Skip to main content

Port Hueneme City Council

This is a sample · See your full ballot

✕

City of Port Hueneme

Port Hueneme City Council

This person holds one of Port Hueneme's five at-large City Council seats. They vote on the city budget, land use, and public safety priorities. Port Hueneme is a small Ventura County beach city. Terms are four years. They are staggered, so only part of the council is up each cycle. The council does not elect its mayor directly. Members choose one of their own to serve as Mayor each year. That person also serves as Mayor Pro Tem. This usually happens each December.

Three incumbents and two challengers are running for three Port Hueneme council seats. The incumbents are Steven A. Gama, Laura Hernandez, and Mayor Martha R. McQueen-Legohn. The challengers are James Importante and Julio Kollerbohm. The top three vote getters win, with no runoff.

This is one of three seats on Port Hueneme's five-member City Council, a small Ventura County beach city of roughly 22,000 people. The winner votes on the city budget, land use, and public-safety priorities. The term is four years, and the office is elected at-large (citywide, not by district) on a staggered schedule, so only three of the five seats are up this cycle — Councilmembers Jess Lopez and Misty Perez hold the other two and are not on this ballot. The Council doesn't elect its own Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem directly; members choose two of their own each year, typically each December, per the city's own City Council page. McQueen-Legohn currently holds the Mayor's chair and Hernandez the Mayor Pro Tem's.

With five names on the ballot for three seats, whichever three candidates draw the most votes win — the same at-large, no-runoff system the city used in 2022, when the Ventura County Star described it as "the top three vote-getters will claim a spot at the dais." A vote for a losing candidate does not transfer or count toward anyone else.

Steven A. Gama

Steven A. Gama is a terminal operator who has served on the Council since 2018. They led the creation of Port Hueneme's HOA Coalition on water conservation. They are seeking a third term and say they raised less than $2,000 this cycle.

Laura Hernandez

Laura Hernandez is a small business owner who has served on the Council since 2019. In 2025 they sued Police Chief Michael Federico for defamation, and he countersued them. Both suits ended without a ruling on the merits by late 2025. Federico later sought about $39,000 from the city, but the Council voted it down.

Martha R. McQueen-Legohn

Martha R. McQueen-Legohn is a senior adjunct professor and retired Department of Defense civil servant. In 2022 they won a Council seat, unseating incumbent Richard Rollins. They now serve as Mayor and are seeking a second term.

James Importante

James Importante is a Port Hueneme native making his first run for the Council. He is a management analyst for Ventura County with more than 20 years in government. His platform focuses on economic development and planning as cannabis tax revenue declines.

Julio Kollerbohm

Julio Kollerbohm's ballot designation is Digital Media Manager. No further background or platform details could be found for them.

Your picks · choose up to 3

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

This is one race on your ballot. Vote or Else shows every contest you will vote on — Congress, the Legislature, your county, city, and school board — each broken down the same way. Enter your address to see your full ballot.