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City of Manteca · Statewide General Election

Manteca City Council, District 4

This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.

On the ballot

This person would hold one of four district seats on Manteca's 5-member City Council, alongside an at-large Mayor: city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this San Joaquin County city of about 83,498 residents per the 2020 Census and reported by local press to be approaching 100,000. City Manager Toni Lundgren runs day-to-day operations under Council direction. A 4-year term. Manteca shifted from at-large to district Council elections in 2022 following a California Voting Rights Act challenge. District 4 covers Manteca north of Louise Avenue, with the exception of the Diamond Oaks neighborhood east of Highway 99.

Incumbent Mike Morowit, a UC Berkeley-educated small-business owner seeking a third term, faces Chamber of Commerce leader Dani Bettencourt and Rogger Gutierrez, a parent and management analyst, for the District 4 seat -- the best-financed of Manteca's two contested council races.

This person would hold one of four district seats on Manteca's 5-member City Council, alongside an at-large Mayor: city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this San Joaquin County city of about 83,498 residents per the 2020 Census and reported by local press to be approaching 100,000. City Manager Toni Lundgren runs day-to-day operations under Council direction. A 4-year term. Manteca shifted from at-large to district Council elections in 2022 following a California Voting Rights Act challenge. District 4 covers Manteca north of Louise Avenue, with the exception of the Diamond Oaks neighborhood east of Highway 99.

As late as July 10, 2026 -- five weeks before the filing deadline -- only Morowit and District 3's David Breitenbucher had scheduled filing appointments for the two council seats. Bettencourt and Gutierrez both filed before the August 5, 2026 deadline, giving this seat a three-way field.

Mike Morowit

The incumbent, who has operated a small business in Manteca since 1995 and holds a Sociology degree from UC Berkeley. He served a first Council term from 2014 to 2018, chaired the Planning Commission for two years, and returned to the Council in 2022. He has said he expects to need to raise about $35,000 for a competitive re-election campaign -- the most explicit fundraising target of any 2026 Manteca candidate.

Strengths

Two Council terms, Planning Commission chair experience, and the strongest 2026 fundraising of the three -- roughly $7,000 raised, including roughly $5,000 from an industry PAC.

Trade-offs

The Building Industry PAC contribution ties him to development-industry backing, worth weighing against his growth and land-use votes.

Keep in mind

He has publicly stated a fundraising target around $35,000 -- a specific, checkable number none of Manteca's other 2026 candidates has matched in the public record.

Dani Bettencourt

A 40-year Manteca resident and business owner who served as Manteca Chamber of Commerce president in 2025-2026 and continues on its board, with extensive United Way volunteer experience. If elected, she and District 2's Regina Lackey would be the first two women to serve on the Council at the same time in Manteca's 108-year history; Bettencourt would be the seventh woman to ever serve.

Strengths

Chamber of Commerce leadership experience and sustained, multi-year local civic and nonprofit involvement.

Trade-offs

Like Larson in District 3, she has not organized a 2026 campaign committee, so there's no fundraising record to evaluate.

Keep in mind

She named broad values -- hard decisions, community love, listening, problem-solving -- as her reasons for running, not specific policy positions.

Rogger F. Gutierrez

His ballot designation reads "Parent/Management Analyst." No independent biography or stated platform was found this session.

Strengths

None independently confirmed beyond his ballot designation.

Trade-offs

No campaign committee is on file, and no news coverage naming him was found this session.

Keep in mind

A missing public profile isn't itself a red flag for a first-time local candidate, but it means less to go on for him than his two opponents.

Source review: Very strong (92/100) · 16 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with several source types checked for context.

  • sjgov.org (opens in a new tab)San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- "Qualified Candidate List" (report CFMR009, "November 3 2026 General Election," printed 8/20/2026, two weeks after the Aug. 5 filing deadline): confirms all three November 2026 City of Manteca contests, each marked On Ballot: Yes -- Mayor (Jacob Naven, "Small Business Owner"; Gary Singh, "Manteca Businessman/Mayor," incumbent), City Council District 3 (David Breitenbucher, "Councilmember/Retired Firefighter," incumbent; Lei Ann Varletta Larson, "Homemaker"), and City Council District 4 (Mike Morowit, "Manteca Businessman/Councilmember," incumbent; Dani Bettencourt, "Businesswoman/Sales Coach"; Rogger F. Gutierrez, "Parent/Management Analyst") -- no Section 10229 single-filer scenario applies to any of the three
  • sjgov.org (opens in a new tab)San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- "Offices Up for the 2026 General Election": confirms the City of Manteca's office structure -- Mayor (at-large, 4-year term), Member of City Council - District 3 (4-year term), Member of City Council - District 4 (4-year term) -- and states that because no primary was held for municipal offices, all qualified candidates proceed directly to the November ballot
  • sjgov.org (opens in a new tab)San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- official "Notice of General Election" (2026gen): independently corroborates the same three City of Manteca contests -- Mayor, City Council District 3, City Council District 4 -- each "Vote for one (1)"
  • manteca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Manteca -- "Mayor & City Council" page: confirms the 5-member structure -- Gary Singh (Mayor, at-large), Charlie Halford (District 1), Regina Lackey (Vice Mayor, District 2), David Breitenbucher (District 3), Mike Morowit (District 4) -- with District 1 and District 2 not up in 2026, and links each member's own staff-directory bio page
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)San Joaquin County/City of Manteca NetFile public campaign-finance portal (agency code MTA, linked from the city's own Campaign Finance Disclosure page), queried directly via its own QuickNameSearch and filings/byCandidate JSON APIs for all seven 2026 candidates -- the source for which candidates organized a campaign committee (Form 410) versus filing only the minimum Form 501/700, and the index used to locate every FPPC filing cited individually below
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "Will city manager be the top paid civic employee?" (Dennis Wyatt, Jun. 16, 2026): independently names City Manager Toni Lundgren and gives her proposed base salary; used in this shard only to confirm her name
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "No challengers for Breitenbucher or Morowit in races?" (Dennis Wyatt, Jul. 10, 2026): captures the moment, before the Aug. 5 filing deadline, when only four people (Singh, Naven, Breitenbucher, Morowit) had scheduled filing appointments -- raising the possibility of Manteca's first uncontested council election since at least 1960 -- and gives context on the city's 2020 shift to district elections
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "Interact Club is hosting Manteca forum for mayor, council hopefuls" (Nihar Jain, Aug. 25, 2026): announces a youth-organized, nonpartisan candidate forum (Sept. 27, 2026); states "all seven candidates running for Mayor, City Council District 3, and City Council District 4 have confirmed their participation" -- independent confirmation of the full, final seven-candidate field across all three contests
  • ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia -- "Manteca, California": carries no municipal-election detail (outside its coverage scope for cities under the 100 largest); used in this shard only for its 2020 Census population figure (83,498)
  • manteca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Manteca staff directory -- Councilmember Mike Morowit's official bio: elected to his current District 4 term Nov. 2022; served a prior Council term 2014-2018; small-business owner in Manteca since 1995; B.A. in Sociology (UC Berkeley); former Planning Commissioner 2008-2014 (Chair for two years); active with the Manteca Noon Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, and Children's Foundation
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)Mike Morowit's filed FPPC forms for "Mike Morowit for Manteca City Council, District 4, 2026," downloaded directly from the NetFile portal: Form 460 (filed Jul. 1, 2026, covering Jan. 1-Jun. 30, 2026) reports $7,001.00 in new monetary contributions -- $5,000 from the Building Industry Association G.V. PAC, $1,000 from Holman Investors LLC, and $500 each from two individual Stockton-area donors -- plus a separately itemized $9,611.67 bank transfer of leftover funds from his prior (2022) committee account (Schedule I), spending $250.00 and ending the period with $16,362.67 cash on hand; a subsequent Form 497 (Aug. 10, 2026) discloses one further $1,000 contribution
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)Dani Bettencourt's filed FPPC forms, downloaded directly from the NetFile portal: only Form 501 (candidate intention statement, filed Jul. 14, 2026) and Form 700 (Statement of Economic Interests, filed Jul. 23, 2026) -- no Form 410 (campaign committee) is on file, so no itemized dollar figures are available for 2026
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)Rogger Gutierrez's filed FPPC forms, downloaded directly from the NetFile portal: only Form 501 (candidate intention statement, filed Jul. 30, 2026) and Form 700 (Statement of Economic Interests, filed Aug. 3, 2026) -- no Form 410 (campaign committee) is on file, so no itemized dollar figures are available for 2026
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "Dani Bettencourt running for District 4 City Council seat" (Dennis Wyatt, Jul. 16, 2026): profiles Bettencourt as a 40-year Manteca resident, business owner, 2025-2026 Manteca Chamber of Commerce president, and United Way volunteer; notes her election alongside sitting District 2 member Regina Lackey would mark the first time two women served on the Council simultaneously in Manteca's 108-year history (she would be the seventh woman to ever serve); gives her self-described reasons for running
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "Breitenbucher, Morowit both plan to run again for City Council seats" (Dennis Wyatt, Jan. 16, 2026): both incumbents cite the new police station, sixth fire station, and homeless navigation center (funded by the Measure Q sales tax they championed) as their reasons for seeking a third term; gives each district's geographic boundaries and each councilman's prior Council service dates
  • mantecabulletin.com (opens in a new tab)Manteca Bulletin -- "MANTECA MAYOR'S RACE MAY SEE $200,000 IN CAMPAIGN SPENDING" (Dennis Wyatt, May 23, 2026): both Singh and Naven state fundraising targets of $80,000-100,000 each; Morowit states a $35,000 re-election target; gives the record nearly $180,000 spent across Singh's three-way 2022 mayoral race, in which he outspent both opponents (Ben Cantu and LeAnn Larson, each just under $15,000) roughly 10 to 1, and states Singh's $44,121 2026 carryover matches this dataset's own NetFile-sourced figure

Last updated September 1, 2026.