidates)
2. [City of El Cerrito -- City Clerk's "Elections" page: states the Nov. 3, 2026 election is "for the election of two city council seats," identifies the City Clerk as "the elections official for the City of El Cerrito" rather than a separately elected office, and links to the city's candidates page](http://www.elcerrito.gov/index.aspx?nid=217)
3. [City of El Cerrito -- "City Council" page: names the five sitting Council members, including Mayor Gabe Quinto and Councilmember Carolyn Wysinger, both with terms listed as ending 2026 -- confirming these are the two seats up this cycle -- alongside Mayor Pro Tem Rebecca Saltzman and Councilmembers William Ktsanes and Lisa Motoyama, both with terms ending 2028](http://www.elcerrito.gov/113/City-Council)
4. [Wikipedia's El Cerrito, California article -- describes a council-manager charter city (charter adopted November 2018) with five City Council members elected at large to four-year, overlapping terms, and a Mayor selected annually by the Council from among its own members; population 25,962 (2020 census), incorporated August 23, 1917](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Cerrito,_California)
5. [Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Positions Up for Election, November 3, 2026, General Election": lists El Cerrito's only office this cycle as "2 Councilmembers" under Cities Offices -- no City Clerk, City Treasurer, or other city-section line item for El Cerrito appears anywhere in the document](https://www.contracostavote.gov/wp-content/uploads/26Nov03_PositionsUpForElection.pdf)
6. [Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Contest/Candidate Proof List" (8-27-26_candidatelist_detail_final.pdf), the county's post-certification ON-BALLOT export: shows El Cerrito's "ElCerritoCouncil" contest as Vote For 2, with 7 filed and 6 qualified candidates, ON BALLOT status, and both current incumbents (Gabriel Quinto, Carolyn Renee Wysinger) named as this seat's incumbents; each of the six qualified candidates' filed ballot designation and qualification date is listed individually](https://www.contracostavote.gov/wp-content/uploads/8-27-26_candidatelist_detail_final.pdf)
7. [Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Candidate List" (8-14-26_candidatelist_summary_final.pdf), the county's complete qualified-candidate roster: independently confirms the same six-candidate field for El Cerrito's 2-seat Council contest (Kimberly White, Wally Nowinski, Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili, Gabe Quinto, Carolyn Wysinger, Forrest M. Lanning) with matching qualification timestamps](https://www.contracostavote.gov/wp-content/uploads/8-14-26_candidatelist_summary_final.pdf)
8. [City of El Cerrito -- Campaign Disclosure page, plus each listed committee's most recent filing hand-checked directly: Kimberly White's and Wally Nowinski's committees each filed an FPPC Form 497 late-contribution report disclosing an identical $1,025 contribution from the same donor, Christine Hickey, received the same day (8/11/2026); Carolyn Wysinger's committee's most recent filing is a Form 460 semi-annual statement covering 1/1/2026-6/30/2026, reporting $10 in total contributions and no spending; Gabe Quinto's and Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili's most recent filings are each a bare Form 410 Statement of Organization for a newly formed committee, with no contribution or expenditure activity yet reported; no committee is listed for Forrest M. Lanning](http://www.elcerrito.gov/215)
9. [City of El Cerrito -- Kimberly White's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including her self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: her own account of her financial-management consulting career, public-agency leadership experience, education, and joint campaign site with Wally Nowinski (2votes4changeec.com), read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23825/White-Candidate-Packet)
10. [City of El Cerrito -- Wally Nowinski's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including his self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: his own account of his career at Impulse Labs, his role opposing a 2026 library parcel tax measure, his family, and his joint campaign site with Kimberly White (2votes4changeec.com), read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23823/Nowinski-Candidate-Packet)
11. [City of El Cerrito -- Mary Ann "MJ" Jawili's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including her self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: her own account of her residency, accessible-technology product career, and cycling-club leadership, read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23821/Jawili-Candidate-Packet)
12. [City of El Cerrito -- Forrest M. Lanning's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including his self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: his own account of his structural- and earthquake-engineering education and career, including overseas disaster-recovery work, read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23822/Lanning-Candidate-Packet)
13. [City of El Cerrito -- Carolyn Wysinger's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including her self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: her own account of her record as a sitting Councilmember and her endorsements, read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23826/Wysinger-Candidate-Packet)
14. [City of El Cerrito -- Gabe Quinto's Candidate Information Packet (a scanned PDF hosted by the City Clerk), including his self-authored Candidate Statement Form filed for the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot pamphlet: his own account of his record as sitting Mayor and his endorsements, read directly via a rendered-image pass after the PDF's text layer came back empty](https://www.elcerrito.gov/DocumentCenter/View/23824/Quinto-Candidate-Packet)

## The rest of the ballot

El Cerrito 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

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