Review note: Kaia Eakin for Redwood City Council (District 5) -- candidate's own campaign site: describes lifelong Redwood City / Peninsula roots, Woodside High School, a B.A. in English Literature from the College of Notre Dame (Belmont), and a J.D. from UC Davis; discloses a committee name ('Kaia Eakin for City Council 2026') in a 'Paid for by' footer but no visible FPPC filer-ID number. may have more bias because it is an advocacy voter guide compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources.
- smcacre.gov (opens in a new tab)San Mateo County ACRE (Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder-Elections) -- Roster of Candidates, Qualified Candidates Only, November 3, 2026 General Election (CFMR009), dated 2026-08-25: confirms Redwood City's City Council Districts 2, 5, and 6 are each 'On Ballot: Yes' with exactly one qualified candidate apiece (Chris Sturken, Kaia Eakin, Diane Howard), Eakin's ballot designation flagged 'Incumbent,' and Sturken's and Howard's filed ballot designations ('City Council Member' and 'City Councilmember / Nurse')
- en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- Redwood City, California: infobox and government section naming all 7 council districts and their current holders (Jeff Gee D1, Chris Sturken D2, Isabella Chu D3, Mayor Elmer Martinez Saballos D4, Vice Mayor Kaia Eakin D5, Diane Howard D6, Marcella Padilla D7), the council-manager form of government, and a 2020 Census population of 84,292
- rwcpulse.com (opens in a new tab)Redwood City Pulse -- "Redwood City Council races could be a rerun" (Miranda de Moraes, July 17, 2026): reports that incumbents Chris Sturken (District 2, first elected 2022), Kaia Eakin (District 5, first elected 2022, sitting Vice Mayor), and Diane Howard (District 6, first elected 1994, representing District 5 before the 2022 redistricting) each pulled nomination papers, and that Redwood City adopted by-district council elections through 2022 redistricting efforts
- rwcpulse.com (opens in a new tab)Redwood City Pulse -- "Redwood City Council races draw no challengers" (Miranda de Moraes, Aug. 13, 2026): confirms the regular filing deadline passed Aug. 7, 2026 leaving Sturken, Eakin, and Howard as the sole, unopposed candidates in Districts 2, 5, and 6; each seat carries a 4-year term; Eakin is next in line for Mayor by seniority rotation when Martinez Saballos's term expires in December; Howard has served continuously since 1994 except 2009-2013 and has twice been the council-rotation Mayor (1997 and 2019); and a write-in filing period runs Sept. 7 -- Oct. 20, 2026
- netfile.com (opens in a new tab)City of Redwood City's public campaign-finance disclosure portal (NetFile, agency id RWC) -- public.netfile.com/pub2/?AID=RWC redirects to netfile.com/public/RWC/campaign, confirming the portal exists, but that page is a client-rendered single-page app that returned only a bare 'Public Portal' header to a plain fetch, no committee list or dollar figures -- the same recurring failure mode already documented elsewhere in this dataset for other cities' NetFile portals
- kaiaeakin.org (opens in a new tab)Kaia Eakin for Redwood City Council (District 5) -- candidate's own campaign site: describes lifelong Redwood City / Peninsula roots, Woodside High School, a B.A. in English Literature from the College of Notre Dame (Belmont), and a J.D. from UC Davis; discloses a committee name ('Kaia Eakin for City Council 2026') in a 'Paid for by' footer but no visible FPPC filer-ID number
Last updated September 1, 2026.
City of Redwood City
Redwood City Council, District 5
This person would hold one of Redwood City's seven district City Council seats. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Redwood City is the San Mateo County seat, with about 84,300 residents. An appointed City Manager runs day-to-day operations. The term is four years. The council, not voters, chooses the Mayor. Members take turns by seniority. Redwood City moved to district council elections in a 2022 redistricting.
Only one candidate qualified for Redwood City's District 5 council seat. She is the incumbent Vice Mayor, Kaia Eakin. This race is already decided, so your vote here will not change the outcome.
The seat carries a 4-year term on Redwood City's 7-member City Council, San Mateo County's county seat, under a council-manager government with an appointed City Manager. The council -- not voters directly -- chooses one of its own to serve as Mayor in a seniority-based rotation. Redwood City moved to by-district council elections in a 2022 redistricting.
With no opponent, the useful question is not who to choose but what the officeholder has done in her first term and what happens next -- notably, that this seat is on track to become the Mayor's seat.
Kaia Eakin
Kaia Eakin is Redwood City's District 5 councilmember, first elected in 2022. Her platform includes recreation funding, climate resiliency, road safety, and affordable housing. She is the council's Vice Mayor. She is next in line to become Mayor in December 2026. That change is procedural and it is not decided by this election.
Your pick
A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.