# Mayor of La Mesa

Compare records and positions simply between Laura Lothian, Patricia Normandy-Dillard, Jim Stieringer, or Quinn M. Reese for Mayor of La Mesa at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person presides over City Council meetings. They represent La Mesa publicly. But they vote as one of five members on the budget and city laws. An appointed city manager runs day-to-day government. La Mesa's mayor and all four council members are elected citywide, not by district. The term is four years.

- Jurisdiction: City of La Mesa
- 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/la-mesa-mayor
- 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 7 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology

## On the ballot

- **Laura Lothian** — City of La Mesa Councilmember/Businesswoman
- **Patricia Normandy-Dillard** — City of La Mesa Councilmember
- **Jim Stieringer** — Retired City of La Mesa Treasurer
- **Quinn M. Reese** — Regenerative Farmer

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

Mayor Mark Arapostathis is termed out. Four candidates are running to succeed him. Two are sitting councilmembers, Patricia Normandy-Dillard and Laura Lothian. The other two are Jim Stieringer and Quinn Reese. Whichever candidate gets the most votes on November 3 wins outright. There is no runoff.

La Mesa's mayor presides over City Council meetings and represents the city publicly, but votes as one of five members on the budget and city ordinances -- day-to-day government runs through an appointed city manager. Unlike some California cities, La Mesa's mayor and all four council members are elected citywide (at-large) rather than by district. The term is four years.

This is effectively a race between two council colleagues with overlapping tenure but different bases: Dillard, a Democrat endorsed by the county Democratic Party, and Lothian, a Republican endorsed by the county Republican Party, are both giving up their own council seats to run (leaving those two seats open and uncontested -- see La Mesa City Council). Stieringer and Reese are outsiders to the current council, running on more oppositional platforms toward how the city is run. Lothian currently leads in fundraising.

## Patricia Normandy-Dillard

A 25-year La Mesa resident who has served on the City Council for four years. Normandy-Dillard is vice chair of the city's Community Police Oversight Board. They work as a mortgage broker. Their earlier career spanned roughly 40 years in business development, customer service, and sales. They co-chair the city's Juneteenth and Friends event. That event drew an estimated 1,500 attendees in its first year. They are a Democrat and have the endorsement of the San Diego County Democratic Party. Their campaign website pledges to "make sure all La Mesans have access to economic opportunities and high-quality education." They launched their mayoral campaign in late 2025.

**Strengths:** Four years of council experience and a record on police oversight. A community-service record apart from politics, including the Juneteenth event and a roughly 40-year business career.

**Trade-offs:** Normandy-Dillard trails Lothian in reported campaign cash on hand. Normandy-Dillard's public platform for the mayoral race is thinner in the reporting found than their general public-service record.

**Keep in mind:** Normandy-Dillard's Cal-Access committee status could not be checked on its own. See Financial info.

## Laura Lothian

A real estate agent and La Mesa councilmember for over four years. She was first elected in a 2021 special election to replace Akilah Weber, who won a State Assembly seat. She was re-elected to a full term in 2022. She is a Republican endorsed by the San Diego County Republican Party. She joined the 2026 mayoral race in April after months of speculation. As a councilmember she led the city's hiring of a full-time community cleanup coordinator. She opposed a battery storage facility proposed for a residential neighborhood. In January 2025 she called for a "15-Strikes and You're Out" policy. It would apply to homeless people who repeatedly decline city outreach services. She cited a 47% year-over-year rise in La Mesa's unsheltered count. She also made a claim linking homelessness to a share of nearby wildfire ignitions. That claim was widely discussed afterward. Her 2022 campaign platform centered on public safety, opposing tax increases, supporting small businesses, and "cleaning up the streets." She has also voiced doubts about the city's climate-action initiatives. Her campaign website says "Laura Lothian gets things done." It says she aims to simplify the permitting process and protect small businesses. She also aims to prevent graffiti and litter and install more speed humps.

**Strengths:** Over four years of council experience. She pushed the cleanup coordinator hire and opposed the battery storage siting. She has the largest reported campaign war chest in this race.

**Trade-offs:** Her homelessness proposal and climate-skeptic remarks drew pushback and independent fact-checking. Her platform focuses on deregulation, which some may want tested against other priorities.

**Keep in mind:** Her Cal-Access committee status could not be checked on its own. See Financial info.

## Jim Stieringer

A retired businessman and a former La Mesa City Treasurer. Stieringer's own ballot designation reads "Retired City of La Mesa Treasurer." They are a Republican and a seasoned local public servant. They served five terms on the Grossmont Healthcare District board. They also served on the Grossmont Union High School District board. Their candidate statement warns of what they call the "relentless 'ghettoization' of La Mesa." It names preserving the Amaya Street trolley station parking lot as their top priority.

**Strengths:** A long record of prior elected service across two different local special districts. Stieringer also has direct experience in the treasurer's office itself.

**Trade-offs:** They are not a current officeholder. Their public platform beyond the trolley-parking issue and their "ghettoization" framing is thin in the reporting found for this cycle.

**Keep in mind:** No campaign-finance figures for Stieringer were found for this race. See Financial info.

## Quinn M. Reese

A regenerative farmer with no reported party affiliation. He runs on a populist platform focused on small businesses and renters. His campaign site is quoted as saying, "Too often, the loudest voices at City Hall are tied to money -- not the renters, small business owners, and families who make La Mesa what it is." He frames his candidacy as representing the city as a neighbor rather than an outsider.

**Strengths:** A distinct professional and outsider perspective in this race, with an explicit focus on renters and small businesses. The other three candidates are closer to career politics.

**Trade-offs:** No prior elected or appointed government experience was found in the reporting. No detailed policy platform beyond his general framing was found.

**Keep in mind:** No campaign-finance figures for Reese were found for this race. See Financial info.

## Sources

1. [San Diego County Registrar of Voters -- Candidate List, November 3, 2026 General Election (current through the 8/24/2026 2:44pm snapshot): confirms Mayor, City Council Districts 1 and 3, City Clerk, and City Treasurer as Carlsbad's five November 2026 races, and Mayor plus City Council Districts 1 and 3 as Poway's three November 2026 races, each Vote for 1](https://www.sdvote.com/content/dam/rov/en/election/nov-3-2026-gubernatorial-general-election/candidate-list.pdf)
2. [City of La Mesa -- Elections page: confirms Mayor, two City Council seats, and City Treasurer as the three November 3, 2026 races, each a 4-year term, and lists the same eight qualified candidates as the county's own Candidate List, confirming council seats are filled at-large, not by district](https://www.cityoflamesa.gov/1492/Elections)
3. [San Diego Union-Tribune (Hannah Elsmore) -- "Two council members vie for La Mesa's mayor seat; treasurer's race also on the ballot": dated, bylined reporting naming, and giving party, occupation, and platform detail for, all eight qualified candidates across all three La Mesa races, plus June 30, 2026 cash-on-hand figures for the two councilmember-mayoral candidates and Bill Exeter's 2022 vote share against Matt Strabone](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/2026/08/30/two-council-members-vie-for-la-mesas-mayor-seat-treasurers-race-also-on-the-ballot/)
4. [City of La Mesa -- City Council page: a general-law, council-manager city with four councilmembers and a mayor, all elected at-large to 4-year terms, with two council seats up each cycle on a staggered schedule](https://www.cityoflamesa.gov/247/City-Council)
5. [East County Magazine (Henri Migala) -- "View our interview: La Mesa Councilwoman Laura Lothian seeks reelection, aims to 'class up' La Mesa": dated 2022 interview covering her real-estate career, her 2021 special-election win replacing Akilah Weber, and a public-safety/anti-tax/small-business platform -- background from her prior council campaign, cited only for facts still true of her today](https://eastcountymagazine.org/view-our-interview-la-mesa-councilwoman-laura-lothian-seeks-reelection-aims-class-la-mesa/)
6. [East County Magazine (Michael Howard) -- "La Mesa City Councilmember Laura Lothian calls for '15-Strikes and You're Out' homelessness policy": dated news story quoting Lothian's Jan. 14, 2025 council remarks proposing to stop outreach to homeless individuals who decline services 15 times](https://eastcountymagazine.org/la-mesa-city-councilmember-laura-lothian-calls-15-strikes-and-your-out-homelessness-policy/)
7. [East County Magazine -- "Patricia Dillard, La Mesa City Council candidate: committed to public service": dated 2022 interview covering her ~40-year business-development/sales career, her role as vice chair of the Community Police Oversight Board, and co-chairing the city's Juneteenth event -- background from her first council campaign, cited only for facts still true of her today](https://eastcountymagazine.org/patricia-dillard-la-mesa-city-council-candidate-committed-public-service/)

## The rest of the ballot

Mayor of La Mesa 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, "Mayor of La Mesa — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/la-mesa-mayor (sources last retrieved September 7, 2026).

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