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City of Tulare · Statewide General Election

Tulare City Council, Area 4

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 would represent one of Tulare's five City Council areas: city ordinances, the budget, and land-use decisions for this Tulare County city of about 68,875 residents (2020 Census). A 4-year term. The Mayor and Vice Mayor are chosen by the council from among its own members for two-year terms, rather than elected separately.

Tulare City Council Area 4 is an open seat on the November 3, 2026 ballot: Steve Celentano against Freddie Gonzalez. Neither is the sitting incumbent, Dennis Alan Mederos, who had held the seat by council appointment rather than election and did not file to run.

The winner serves a 4-year term as one of five members on Tulare's City Council, which sets city ordinances, the budget, and land-use decisions for this Tulare County city of about 68,875 residents. Tulare uses a council-manager government: a professional city manager runs day-to-day operations while the elected council sets policy, and the Mayor and Vice Mayor are chosen by the council from among its own members each two years rather than elected to those titles directly.

Whichever candidate gets the most votes on November 3 wins the seat outright -- there is no primary and no runoff for this office. With the appointed incumbent not running, both candidates are starting fresh: one brings a military background, the other private-sector management experience.

Steve Celentano

Steve Celentano is a retired U.S. Marine Corps sergeant, per the county's own candidate filing. He is not a current officeholder. He filed to run in August 2026.

Strengths

A career of military service, per his ballot designation.

Trade-offs

No prior elected or appointed civic office, and no independent news coverage or campaign material beyond the county's filing record surfaced this pass.

Keep in mind

No campaign committee or candidate filer entry is registered under his name with the state, and no campaign website or social-media presence was found for him this pass.

Freddie Gonzalez

Freddie Gonzalez is a general manager, per the county's own candidate filing. He is not a current officeholder. He filed to run in August 2026.

Strengths

Private-sector management experience, per his ballot designation, though the county's filing does not specify the industry or organization.

Trade-offs

No prior elected or appointed civic office, and no independent news coverage or campaign material beyond the county's filing record surfaced this pass.

Keep in mind

No campaign committee or candidate filer entry is registered under his name with the state, and no campaign website or social-media presence was found for him this pass.

Source review: Strong (87/100) · 5 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.

  • tc-web.widen.net (opens in a new tab)Tulare County Elections -- official "Contest/Candidate Proof List" (report CFMR001) for the November 3, 2026 General Election: within its City section, the City of Tulare shows exactly two contests -- Member, City Council Area 2 (1 qualified candidate, Jocelyn Limas; incumbent Terry Anne Sayre listed as "Appointed in Lieu" and not a candidate) and Member, City Council Area 4 (2 qualified candidates, Steve Celentano and Freddie Gonzalez; incumbent Dennis Alan Mederos likewise listed as "Appointed in Lieu" and not a candidate) -- no Mayor, Area 1, Area 3, Area 5, City Clerk, or City Treasurer contest appears anywhere in the 63-page document for the City of Tulare
  • en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- "Tulare, California": used narrowly for the city's council-manager government structure (a five-member City Council; the Mayor and Vice Mayor are selected by the council from among its own members for two-year terms), its current officeholder roster (Mayor Patrick Isherwood, Vice Mayor Stephen C. Harrell, and Councilmembers Jose Sigala, Terry A. Sayre, and Dennis A. Mederos -- independently corroborating which two seats' incumbents are not on this ballot), its 1888 incorporation date, and its 2020 Census population of 68,875; does not cover the 2026 election
  • netfile.com (opens in a new tab)A negative-result access attempt: the City of Tulare's NetFile campaign-disclosure portal (netfile.com/public/TULA/campaign) loads (HTTP 200 on direct curl request), but a direct HTML inspection shows a client-side-rendered single-page application with no static filer data anywhere in the served markup -- the same JS-gated pattern documented elsewhere in this dataset for NetFile-hosted portals. Documents the absence of a reachable financial-disclosure source rather than any candidate's actual finances.
  • cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California Secretary of State CAL-ACCESS -- filer search for "Celentano": the one result (a terminated lobbyist filer for a Joseph F. Celentano) is unrelated; no campaign committee or candidate filer entry registered under Steve Celentano's name
  • cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California Secretary of State CAL-ACCESS -- filer search for "Gonzalez": the closest result (a terminated Tulare Hospital Board committee for a Victor Gonzalez) is unrelated; no campaign committee or candidate filer entry registered under Freddie Gonzalez's name

Last updated September 1, 2026.