- 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; already cached locally from earlier in this session and re-checked here): confirms Thousand Oaks's three November 2026 city contests -- City Council District 1 (incumbent Mikey Taylor, "Councilmember/Business Owner"; challenger Karen Arreola, "Retired Biotech Executive"; a third filer shown but not qualified), District 2 (Kyle Rohrbach, "Executive Producer"; Gus Gougas, "Businessman/Business Owner"; a third filer shown but not qualified, no incumbent among the two qualified), and District 3 (incumbent David Newman, "City Councilmember"; challenger Victor Hayek, "Deputy Superintendent") -- and no District 4 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 1, 2, or 3 entry for the City of Thousand Oaks -- corroborating by absence that none of the three was cancelled or moved off-ballot; its one Thousand Oaks entry is a non-districted, zero-filer legacy contest code (6491) listing Bob Engler, David Newman, and Mikey Taylor as the city's current incumbents, consistent with the city's own roster but not itself a live 2026 contest
- toaks.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Thousand Oaks -- "Elections" page (City Clerk): independently republishes the identical certified roster as the county's own document -- District 1 (One Seat): Karen Arreola, Mikey Taylor; District 2 (One Seat): Kyle Rohrbach, Gus Gougas; District 3 (One Seat): Victor Hayek, David Newman -- in ballot order per the Secretary of State's Aug. 13, 2026 randomized alphabetical drawing; states the nomination period is closed
- toaks.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Thousand Oaks -- "City Council" page: the Council is five members elected by district serving 4-year staggered terms; the Council annually selects a Mayor (Mikey Taylor, term expires 12/15/2026) and Mayor Pro Tem (Bob Engler, term expires 12/15/2026) from among its own members; names the full roster including Councilmember, District 4 Al Adam and Councilmember, District 5 Tie Gutierrez (both terms expire 12/12/2028) and Councilmember David Newman (term expires 12/15/2026); gives each member's bio
- toaks.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Thousand Oaks -- "District Elections" page: states the City Council adopted Ordinance No. 1715-NS on July 18, 2023, implementing a five-member by-district election system, with Districts 4 and 5 first up in 2024 and Districts 1, 2, and 3 up in 2026 -- confirming this is the city's first-ever district election for Districts 1-3
- toaks.gov (opens in a new tab)City of Thousand Oaks -- "City Manager's Office" page: names Andrew Powers as the current City Manager
- toacorn.com (opens in a new tab)Thousand Oaks Acorn -- "Council candidate roster set" (Michael Montalvo, Aug. 28, 2026): a full-length, six-candidate profile piece confirming the certified roster and giving each candidate's own biography, career background, and stated top priorities in their own words, including that District 2 (Rancho Conejo, Wildwood Regional Park, Cal Lutheran) is an open seat because Bob Engler -- who lives in the district -- isn't seeking re-election, and that all six candidates support the recently approved Downtown Project
- toacorn.com (opens in a new tab)Thousand Oaks Acorn -- "Thousand Oaks City Council races begin as candidate filing opens" (Michael Montalvo, Jul. 17, 2026): reports Bob Engler's own quoted reason for retiring ("it's probably time for me to step aside and let someone younger come in and move the city forward"); names each district's neighborhoods (District 1 Newbury Park, District 2 Rancho Conejo, District 3 central/eastern Thousand Oaks including Oakbrook and Sunset Hills); and names an early District 2 filer, independent contractor Bradley Poteet, who does not appear on the later-certified two-candidate roster
- en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- "Thousand Oaks, California": used in this shard only for its 2020 Census population figure (126,966)
- toacorn.com (opens in a new tab)Thousand Oaks Acorn -- "Engler, Newman, Taylor lead city race" (Victoria Talbot, Nov. 11, 2022): the prior, at-large council election -- Taylor led Rohrbach by just 292 votes for the third of three seats, the two now in different district races this cycle (Taylor District 1, Rohrbach District 2) rather than a rematch
Last updated September 1, 2026.
City of Thousand Oaks
Thousand Oaks City Council, District 1
This person would hold one of five district seats on Thousand Oaks City Council. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Thousand Oaks is a Ventura County city of about 126,966 residents. The Council appoints a City Manager, Andrew Powers, to run day-to-day operations. The term is four years. Thousand Oaks has no directly elected Mayor. Each year, the Council picks one member as a ceremonial presiding officer. Mikey Taylor currently holds that role. Bob Engler serves as Mayor Pro Tem. The city moved from at-large to district elections under Ordinance No. 1715-NS. The city council adopted it on July 18, 2023. Districts 4 and 5 were first elected by district in November 2024. Al Adam holds District 4, and Tie Gutierrez holds District 5. Neither is up again until 2028. Districts 1, 2, and 3 are up this cycle. These are the city's first-ever district elections for those three seats.
Mikey Taylor is the incumbent and the city's current rotating Mayor. He is in his first term on the council. He faces challenger Karen Arreola, a retired biotech executive. The two disagree on how much the city's new Downtown Project should shape future development.
This person would hold one of five district seats on the Thousand Oaks City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this Ventura County city of about 126,966 residents. The Council appoints a City Manager (Andrew Powers) to run day-to-day operations. The term is four years. Thousand Oaks has no separately, directly elected Mayor -- the Council selects one of its own members annually to serve as the largely ceremonial presiding officer; Taylor himself currently holds that title, with Bob Engler as Mayor Pro Tem.
District 1 covers the Newbury Park area. This is literally the first time this seat has ever been elected by district: the city adopted by-district elections in 2023 (Ordinance No. 1715-NS), with Districts 4 and 5 first up in 2024 and Districts 1, 2, and 3 -- including this one -- up for the first time this cycle. Districts 4 and 5 aren't up again until 2028.
Mikey Taylor
He is the incumbent and the current rotating Mayor. He supported the city's Downtown Project. He frames his priorities around quality of life for the next generation. He first won in 2022 by 292 votes over Kyle Rohrbach.
Karen Arreola
She built her career in biotechnology. She retired from Thermo Fisher Scientific in 2024. She wants to protect open space and limit development beyond the city's general plan. She has no prior experience in elected office.
Your pick
A nonpartisan office: candidates do not run as Democrats or Republicans, and no party appears on the ballot.