City of Encinitas

Encinitas City Council, District 3

This person holds your district's seat on Encinitas's 4-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, alongside the directly elected Mayor. The term is four years.

Arielle Golden faces Ed Sprague for this open seat on the Encinitas City Council. Incumbent Joy Lyndes did not file for reelection. Whoever gets the most votes on November 3 wins outright. There is no runoff.

This person holds District 3's seat on Encinitas's 4-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land-use decisions, alongside the directly elected Mayor. The term is four years.

With no incumbent running, this is a genuinely open contest between two long-time Encinitas residents with very different professional backgrounds. Golden, a food-systems and community-organizing professional, frames their campaign as a course correction on growth policy; Sprague, a retired firefighter and water-district veteran, frames theirs around pushing back on state mandates that override local planning. Both name the same broad concerns -- growth, infrastructure, and the environment -- but from different starting points.

Arielle Golden

Arielle Golden holds an MBA from UC San Diego. They have worked in food systems and community organizing. They chair the North County Food Policy Council. That group brings together public, private, and nonprofit groups to improve regional food systems. They have also represented North San Diego County on the state's Food Policy Council. They told The Coast News they would prioritize mobility for residents of all ages. That includes all types of road users. They would also prioritize climate resilience. Golden wants to work with the state and other agencies, not against them. They are critical of the current council's approach to growth. Golden says the council has approved every project despite campaigning on stopping development. They say growth is guided by state law. Golden wants a fresh approach on the council within that legal framework.

Ed Sprague

Ed Sprague moved to Encinitas in 1977. They hold a master's degree in public administration from San Diego State. Their career spans the Carlsbad Fire Department and the North County Fire Authority. They served as president of the Olivenhain Municipal Water District board. From 2015 to 2019 they were a special districts commissioner on LAFCO. LAFCO stands for the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission. That is the state agency overseeing municipal annexations and government reorganizations. They name public safety, local control, and the environment as their three priorities. They criticize state policies that they say have overridden local growth plans. They say they want to push back on the state mandates. They have framed their run around their grandchildren. Sprague wants them to have the same special life they found in Encinitas.

Your pick

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

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