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City of Pinole · Statewide General Election

Pinole City Council

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 Pinole's five at-large City Council seats on a council-manager government with an appointed City Manager: city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this Contra Costa County city. A 4-year term, decided by whichever three candidates get the most votes -- no ranked-choice voting or June primary is documented for Pinole. The Mayor is rotated annually among Council members rather than elected directly by voters; the City Clerk is an appointed officer, not a separately elected office. Pinole does have a separately elected City Treasurer, but that seat is not up this cycle.

Five newcomers are running for Pinole's three open at-large City Council seats after all three termed-out incumbents -- Mayor Anthony Tave, Norma Martinez-Rubin, and Cameron Sasai -- declined to file for reelection: Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian, Libby Duarte, Gabriel Sandoval, Matthew "Matt" Avery, and Tina Brown.

This person would hold one of Pinole's five at-large City Council seats on a council-manager government with an appointed City Manager: city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this Contra Costa County city of about 19,000 residents. A 4-year term. The Mayor is rotated annually among Council members rather than elected directly by voters; the City Clerk, Heather Bell-Spears, is an appointed officer, not a separately elected office. Pinole does have a separately elected City Treasurer, but that seat is not up this cycle.

Three seats are open this cycle, decided by whichever three candidates get the most votes -- no ranked-choice voting or June primary is documented for Pinole. All three seats came open the same way: none of the three sitting incumbents whose terms expire this cycle filed for reelection, which under the county's own procedure reopened a non-incumbent filing window through Aug. 12, 2026. Five candidates qualified in that window; no incumbent is on this ballot.

Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian

Her filed ballot designation is "Mother/Nonprofit CEO." She's a 20-plus-year member of SEIU Local 2015 in customer service, and founded and now leads the Lam-Julian Foundation nonprofit. Her own campaign site describes her as a first-generation Vietnamese-Chinese American, the daughter of refugees, and a Pinole homeowner; she's a former PTA president and Rotarian, and currently sits on Contra Costa County's Developmental Disabilities Council and Women and Girls Commission. Her platform groups under three headings -- accountability (internal audits, eliminating wasteful spending, citizen oversight committees), safety (first-responder funding, road and fire-safety repairs), and affordability (a small-business alliance, rent-control protections, continuing the city's Project Labor Agreement) -- and she says her campaign is "100% funded by people power" with no corporate or PAC money.

Strengths

The most extensive documented civic and community record of the five candidates -- county commission service, PTA and Rotary leadership, and a nonprofit she founded and runs.

Trade-offs

Her biography, platform, and "no corporate or PAC money" claim all come from her own campaign site; this dataset found no independent reporting or filed campaign-finance record to check them against.

Keep in mind

See this contest's financial note below -- no campaign-disclosure filing was found for any of the five candidates, including her.

Libby Duarte

Her filed ballot designation is "Corporate Services Manager." She maintains a campaign presence on Facebook ("Libby Duarte for Pinole City Council") and Instagram (@libby4pinolecouncil) per the city's own candidate roster, but her campaign website was still under construction at retrieval, displaying only a placeholder message.

Strengths

Qualified early in the filing window (July 23, 2026), among the first three of the five candidates to file.

Trade-offs

This dataset found no biography, platform, or independent coverage beyond her filed occupational designation -- her campaign website had no content at retrieval.

Keep in mind

See this contest's financial note below -- no campaign-disclosure filing was found for any of the five candidates, including her.

Gabriel Sandoval

His filed ballot designation is "Legislative Staff." His own campaign site, run under the slogan "Leadership That Listens. Progress That Matters," lays out a three-part platform: public safety (funding tools for first responders), infrastructure and quality of life (roads, parks, and general infrastructure investment), and economic development (revitalizing local businesses to grow city revenue). His site lists an FPPC identification number (1488433) for his campaign committee.

Strengths

A stated "Legislative Staff" occupation suggesting direct government-process experience, plus a registered FPPC committee number.

Trade-offs

His site doesn't name his employer or what body he staffs, and its platform is only general. Its "Voices of Support" section is unfilled placeholder text, not real endorsements.

Keep in mind

See this contest's financial note below -- no filed committee activity was found beyond the bare FPPC ID on his own site.

Matthew "Matt" Avery

His filed ballot designation is "Retired Police Commander." He qualified for the ballot Aug. 4, 2026, the last of the five candidates to file before the county's own qualified-candidate deadline. His campaign website and Facebook page both loaded with no biographical or platform content at retrieval.

Strengths

A law-enforcement command background, per his own filed designation, distinct from the other four candidates' occupations.

Trade-offs

No independent confirmation of which agency he commanded for or when he retired, and no platform statement -- his site and Facebook page were both blank at retrieval.

Keep in mind

See this contest's financial note below -- no campaign-disclosure filing was found for any of the five candidates, including him.

Tina Brown

Her filed ballot designation is "Human Service Professional." She qualified for the ballot Aug. 6, 2026. Her campaign website was live at retrieval but consisted only of a bare landing page naming her and the office she's seeking, with no biography or platform content.

Strengths

A human-services occupational background, per her own filed designation.

Trade-offs

This dataset found no biography, platform, or independent coverage beyond her filed occupational designation -- her campaign website carried no substantive content at retrieval.

Keep in mind

See this contest's financial note below -- no campaign-disclosure filing was found for any of the five candidates, including her.

Source review: Strong (86/100) · 10 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with several source types checked for context; advocacy or endorsement sources are treated as attributed perspective.

Review note: Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian for Pinole City Council -- her own campaign site: a 20+-year SEIU 2015 member in customer service, founder/CEO of the Lam-Julian Foundation nonprofit, a first-generation Vietnamese-Chinese American and daughter of refugees, prior PTA president and Rotarian, current member of the county's Developmental Disabilities Council and Women and Girls Commission; platform groups under accountability, safety, and affordability, and states her campaign is "100% funded by people power" with "0% from corporations and PACs." and Gabriel Sandoval for Pinole City Council -- his own campaign site: names an FPPC ID (1488433) and lays out a three-part platform (public safety, infrastructure/quality-of-life, and economic development/small-business revitalization) under the slogan "Leadership That Listens. Progress That Matters"; its "Voices of Support" section displays only unfilled placeholder text, not actual endorsements. may have more bias because they are advocacy voter guides compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources.

  • contracostavote.gov (opens in a new tab)Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Positions Up for Election, November 3, 2026, General Election": lists Pinole's only office this cycle as "3 Councilmembers" under Cities Offices -- no City Clerk or City Treasurer line item for Pinole appears anywhere in the document
  • contracostavote.gov (opens in a new tab)Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Contest/Candidate Proof List" (8-27-26_candidatelist_detail_final.pdf), the county's post-certification ON-BALLOT export: shows Pinole's "PinoleCouncil" contest as Vote For 3, with 5 filed and 5 qualified candidates, ON BALLOT status, and the county's own "* Denotes Office Goes Into Extension" marker, naming all three sitting incumbents (Norma Diana Martinez-Rubin, Anthony Lee Tave, Cameron Noah Sasai) as "Elected" to the outgoing term but not among the five qualified candidates; each qualified candidate's filed ballot designation and qualification date is listed individually
  • contracostavote.gov (opens in a new tab)Contra Costa County Elections Division -- "Candidate List" (8-14-26_candidatelist_summary_final.pdf), the county's complete qualified-candidate roster: independently confirms the same five-candidate field for Pinole's 3-seat Council contest (Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian, Libby Duarte, Gabriel Sandoval, Matthew "Matt" Avery, Tina Brown) with matching qualification timestamps
  • pinole.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Pinole -- City Clerk's "Elections Information" page: confirms both City Council (five at-large, 4-year terms) and City Treasurer as elected offices, states the nomination period ran July 13-Aug. 7, 2026 and "due to incumbents not filing, the nomination period is extended to August 12, 2026," and links the city's own candidate roster and 2026 Candidate Guide
  • pinole.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Pinole -- "City Council Members" page: names Mayor Anthony Tave, Norma Martinez-Rubin, and Cameron Sasai each with a term expiring December 2026, and Mayor Pro Tempore Devin T. Murphy and Councilmember Maureen Toms each with a term expiring December 2028 -- confirming the first three are this cycle's three open seats -- and states the Council operates under a council-manager government with the mayoral role rotating annually among members
  • pinole.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Pinole -- City Clerk page: states the City Clerk, Heather Bell-Spears, is "an appointed officer of the City," not a separately elected office
  • pinole.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Pinole -- official "Candidate Roster" (as of 8/18/2026) for the November 3, 2026 General Municipal Consolidated Election, Pinole City Council (3 seats): independently confirms the same five-candidate field with each candidate's self-provided contact information -- Gabriel Sandoval (gabeforpinole.com), Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian (christylamjulian.com), Libby Duarte (Facebook "Libby Duarte for Pinole City Council," Instagram @libby4pinolecouncil), Mat(t) Avery (mat4citycouncil.com, Facebook/Instagram @matt4citycouncil), and Tina Brown (tina4pinole.com) -- plus each candidate's nomination-paper pull/file dates
  • en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia's Pinole, California article -- confirms a council-manager government, population 19,022 (2020 census), and incorporation June 25, 1903; cited only for these structural/demographic facts -- its listed council roster is stale relative to the city's own current page and is not relied on for incumbency
  • gabeforpinole.com (opens in a new tab)Gabriel Sandoval for Pinole City Council -- his own campaign site: names an FPPC ID (1488433) and lays out a three-part platform (public safety, infrastructure/quality-of-life, and economic development/small-business revitalization) under the slogan "Leadership That Listens. Progress That Matters"
  • christylamjulian.com (opens in a new tab)Truc "Christy" Lam-Julian for Pinole City Council -- her own campaign site: a 20+-year SEIU 2015 member in customer service, founder/CEO of the Lam-Julian Foundation nonprofit, a first-generation Vietnamese-Chinese American and daughter of refugees, prior PTA president and Rotarian, current member of the county's Developmental Disabilities Council and Women and Girls Commission; platform groups under accountability, safety, and affordability, and states her campaign is "100% funded by people power" with "0% from corporations and PACs"

Last updated September 1, 2026.