# Stockton City Council, District 1

Compare records and positions simply between Michele Padilla or Tamica Small for Stockton City Council, District 1 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person would hold your district's seat on Stockton's City Council. The council has seven members. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use. Stockton also has a directly elected Mayor. An appointed City Manager runs day to day operations. The term is four years, with a two term limit. This cycle covers only Districts 1, 3, and 5. Stockton's Mayor was elected in November 2024. The Mayor is not on this ballot.

- Jurisdiction: City of Stockton
- 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/stockton-council-1
- 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 6, 2026
- Source-objectivity score: 90 out of 100 (Very strong), across 13 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology

## On the ballot

- **Michele Padilla** — Stockton Councilmember/Educator · Incumbent
- **Tamica Small** — Retired Law Enforcement

A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.

Incumbent Michele Padilla, a first-term councilmember and Stockton Unified School District teacher, faces Tamica Small, a retired county probation officer whose campaign drew a $5,900 donation from actress Tiffany Haddish, in a runoff after neither cleared a majority in the June 2 primary.

Stockton's City Council has seven voting members. Six are elected by district and the Mayor is elected citywide. Terms run four years, with a 2-term limit. The city runs council-manager, so an appointed City Manager handles day-to-day work. Only Districts 1, 3, and 5 are on this ballot. Their winners serve January 2027 through December 2030. Districts 2, 4, and 6 are not up this cycle. Mayor Christina Fugazi was elected citywide in November 2024. She is in her first term as Mayor and is not up again until 2028. That is why no Mayor's race appears on this ballot.

Padilla led a five-candidate June 2 primary field with 4,844 votes (49.11%) -- just short of the majority needed to win outright -- followed by Small's 2,722 votes (27.60%). Annette Sanchez (11.41%), Lan Nguyen (9.52%), and Shelly B. Hollis (2.36%) were eliminated. Because no candidate cleared 50%, Padilla and Small advance to a November 3 runoff; whoever gets more votes wins outright, with no further round.

## Michele Padilla

The incumbent, first elected in 2022 and sworn in January 2023; her filed ballot designation is "Stockton Councilmember/Educator." A teacher with Stockton Unified School District, she chairs the Council's Ad Hoc Committee on Homelessness and its Charter Review Ad Hoc Committee, and also sits on the Audit Committee, the Legislation/Environmental Committee, and the Stockton Parks & Recreation Commission. In August 2024, colleagues Michael Blower and Brando Villapudua -- both themselves candidates elsewhere on this ballot, in Districts 3 and 5 -- filed a complaint after Padilla spent roughly $10,000 in Council discretionary funds on a July 2024 community barbecue at which political candidates gave campaign speeches, a use city officials said would not have been approved had they known of the political content. On November 13, 2024, the Council voted 5-0 (Mayor Lincoln absent, Padilla not voting) to censure her. She told the Council at the time, "I had no intention, no motivation. There was no promotion, no endorsement, no ask of political activity for any specific candidate."

**Strengths:** She chairs two committees, on Homelessness and on Charter Review. She also sits on the Audit committee and the Legislation and Environmental committee.

**Trade-offs:** The Council censured her unanimously in November 2024. The vote covered roughly $10,000 in city funds spent on an event where candidates gave political speeches.

**Keep in mind:** Padilla says the political content was unplanned and that counsel had reviewed the spending beforehand. The Council found that did not excuse it. Blower and Villapudua, who filed the complaint, are also on this ballot.

## Tamica Small

A challenger whose filed ballot designation is "Retired Law Enforcement"; her own campaign site describes her as "a Stockton native and former county probation officer." Her campaign drew national attention in spring 2026 when actress and comedian Tiffany Haddish donated $5,900 to it in April, arranged through Vice Mayor Jason Lee's personal friendship with Haddish -- Lee had given Small's campaign $5,000 of his own in March, then hosted Haddish on his podcast, where she spoke warmly about Stockton. Lee has publicly endorsed Small, saying she "understands the real struggles families face and the importance of restoring trust, accountability, and leadership that listens to the people." In her Vote411 questionnaire she describes herself as a career law enforcement officer, which she says suits her to the job as Stockton faces what she calls high crime and an "out-of-control" homeless rate.

Her priorities answer is a three-item list: public safety, homelessness and economic development, with no further detail. Her background answer is a single sentence.

**Strengths:** A law enforcement and probation career, by her own account, bearing on the Council's public safety votes, and a priorities list that matches it.

**Trade-offs:** She holds no prior elected office, and her League answers name no specifics on any priority. No independent reporting was found that evaluates her probation record.

**Keep in mind:** Her case rests on her own account of a law enforcement career, given in one sentence. Her best-known support is Haddish's donation and Vice Mayor Lee's endorsement, both tied to a personal friendship. Weigh that alongside her record.

## Sources

1. [San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- official "Offices Up for Election" document for the Nov. 3, 2026 General Election: lists the City of Stockton's three offices -- Member of City Council, Districts 1, 3, and 5, each a 4-year term, elected by district -- under the "MUNICIPAL OFFICES -- ADVANCED FROM PRIMARY" heading, with no separate Mayor line, confirming all three are June-to-November runoffs and the Mayor is not up this cycle.](https://www.sjgov.org/docs/default-source/registrar-of-voters-documents/elections/gubernatorial-general-election-2026/candidate-services/offices-up-for-2026-general-election.pdf)
2. [San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- official "Candidate List" (report CFMR009), Qualified Candidates Only, printed 8/20/2026: confirms exactly two qualified candidates per Stockton district, each "On Ballot: Yes" -- District 1 (Tamica Small, Michele Padilla), District 3 (Michael Blower, Jessica Toccoli), District 5 (Brando Villapudua, Desiree Lynch) -- with each candidate's filed ballot designation.](https://www.sjgov.org/docs/default-source/registrar-of-voters-documents/elections/gubernatorial-general-election-2026/candidate-services/candidate-roster-(35).pdf)
3. [San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters -- official, certified "Statement of Votes Cast," Statewide Direct Primary, June 2, 2026 (certified by Registrar of Voters Olivia Hale, 6/25/2026): its District Results section gives exact per-candidate vote totals and percentages for all three Stockton City Council contests, establishing that no candidate cleared a majority in any district -- Padilla 49.11% (Small 27.60%, Sanchez 11.41%, Nguyen 9.52%, Hollis 2.36%) in D1; Blower 48.24% (Toccoli 36.19%, Veltri 10.02%, Alfaro 5.55%) in D3; Villapudua 34.04% (Lynch 30.59%, Elizabeth 16.40%, Beas 12.83%, Harper 5.51%, write-in Carpenter 0.64%) in D5.](https://www.sjgov.org/docs/default-source/registrar-of-voters-documents/statements-of-votes-cast/2026-june---statewide-direct-primary-election/june-2-2026-statement-of-votes-cast.pdf)
4. [City of Stockton -- official "Elections" page (City Clerk): independently confirms the same three November 2026 Council contests and the same six qualified candidates as the county's own lists, states the majority-or-runoff mechanic directly, and gives the Jan. 1, 2027-Dec. 31, 2030 term for the winners.](https://www.stocktonca.gov/government/city_clerk/elections.php)
5. [City of Stockton -- official "City Council" index page: confirms the Council's 7-member structure (six district-elected Councilmembers plus a citywide-elected Mayor), 4-year terms with a 2-term limit, and a council-manager form of government.](https://www.stocktonca.gov/government/city_council/index.php)
6. [City of Stockton -- official biography page for Mayor Christina Fugazi: confirms she was elected Mayor citywide in November 2024 (her first term as Mayor, after two prior Council terms beginning 2014), explaining why no Mayor's race appears on this cycle's ballot.](https://www.stocktonca.gov/government/city_council/mayor.php)
7. [City of Stockton -- official biography page for Councilmember Michele Padilla (District 1): confirms her first term began January 2023, her work as a Stockton Unified School District teacher, and her committee assignments.](https://www.stocktonca.gov/government/city_council/district_1.php)
8. [Stocktonia -- "Stockton City Council moves ahead with censure investigation of Michele Padilla": reports Councilmembers Michael Blower and Brando Villapudua's Aug. 2024 complaint against Padilla for using roughly $10,000 in city discretionary funds on a July 2024 community barbecue at which political candidates gave campaign speeches.](https://stocktonia.org/news/local-government/2024/08/21/stockton-city-council-moves-ahead-with-censure-investigation-of-michelle-padilla/)
9. [Stocktonia -- "Padilla censured by Stockton City Council for misuse of public funds": reports the Council's 5-0 vote to censure Padilla on Nov. 13, 2024 over the July 2024 barbecue funding, and confirms the censure carries no fine or suspension.](https://stocktonia.org/news/local-government/2024/11/13/padilla-censured-by-stockton-city-council-for-misuse-of-public-funds/)
10. [Stocktonia -- "Hollywood star Tiffany Haddish supports Stockton City Council candidate with big donation": reports a $5,900 April 28, 2026 donation from actress Tiffany Haddish to Tamica Small's District 1 campaign, arranged through Vice Mayor Jason Lee's personal friendship with Haddish, plus Lee's own $5,000 donation and public endorsement.](https://stocktonia.org/news/politics/2026/05/27/tiffany-haddish-stockton-city-council-race-donation/)
11. [Stocktonia -- "'Record time' ballot counting in San Joaquin County shows all three Stockton City Council incumbents could be heading into November runoffs": a June 11, 2026 recap of the semi-final count independently corroborating the same top-two pairing and near-identical percentages in all three districts, later confirmed by the county's certified final Statement of Votes Cast.](https://stocktonia.org/news/local-government/2026/06/11/record-time-ballot-counting-in-san-joaquin-county-shows-all-three-stockton-city-council-incumbents-could-be-heading-into-november-runoffs/)
12. [City of Stockton -- official "Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC)" page (City Clerk): links the same NetFile-hosted public campaign-finance portal (netfile.com/public/SJC/campaign) the county uses countywide -- a negative-result citation, since the portal is a client-rendered single-page application that returned no readable content to this pass's fetch tooling.](https://www.stocktonca.gov/government/city_clerk/fair_political_practices_commission_(fppc).php)
13. [League of Women Voters -- Vote411 voter guide, 'City of Stockton City Council District 1' race (statewide All Races list): each candidate's self-submitted ballot designation and campaign contacts, plus answers to the League's questions -- top three priorities; qualifying background, experience and education. Answers on file from Tamica Small (a three-item priorities list and a one-sentence background). Capture in data/nov-2026/sources/vote411/stockton-council-1.json.](https://www.vote411.org/plan-your-vote)

## The rest of the ballot

Stockton City Council, District 1 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

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