clerkrecorder.venturacounty.gov (opens in a new tab)Ventura County Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters -- "Contest/Candidate Proof List" (report CFMR001, dated Aug. 18, 2026, on-ballot contests only): confirms Santa Paula's three November 2026 city contests -- City Council District 2 (incumbent Jenny Crosswhite, "Councilmember"; challenger Jenny Yarbrough, "Business Owner/Mother"; a third filer shown but not qualified), District 3 (incumbent Pedro A. Chavez, "Councilmember/Executive Director," unopposed), and District 4 (Merisa M. Garcia, "Human Resources Director"; Angel Garza, "Analyst"; Nancy L. Grass, "Business Owner/Educator"; John Marquez, "Community Volunteer") -- and no District 1 or District 5 contest
clerkrecorder.venturacounty.gov (opens in a new tab)Ventura County Clerk-Recorder/Registrar of Voters -- Contest/Candidate Proof List, off-ballot companion document (single-filer and Elections Code Section 10229 contests): carries no District 2, 3, or 4 entry for the City of Santa Paula -- corroborating by absence that none of the three, including District 3's single-candidate race, was cancelled or moved off-ballot; its one Santa Paula-adjacent entry is a non-districted, zero-filer legacy contest code listing Pedro Chavez, Carlos Juarez, and Jenny Crosswhite as the city's current incumbents, consistent with the city's own roster but not itself a live 2026 contest
spcity.org (opens in a new tab)City of Santa Paula -- "Election Information" page: independently republishes the same three-district, same-candidate Nov. 2026 roster as the county's own document, states the general municipal election is Nov. 3, 2026, and describes the district-based voting structure
spcity.org (opens in a new tab)City of Santa Paula -- "City Council" department page: a 5-member council, historically elected at-large, transitioning to by-district elections beginning with the Nov. 2024 election; the Council selects a Mayor (Carlos Juarez, current) and Vice-Mayor (Jenny Crosswhite, current) from among its own members each December for a one-year term; names the full 5-member roster (Juarez, Crosswhite, Leslie Cornejo/District 5, Pedro Chavez, Gabby Ornelas/District 1) and links each member's bio page; states the Council appoints the City Manager and City Attorney
spcity.org (opens in a new tab)City of Santa Paula City Clerk -- "Fair Political Practices Reporting" page: indexes each 2026 candidate's actual filed FPPC forms as scanned PDFs by district -- Forms 501/700 for all seven candidates, Form 410 (campaign-committee formation) for Crosswhite, Yarbrough, Garza, Marquez, Garcia, and Grass but not Chavez, and a Form 497 24-hour contribution report for Yarbrough
vcstar.com (opens in a new tab)Ventura County Star -- "Who's running for city council, mayor this November? Here's the lineup" (Cheri Carlson, Aug. 17, 2026): independently lists the identical Santa Paula roster -- District 2 (Crosswhite, Yarbrough), District 3 (Chavez), District 4 (Garcia, Garza, Grass, Marquez) -- corroborating both the county document and the city's own site
en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- "Santa Paula, California": used in this shard only for its 2020 Census population figure (30,657); its infobox Mayor claim (Pedro Chavez) is stale relative to the city's own current roster page (which names Carlos Juarez, selected Dec. 2025) and is not used
santapaulatimes.com (opens in a new tab)Santa Paula Times -- homepage headline referencing "City Manager Dan Singer's contract" discussions (as of Sept. 1, 2026): independent local-press confirmation of the current City Manager's name
spcity.org (opens in a new tab)City of Santa Paula -- Councilmember Pedro A. Chavez's official bio page: Executive Director of One Step A La Vez, a youth-serving nonprofit; over 13 years in financial services and real estate and 13-plus years in nonprofit civil-rights and social-justice work; a first-generation immigrant from Mexico; first elected in 2022; the city's first openly gay council member; served as the Council's rotating Mayor (selected Dec. 2024)

Last updated September 1, 2026.

City of Santa Paula

Santa Paula City Council, District 3

This person would hold one of five district seats on Santa Paula's City Council. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Santa Paula is a Ventura County city of about 30,657 residents. The Council appoints a City Manager, Dan Singer, to run day-to-day operations. The term is four years. Santa Paula has no directly elected Mayor. Each December, the Council picks one member for a one-year ceremonial term. That person presides over meetings. Carlos Juarez currently holds that title, chosen by colleagues in December 2025. Jenny Crosswhite serves as Vice-Mayor. Santa Paula is moving from at-large to district elections. Districts 1 and 5 were first elected by district in November 2024. Gabby Ornelas holds District 1, and Leslie Cornejo holds District 5. Neither is up again until 2028. Districts 2, 3, and 4 are up this cycle.

Only one candidate qualified for this seat. That is incumbent Pedro A. Chavez. This contest is settled. Your vote here will not change the outcome.

This person would hold one of five district seats on Santa Paula's City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this Ventura County city of about 30,657 residents. The Council appoints a City Manager (Dan Singer as of this cycle) to run day-to-day operations. The term is four years. Santa Paula has no separately, directly elected Mayor -- the Council selects one of its own members each December to hold the largely ceremonial title for a one-year term. Chavez himself held that title from December 2024 until Carlos Juarez succeeded him in December 2025.

Santa Paula is transitioning from at-large to district elections: Districts 1 and 5 were first elected by district in November 2024 and aren't up again until 2028. District 3 is one of three districts up this cycle, alongside Districts 2 and 4 -- the only one of the three with no challenger.

Pedro A. Chavez

Pedro A. Chavez is the incumbent. He is unopposed for another term. He was first elected in 2022. He is Santa Paula's first openly gay council member. He is Executive Director of One Step A La Vez, a youth nonprofit.

Your pick

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.