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City of Morgan Hill · Statewide General Election

Morgan Hill City Council, District B

Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.

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 the Morgan Hill City Council: city ordinances, the budget, and land use in this Santa Clara County city of about 45,000, alongside a separately elected, citywide Mayor (also on this ballot) and three other district Council members. A 4-year term. Districts A and C aren't up again until 2028.

Two candidates are running for Morgan Hill City Council District B: incumbent Yvonne Martinez Beltran and challenger Steven Hayes. Whoever gets the most votes wins outright -- this is a plurality election, not ranked-choice.

This person would hold Morgan Hill's District B seat on the City Council -- covering the city's northern corner, bordered by Monterey Road and Dunne Avenue, per local reporting: city ordinances, the budget, and land use in this Santa Clara County city of about 45,000, alongside a separately elected, citywide Mayor (also on this ballot -- see that contest) and three other district Council members. A 4-year term.

District D is also contested this cycle (see that contest); Districts A and C aren't up again until 2028.

Steven Hayes

Steven Hayes has lived in Morgan Hill more than 20 years and is raising two daughters there with his wife. Local reporting describes him as a retired Gilroy fire captain and paramedic; his own candidate statement describes an ongoing career as a Fire Captain/Paramedic and says he currently represents California firefighters at the state level and sits on the California Earthquake Authority Board, working on disaster-preparedness policy. His stated priorities are strong police, fire, and emergency medical services; fiscal responsibility and transparent government; well-maintained roads and infrastructure; support for local businesses; and parks and open space. On growth, he says development "must serve our community, not overwhelm it" and calls for holding developers accountable and keeping infrastructure and public safety capacity in step with new building.

Strengths

A decades-long emergency-services career plus a current state-level firefighters' advocacy role and a seat on the California Earthquake Authority Board.

Trade-offs

No prior Morgan Hill city-government or commission experience is cited in his statement or in local coverage, unlike Martinez Beltran's decade of city service.

Keep in mind

local reporting calls him retired from fire service; his own statement is written in present tense about his advocacy roles -- worth clarifying if it matters to your read.

Yvonne Martinez Beltran

Yvonne Martinez Beltran is a lifelong Morgan Hill resident, a graduate of Live Oak High School, and holds a Master's in Urban Planning (Housing and Economic Development) from New York University; she's also been a small-business owner and is a mother of three. She has 10 years of city service: 8 on the City Council and 2 on the Planning Commission before that. In her candidate statement she cites, among her results in office, championing funding for public safety officers and an additional fire house, supporting resident-initiated referendums, leading the city's Climate Action efforts, and helping bring a fourth Caltrain service to Morgan Hill. Her stated priorities for another term are public safety, affordable and sustainable housing and infrastructure, smart use of city funds, business development, and youth sports, recreation, and mental-health access.

Strengths

The field's only candidate with direct Morgan Hill city-government experience -- 8 years on the Council plus 2 on the Planning Commission -- and a planning graduate degree.

Trade-offs

As the incumbent, she owns her own 8-year council record in full, including whatever a voter weighing Hayes's public-safety framing thinks is unfinished.

Keep in mind

her statement lists broad citywide accomplishments without district-specific detail for District B -- worth asking what she'd prioritize for her own district.

Source review: Strong (89/100) · 9 cited sources

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

  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Morgan Hill -- "Qualified Candidates," November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election: the certified ballot roster, in Secretary of State randomized-alphabet-drawing order (drawn Aug. 13, 2026) -- Mayor (Kristopher Clayton, Deborah Africa, incumbent Mark Turner), City Council District B (Steven Hayes, incumbent Yvonne Martinez Beltran), and City Council District D (Dolores Alvarado, incumbent Marilyn Librers) -- each with a campaign-contact link and a link to that candidate's own filed Candidate Statement. Also notes that Jacob Montoya filed a Candidate Intention Statement (Form 501) for Mayor on Aug. 7, 2026 but does not appear in the qualified roster itself -- he did not complete qualification and is not on the printed ballot.
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Morgan Hill -- "Elections" page: confirms the November 3, 2026 General Municipal Election, that the city partners with the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters to conduct it, and links every other page this section cites (Qualified Candidates, Candidate Resources, Candidate Statements, City Council Districts).
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Morgan Hill -- "City Council Districts" page: confirms the city has four lettered districts (A-D), that only Districts B and D are up for election in 2026 (A and C aren't up again until 2028), and that Council terms are staggered 4-year terms.
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Morgan Hill -- "Candidate Resources" page: states Mayor is a 4-year, at-large term, City Council seats are 4-year, by-district terms, and the separately elected City Treasurer (also 4-year, at-large) -- confirming, by that Treasurer seat's own absence from the qualified-candidates roster, that no Treasurer race is on this cycle's ballot.
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Morgan Hill -- "City Council" page: names the current five-member Council (Mayor Mark Turner; Miriam Vega, District A; Yvonne Martinez Beltran, District B; Soraida Iwanaga, District C; Marilyn Librers, District D / Mayor Pro Tem) and the separately elected City Treasurer, Cindy Murphy -- and links each incumbent's own official bio document.
  • en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- Morgan Hill, California: 2020 census population (45,483), incorporation in 1906, and its council-manager form of government.
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)Steven Hayes's own filed Candidate Statement for the November 3, 2026 Morgan Hill City Council District B race -- his own words: a 20-plus-year Morgan Hill resident, a career as a Fire Captain/Paramedic who represents California firefighters at the state level and sits on the California Earthquake Authority Board, and a platform on public safety, fiscal responsibility, and holding developers accountable.
  • morganhill.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)Yvonne Martinez Beltran's own filed Candidate Statement for the November 3, 2026 Morgan Hill City Council District B race -- her own words: a lifelong Morgan Hill resident and Live Oak High School graduate with an NYU Master's in Urban Planning, 10 years of city service (8 on the Council, 2 on the Planning Commission), and a record she cites on public safety funding, Climate Action efforts, and Caltrain service.
  • morganhilltimes.com (opens in a new tab)Morgan Hill Times -- "Candidate list is set for mayor, city council election in Morgan Hill" (Aug. 14, 2026), read in full: confirms the closed nomination period and the qualified field for Mayor and Council Districts B and D, and adds independently reported detail -- Clayton's occupation as a carpenter, Africa's as a retired registered nurse, Hayes's as a retired Gilroy fire captain and paramedic, and Alvarado's as CEO of the San Jose-based Community Health Partnership -- plus each district's rough geographic boundary.

Last updated August 31, 2026.