# Hemet City Council, District 1 Compare records and positions simply between Connie Howard-Clark, Norm Kyriss, or Carlos Michel for Hemet City Council, District 1 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on Hemet's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years, capped at three lifetime terms (Hemet Municipal Code Sec. 2-37, counting only terms since 2012). 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 Hemet - 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/hemet-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: September 3, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 87 out of 100 (Strong), across 6 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Connie Howard-Clark** — Incumbent - **Norm Kyriss** - **Carlos Michel** A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Incumbent Connie Howard-Clark seeks reelection to Hemet's District 1 council seat against Carlos Michel and Realtor Norm Kyriss. This person holds your district's seat on Hemet's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years, capped at three lifetime terms. 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. Howard-Clark is the sitting District 1 councilmember, running to keep her seat. Kyriss, a longtime local Realtor and civic volunteer, is campaigning on fiscal discipline and city services. Neither Michel's nor Howard-Clark's detailed platform was independently reported beyond background in the time researched for this profile; Howard-Clark filed no candidate statement of her own. ## Connie Howard-Clark Connie Howard-Clark is Hemet's sitting District 1 councilmember, seeking reelection. A fourth-generation Hemet resident, she holds a Bachelor of Arts in History from Humboldt University and an emergency teaching credential. She is active with P.E.O. (a women's-education organization), coaches youth softball, and is married to a retired police officer, per the city's own official council bio. She filed no candidate statement of her own for this race. **Strengths:** Current council experience and deep roots in Hemet as a fourth-generation resident. **Trade-offs:** As the incumbent, her record on the district's priorities is now something voters can judge directly; she filed no candidate statement laying out her platform for this race. **Keep in mind:** Hemet caps council service at three lifetime terms (counting since 2012) -- voters weighing a longer-term incumbent may want to confirm her term count directly with the city clerk. ## Carlos Michel Carlos Michel filed to run for the District 1 seat. No candidate statement, independent biography, or platform statement was reachable for Michel in the time available for this profile. **Strengths:** Not independently established in the time available for this profile. **Trade-offs:** No candidate statement, prior public role, or independently reported platform was found for Michel in the time available for this profile. **Keep in mind:** This is a documented research gap, not a sign of anything about the candidate themselves -- voters may want to look for a campaign site or contact them directly. ## Norm Kyriss Norm Kyriss has lived in Hemet since 1981 and is a 1986 graduate of Hemet High School, where they built a career in real estate. Their own filed candidate statement cites serving as Ramona Bowl President during its 100th season, President of the local Association of Realtors, a director for Habitat for Humanity, a member of the Measure U Citizens Oversight Committee, Vice-President of Grandfathers for Golf, and State Political Coordinator for the California Association of Realtors. Their statement calls for fiscal discipline, improved streets and parks, support for first responders, and an environment where businesses can grow. The city's own candidate list names them "Norman W. Kyriss III"; this profile follows the name they use in their own campaign materials. **Strengths:** Decades of hands-on local civic leadership -- the Ramona Bowl, the Realtors Association, Habitat for Humanity, and Measure U oversight -- plus a real-estate career rooted in Hemet. **Trade-offs:** No prior elected office; their platform beyond their own statement was not independently reported in the time available for this profile. **Keep in mind:** Their statement frames the city's finances in stark terms ("a growing budget deficit"); voters may want to check that claim against the city's own published budget documents. ## Sources 1. [City of Hemet -- General Municipal Election, November 3, 2026 (official election page: lists District 1, District 2, and District 5 City Council seats as contested, every candidate who filed for each with filing date, and notes Jackie Peterson's withdrawal and Eric Urena's non-filing)](https://www.hemetca.gov/1372/General-Municipal-Election---November-3-) 2. [City of Hemet -- Mayor & City Council (official roster: Mayor Linda Krupa/District 5, Mayor Pro Tem Joe Males/District 4, Councilmembers Connie Howard-Clark/District 1, Jackie Peterson/District 2, Tom Lodge/District 3)](https://www.hemetca.gov/65/Mayor-City-Council) 3. [City of Hemet -- Municipal Elections Information (three-term lifetime limit on council service, Hemet Municipal Code Sec. 2-37, counting only terms since 2012; nomination filing period July 13-Aug. 7, 2026, extended to Aug. 12 for District 2)](https://www.hemetca.gov/1006/Municipal-Elections-Information) 4. [City of Hemet -- Council Member Connie Howard-Clark, District 1 (official bio: fourth-generation Hemet resident, B.A. in History from Humboldt University, emergency teaching credential, works with P.E.O., coaches youth softball, married to a retired police officer)](https://www.hemetca.gov/559/Council-Member-Connie-Howard-Clark-Distr) 5. [City of Hemet -- Norm Kyriss's filed Candidate Statement, City Council District 1 (Hemet resident since 1981, Hemet High School class of 1986, career in real estate; cites serving as Ramona Bowl President, President of the local Association of Realtors, a Habitat for Humanity director, Measure U Citizens Oversight Committee member, Vice-President of Grandfathers for Golf, and State Political Coordinator for the California Association of Realtors; priorities of fiscal discipline, streets/parks, public safety, and business growth). Filed and signed "Norm Kyriss" throughout, though the city's own candidate list names him "Norman W. Kyriss III" -- this dataset follows his own, self-consistent spelling.](https://www.hemetca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/13058) 6. [City of Hemet NetFile — public campaign-disclosure search](https://netfile.com/public/HMT/campaign/search-entities) ## The rest of the ballot Hemet 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, "Hemet City Council, District 1 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/hemet-council-1 (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.