# Santa Clarita City Council, District 2 Compare records and positions simply between Brett Haddoak, Denise Lite, or Gloria Mercado-Fortine for Santa Clarita City Council, District 2 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person holds your district's seat on Santa Clarita's 5-member City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. The term is four years. - Jurisdiction: City of Santa Clarita - Election: November 3, 2026 California general election - Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements. - Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/santa-clarita-council-2 - Full ballot: this page covers one race. Every contest on a voter's own ballot, by address, with the same breakdown for each: https://voteorelse.com/ - Sources last retrieved: October 7, 2026 - Source-objectivity score: 88 out of 100 (Strong), across 8 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology ## On the ballot - **Brett Haddoak** - **Denise Lite** - **Gloria Mercado-Fortine** A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot. Three candidates are running for Santa Clarita City Council District 2. They are Brett Haddoak, Denise Lite and Gloria Mercado-Fortine. None currently holds elected city office. District 2's most recent representative is not seeking re-election. So voters are choosing among three first-time council candidates for a four-year term. Council seats carry 4-year terms. Winners join four other district representatives voting on the city budget, land-use and development decisions, and municipal ordinances; day-to-day operations run through an appointed city manager rather than any single elected official. None of the three candidates for District 2 currently holds elected city office, so the choice turns on which of three first-time candidates' backgrounds and priorities best fit the district, rather than a referendum on an incumbent's record. ## Brett Haddoak Haddoak is a lifelong Santa Clarita Valley resident. He owns Oakworks Software, an education-software company. It serves more than 15,000 public school students. He has also built budgeting software for the U.S. Department of Defense. He wants to expand housing options and protect seniors from housing instability. He also wants to modernize transit and pursue regional traffic fixes. He volunteers on the city's Homelessness Task Force. He is endorsed by Rep. George Whitesides and Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo. In his Vote411 questionnaire he describes family roots in Santa Clarita spanning more than five decades, a mother who spent nearly 20 years in the public schools, and over 20 years as a small business owner and software engineer. By his own account he has volunteered more than 1,000 hours with Bridge to Home. His three stated priorities are a second hospital for the east side of Santa Clarita; more housing choices, so people who grew up in the city can afford to stay; and steering development toward bringing more jobs to the city. **Strengths:** Runs a 15,000-student education-software company. He built software for the Homelessness Task Force's Shared Housing pilot. He holds a federal security clearance from DoD contract work. **Trade-offs:** No prior elected or appointed government office. His experience with city policy comes from a task-force volunteer role rather than a council seat. **Keep in mind:** His Form 700 reports stock ownership and a financial relationship tied to his own software business, the same company his platform experience draws on. His volunteer hours and local roots are his own account. ## Denise Lite Lite is a family-law attorney with a certified legal specialty. She is a former member of Santa Clarita's Planning Commission. Her campaign has not published a detailed platform. She is a longtime Signal opinion columnist. She has written about local control, insurance costs and government accountability. No Form 700 financial disclosure was posted for her on the city's website. **Strengths:** A certified family-law specialty and prior service on the city's Planning Commission. That is the closest thing to land-use experience in this field. **Trade-offs:** No campaign announcement or detailed platform was found in local coverage. Her public writing is opinion commentary, not a stated set of council priorities. **Keep in mind:** Her Form 700 was not listed on the city's disclosure website, unlike those of her two opponents. That is a gap in the record rather than a reported absence of interests. ## Gloria Mercado-Fortine Mercado-Fortine is a Santa Clarita native. They served 16 years, across four terms, on the William S. Hart Union High School District's governing board. They name youth development, public safety and neighborhood engagement as their priorities. Their campaign has not detailed specific policy proposals. They have been named to The Signal's list of the SCV's 51 Most Influential Leaders more than ten times. They are endorsed by Councilman Bill Miranda and Mayor Pro Tem Patsy Ayala. **Strengths:** Four terms, or 16 years, on the Hart school board. Mercado-Fortine won a 2018 SCV Woman of the Year honor. They have endorsements from two sitting councilmembers. **Trade-offs:** No prior city-council or municipal-government experience. Their campaign has not published specific policy positions beyond broad priorities. **Keep in mind:** Their Form 700 reports no financial interests. Miranda and Ayala are both current councilmembers. Their endorsements suggest continuity with the sitting council's approach. ## Sources 1. [City of Santa Clarita — List of Qualified Candidates memo (City Clerk Melody Bartlette, 8/13/26)](https://santaclarita.gov/city-clerk/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2026/08/List-of-Qualified-Candidates-Memo.pdf) 2. [City of Santa Clarita — City Clerk, Elections (district-election system, campaign-filings portal)](https://santaclarita.gov/city-clerk/elections/) 3. [City of Santa Clarita — CampaignDocs eRetrieval (SouthTech/Granicus campaign-finance disclosure system)](https://www.southtechhosting.com/SantaClaritaCity/CampaignDocsWebRetrieval/) 4. [Santa Clarita Valley Signal — City Council candidate filing period opens July 13 (2026-07-02)](https://signalscv.com/2026/07/city-council-candidate-filing-period-opens-july-13/) 5. [Santa Clarita Valley Signal — Update: City Council races shape up (2026-08, post-filing-deadline roundup with Form 700 review of all 11 District 2/4/5 candidates)](https://signalscv.com/2026/08/city-council-races-shape-up/) 6. [Santa Clarita Valley Signal — Brett Haddoak announces campaign for City Council (2026-07-02)](https://signalscv.com/2026/07/brett-haddoak-announces-campaign-for-city-council/) 7. [Santa Clarita Valley Signal — Mercado-Fortine announces City Council run (2026-07-20)](https://signalscv.com/2026/07/mercado-fortine-announces-city-council-run/) 8. [League of Women Voters -- Vote411 voter guide, 'City of Santa Clarita City Council Member, District 2' race (statewide All Races list): each candidate's self-submitted ballot designation and campaign contacts, plus answers to the League's questions -- If elected, what are your top 3 priorities?; What background, experience and/or education qualify you for this elected office? Answers on file from Brett Haddoak. Capture in data/nov-2026/sources/vote411/santa-clarita-council-2.json.](https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote) ## The rest of the ballot Santa Clarita City Council, District 2 is one contest among the many a California voter decides on November 3, 2026 — Congress, the Legislature, county, city, and school board races differ by address. Vote or Else builds the full list for any California address and breaks down each contest the way this page does, with no account and without storing the address: https://voteorelse.com/ ## How to cite this page Vote or Else, "Santa Clarita City Council, District 2 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/santa-clarita-council-2 (sources last retrieved October 7, 2026). Link the canonical page above rather than this Markdown file. Coverage is updated as the race develops, so quote it with its retrieval date.