sdvote.com (opens in a new tab)San Diego County Registrar of Voters -- Candidate List, November 3, 2026 General Election (current through the 8/24/2026 2:44pm snapshot): confirms Mayor, City Council Districts 1 and 3, City Clerk, and City Treasurer as Carlsbad's five November 2026 races, and Mayor plus City Council Districts 1 and 3 as Poway's three November 2026 races, each Vote for 1
sanmarcosca.gov (opens in a new tab)City of San Marcos -- City Council page: describes the city as "a Charter City governed by a five-member City Council consisting of an elected Mayor and four City Council Members"; carries the sitting officeholders' own official biographies, including Mayor Rebecca Jones's tenure and Council Member Maria Nunez's and Deputy Mayor Mike Sannella's district, first-elected date, and background
thecoastnews.com (opens in a new tab)The Coast News Group (Leo Place) -- "Election 2026: San Marcos City Council": detailed, quoted platform profiles of Sannella, Jenkins, Smith, Matsushita, and Nunez as of mid-May 2026 -- the descriptive backbone of this shard, though it predates Gabriele's District 1 filing and describes Nunez as running unopposed at that point
thecoastnews.com (opens in a new tab)The Coast News Group (staff) -- "Election 2026: A guide to North County races": for San Marcos, confirms the final three-race field, including Thomas Gabriele's later filing against Nunez in District 1 -- the correction to the May 2026 "unopposed" reporting; for Vista, corroborates Mayor Franklin's departure and his June 2026 County Supervisor District 5 primary loss, and the District 1/District 4 incumbents-vs-challengers framing, and names two additional mayoral filers, Gabriel Chance and Alexandra Garcia Guzman, not present on the county's own certified, post-deadline qualified candidate list -- treated as filed-but-not-qualified, not part of the November ballot
sandiegouniontribune.com (opens in a new tab)San Diego Union-Tribune (Paul Sisson) -- "Jones' supervisor run shakes up San Marcos city elections": confirms Mayor Jones is not seeking a third term because she is running for County Supervisor District 5, opening the mayor's race to Jenkins and Sannella; a search-result excerpt additionally identifies Thomas Gabriele as "an economics teacher at Saint Joseph Academy in San Marcos and technology entrepreneur" -- the article itself sits behind a paywall beyond its opening paragraphs
sjaclassical.org (opens in a new tab)Saint Joseph Academy (San Marcos) -- public faculty roster: lists Thomas Gabriele teaching "Entrepreneurship", independently corroborating the Union-Tribune's description of him as a technology entrepreneur and economics teacher

Last updated September 7, 2026.

City of San Marcos

San Marcos City Council, District 1

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

Incumbent Maria Nunez faces challenger Thomas Gabriele for San Marcos City Council, District 1. The candidate with the most votes on November 3 wins, with no runoff.

This person holds District 1's seat on San Marcos's 5-member City Council, alongside the citywide-elected mayor. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. District 1 includes the Richmar area of San Marcos. The term is four years.

This race was not on the radar as recently as May 2026 -- local news coverage at that point described Nunez as running unopposed for a third term. Gabriele filed their intention paperwork later, before the city's August 7 qualification deadline, making this a genuinely contested race between an incumbent attorney and a first-time candidate who teaches entrepreneurship and economics.

Maria Nunez

Maria Nunez has served on the San Marcos council since 2018 and is a lawyer. Their priorities include housing affordability, safety, infrastructure, and economic opportunity for working families. They are seeking a third term and are a San Marcos native.

Thomas Gabriele

Thomas Gabriele is a first-time candidate for public office. They teach entrepreneurship and economics at Saint Joseph Academy, a private school in San Marcos. No campaign website or news profile about them was found.

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