- countyofsb.org (opens in a new tab)Santa Barbara County -- "Candidate Filing Information for November 3, 2026 General Election": the county's own 'Offices to be Filled' table lists Board of Supervisors, 5th District and County Board of Education Trustee Areas 1, 5, and 7 as the four county-section seats with terms expiring this cycle -- confirming which seats are up, not who filed or whether each reaches the ballot
- newspress.com (opens in a new tab)Santa Barbara News-Press -- "It's official: Primary election results certified, runoffs set for November" (June 30, 2026): certified June 2, 2026 primary results for the 5th District Supervisor race -- Ricardo Valencia 41.87%, Maribel Aguilera 31.15%, Cory Bantilan 26.59% (eliminated) -- no candidate reached a majority, sending Valencia and Aguilera to a November runoff
- noozhawk.com (opens in a new tab)Noozhawk -- "Trio Vying for Fifth District Supervisor Seat Face Off at Forum in Santa Maria" (Janene Scully, May 19, 2026): staffed coverage of a League of Women Voters candidate forum -- names Maribel Aguilera-Hernandez as a Santa Maria City Council member and attorney, Ricardo Valencia as a Santa Maria-Bonita School District board member and Santa Maria High School teacher endorsed by county supervisors Joan Hartmann and Laura Capps, and Cory Bantilan as outgoing Supervisor Steve Lavagnino's chief of staff -- and reports the seat is open for the first time in nearly 16 years
- google.com (opens in a new tab)Noozhawk -- "Ricardo Valencia, Maribel Aguilera-Hernandez Leading in 5th District County Supervisor Race" (June 2-3, 2026): staffed election-night coverage of the close three-way 5th District Supervisor primary, naming Valencia and Aguilera-Hernandez as the leaders headed to a November runoff -- read via a search-engine result after the article's own slug could not be independently resolved in this pass
- google.com (opens in a new tab)The Santa Barbara Independent -- "June Primary Results Update: 50-Year Judge Unseated, Runoff Race Set for North [County Supervisorial Seat]" (Nick Welsh, June 13, 2026, 11:18am): confirms a runoff race for 5th District Supervisor between Ricardo Valencia and Maribel Aguilera, with candidate photos credited to each campaign -- read via a search-engine result after the article's own slug could not be independently resolved in this pass
- google.com (opens in a new tab)Santa Maria Times -- "Valencia holds slight lead in Santa Barbara County 5th District supervisor race" (April Chavez, June 3, 2026): staffed reporting on Ricardo Valencia's narrow lead over Maribel Aguilera in the certified count for the 5th District Supervisor seat -- read via a search-engine result after the article's own slug could not be independently resolved in this pass
- google.com (opens in a new tab)KCLU -- "Trio seeks Santa Barbara County Supervisorial seat open for the first time in 16 years" (Lance Orozco, June 1, 2026): public-radio coverage naming Maribel Aguilera, Cory Bantilan, and Ricardo Valencia as the three candidates for the 5th District Supervisor seat -- read via a search-engine result after the article's own slug could not be independently resolved in this pass
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia -- Ricardo Valencia (Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors District 5, California, candidate 2026): his own Candidate Connection survey -- Santa Maria High School; B.A., UC Berkeley, 2006; graduate degree, Tufts University, 2008; profession Educator -- plus his campaign's platform text and a named endorsement roster (Santa Barbara County Democratic Party, several labor unions, CAUSE Action Fund, Dolores Huerta Action Fund, Sierra Club)
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia -- Maribel Aguilera (Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors District 5, California, candidate 2026): did not complete Ballotpedia's survey, but the page carries her campaign platform text (eight years on the Santa Maria Planning Commission; three and a half years on the Santa Maria City Council with a claimed 32% crime reduction and 20% fire-service expansion) and two named endorsements (California Federation of Labor Unions AFL-CIO; Northern Santa Barbara County Women Lawyers Association)
- cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California Secretary of State CAL-ACCESS -- filer search for "Ricardo Valencia": "VALENCIA FOR SUPERVISOR 2026" (Filer #1483207), status ACTIVE; also shows a prior Santa Maria-Bonita School District Trustee Area 4 committee (elected 2020, active through 2028) -- confirming his prior local-school-board service independent of his own campaign materials
- cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California Secretary of State CAL-ACCESS -- filer search for "Maribel Aguilera": no results -- no campaign committee registered with the state under her name for this race
Last updated September 7, 2026.
County
Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, 5th District
This person is one of five supervisors governing Santa Barbara County. They vote on the county budget, land use in unincorporated areas, and county health, fire, and social-service departments. The term is four years.
Santa Barbara County's Board of Supervisors has a runoff race for its 5th District seat on November 3, 2026. Ricardo Valencia faces Maribel Aguilera after neither won a majority in a three-way June primary. It is the district's first open race in nearly 16 years. Incumbent Steve Lavagnino chose not to seek a fifth term.
The winner serves a 4-year term as one of five supervisors governing Santa Barbara County. They vote on the county budget, land use in unincorporated areas, and county health, fire, and social-service departments. The 5th District covers the northern Santa Maria area, the city of Guadalupe, and the unincorporated community of Tanglewood.
Neither candidate reached 50% in the June primary -- Valencia led with 41.87% to Aguilera's 31.15%, with a third candidate, Cory Bantilan, eliminated at 26.59%. Both finalists have local elected or school-board experience; the choice is between Valencia's union-backed, affordability-and-immigrant-services platform and Aguilera's council-and-planning-commission record on public safety and housing.
Ricardo Valencia
Ricardo Valencia is a Santa Maria-Bonita School District board member. He also teaches at Santa Maria High School. He is running for the 5th District Supervisor seat. He is campaigning on affordable and workforce housing, protections for immigrant communities, and closing the county's income gap. He holds degrees from UC Berkeley and Tufts University. He is endorsed by county supervisors Joan Hartmann and Laura Capps.
Maribel Aguilera
Maribel Aguilera is a Santa Maria City Councilmember and an attorney. She is running for the 5th District Supervisor seat. She is campaigning on a housing-affordability plan based on her Planning Commission background. She also supports continued fire and sheriff staffing and an after-school program for teens. Her campaign notes she spent eight years on the Santa Maria Planning Commission. It also notes three and a half years on the City Council. She says crime fell 32% and fire service grew 20% during that time.
Your pick
A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.