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County · Statewide General Election

Shasta County Board of Supervisors, District 5

This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.

On the ballot

This person is one of five supervisors governing Shasta County: the county budget, land use in unincorporated areas, and county health, public-safety, and social-service departments. A 4-year term.

Shasta County's District 5 supervisor race heads to a November runoff: Anderson City Councilmember Mike Gallagher led June's three-way primary with 49.1% of the vote, short of the outright majority California requires for this nonpartisan county office, and now faces incumbent Supervisor Chris Kelstrom, who took 41.19%.

The winner joins Shasta County's five-member Board of Supervisors for a 4-year term, sharing authority over the county budget, land use in the county's unincorporated areas, and county health, public-safety, and social-service departments.

The June field also included former Supervisor Tim Garman, who withdrew in February 2026 and endorsed Gallagher, citing his own competing commitments as a pastor and business owner, and third-place finisher Gary Oxley, who took the remaining primary votes. Kelstrom, first elected to the seat in 2022, was chosen by his board colleagues to chair the Board of Supervisors for 2026.

Mike W. Gallagher

Mike Gallagher is a two-term Anderson City Council member, appointed in August 2019 and reelected in 2022, who has also served on Anderson's Planning Commission. He spent more than 13 years in HVAC work before earning a California contractor's license and founding his own metal roofing company. He is running on fiscal responsibility, government transparency, public safety, and what he calls "practical compassionate solutions" to homelessness.

Strengths

Led the June primary by nearly 8 points, drew a withdrawal and endorsement from former Supervisor Tim Garman, and matched Kelstrom's Chamber of Commerce endorsement score (8.7 to Kelstrom's 8.6).

Trade-offs

More than half his $56,144 total -- $30,000 -- was a self-contribution, not outside support. No prior county-level governing experience beyond the Anderson Council and Planning Commission.

Keep in mind

At an April 2026 forum, he called the county's True North behavioral-health funding "horrible, ill advised, unprofessional" and urged reopening closed state prisons to relieve jail crowding -- both go further than Kelstrom.

Chris Kelstrom

Chris Kelstrom is the incumbent District 5 supervisor, first elected in 2022. His board colleagues selected him to chair the Board of Supervisors for 2026, a role that controls the board's agenda and supervisor liaison assignments. Over his term, he has publicly shifted his own position on the county's True North youth behavioral-health facility, moving from initial opposition to support.

Strengths

Sitting board chair with four years of county-level governing experience, plus donor support from labor (Laborers Local 185 PAC, $3,000) and his largest donor, the Redding Rancheria ($5,900).

Trade-offs

Trailed Gallagher by nearly 8 points in the June primary, and his shift from opposing to supporting True North gives Gallagher an opening to call his record inconsistent.

Keep in mind

At the same forum, he defended his True North vote citing funding conditions and multi-agency approval, backed the Sheriff's diversion program over new jail construction, and predicted Measure B would draw a state lawsuit.

Source review: Very strong (90/100) · 9 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.

  • elections.shastacounty.gov (opens in a new tab)Shasta County Elections -- "Final 2026 General Candidate Guide" PDF: lists Board of Supervisors, District 5 as the only county-section nonpartisan office up in November 2026, plus a compressed "Shasta County Board of Education (4 seats), Trustee Areas 1 and 2" line later resolved by the certified roster.
  • elections.shastacounty.gov (opens in a new tab)Shasta County Elections -- "Final Qualified Candidate List" PDF (CFMR009, print date 8/25/2026 8:26:55AM): confirms Contest #2205, "Supervisor, District 5," On Ballot: Yes, Vote For: 1 -- Mike W. Gallagher ("City Councilmember Anderson") and Chris Kelstrom ("Incumbent Supervisor") -- and separately resolves the Board of Education ambiguity into Contest #1903 (Area 1, Vote For: 2, six candidates) and Contest #1905 (Area 2, Vote For: 2, four candidates).
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "Race for Shasta's District 5 gets crowded as Anderson council member Mike Gallagher announces candidacy" (published 2026-01-30): Gallagher's HVAC/metal-roofing business background, Anderson City Council tenure since 2019, Planning Commission service, and stated platform.
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "Garman withdraws from Shasta's District 5 race, endorses Gallagher" (published 2026-02-13): Tim Garman's stated reason for withdrawing (competing commitments as a pastor and business owner) and his endorsement of Gallagher.
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "In Anderson, Shasta's District 5 candidates debated mental health facilities, Measure B, and county jail operations" (published 2026-04-18): direct quotes from Gallagher and Kelstrom on the True North behavioral-health facility, Measure B, and jail capacity.
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "Gallagher leads in funds raised for District 5 supervisor race, but only from $30,000 donation to himself" (published 2026-05-22): FPPC-sourced fundraising totals and top donors for both candidates.
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "The Redding Chamber has endorsed Resner, Kelstrom, and Gallagher for the upcoming primary" (published 2026-05-28): the chamber's near-identical scoring of Kelstrom (8.6) and Gallagher (8.7), and Gary Oxley's lower score (4.3).
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "Measure B continues to succeed, incumbents still failing, new vote totals show" (published 2026-06-09): near-final June primary results, Gallagher 49.1% to Kelstrom's 41.19%.
  • shastascout.org (opens in a new tab)Shasta Scout -- "Supervisor Chris Kelstrom appointed as Shasta County board chair for 2026" (published 2025-12-10): confirms Kelstrom's 2022 election and his shift toward supporting the True North behavioral-health facility after initially opposing it.

Last updated September 2, 2026.