City of Palmdale

Palmdale City Council, District 4

This person holds your district's seat on Palmdale's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years.

Four candidates are running for the District 4 seat on Palmdale's City Council. Incumbent Eric Ohlsen faces three challengers. They are Getro Elize, Mark A. Maldonado, and Francisco Sanchez. Palmdale elects its council by district each November, with no primary.

Council seats carry 4-year terms. The winner joins four other district representatives as one of five votes on city ordinances, the budget, and land use, with day-to-day operations run by an appointed city manager rather than any single elected official. The council separately assigns the ceremonial Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem titles from among its own five members each year; winning this seat does not by itself decide who holds those titles going forward.

Ohlsen currently holds both the District 4 seat and, by his colleagues' assignment, the council-wide Mayor title. The practical choice is whether one term plus that added role is enough to extend, or whether a challenger's specific platform is the clearer draw — Elize is the only challenger who has published a detailed platform.

Eric Ohlsen

Eric Ohlsen is the incumbent, first elected to the council in 2022. His priorities are community beautification and development. He now serves as the council's Mayor, a title chosen by fellow councilmembers.

Getro Elize

Getro Elize is an Army veteran and community health worker. He wants to address housing costs, safer schools, and public safety infrastructure. He is endorsed by SEIU-UHW, a healthcare union, the only such endorsement this cycle.

Mark A. Maldonado

Mark A. Maldonado is one of four candidates on the District 4 ballot. No campaign platform or biography has been found for him as of Aug. 31, 2026. He filed his nomination papers on Aug. 5, 2026.

Francisco Sanchez

Francisco Sanchez is one of four candidates on the District 4 ballot. No campaign platform or biography has been found for Sanchez as of Aug. 31, 2026. They filed their nomination papers on Aug. 4, 2026, the earliest of the three challengers.

Your pick

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

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