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Twentynine Palms City Council, District 5

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City of Twentynine Palms

Twentynine Palms City Council, District 5

This person holds District 5's seat on Twentynine Palms's five-member, district-elected City Council. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Twentynine Palms is a city next to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center. It sits in the high desert. Terms are four years and staggered. Only some districts are up in any given November. Districts 3, 4, and 5 are up this cycle. Districts 1 and 2 next return in 2028. The Council picks one of its own members as a rotating Mayor. It also picks another as Mayor Pro Tem each term. Twentynine Palms does not separately elect a citywide Mayor.

Incumbent McArthur Wright faces challenger Shanese Risper for Twentynine Palms's City Council District 5 seat. Whoever gets the most votes wins, with no primary or runoff.

This person would hold District 5's seat on Twentynine Palms's 5-member, district-elected City Council. They vote on city ordinances, the budget, and land use for this high-desert city next to the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center. Terms are four years, staggered so only some districts are up in any given November -- Districts 3, 4, and 5 are up this cycle; Districts 1 and 2 next return in 2028. The Council elects one of its own members to serve as the rotating Mayor and another as Mayor Pro Tem each term; Twentynine Palms does not separately elect a citywide Mayor.

Both candidates surfaced in this dataset's research through the same July 28, 2026 council meeting: Wright abstained from a vote on a homeless-shelter grant proposal, citing his own church connections, while Risper spoke to the council in their professional role with the nonprofit that proposed it.

McArthur Wright

McArthur Wright is Twentynine Palms's incumbent District 5 councilmember. He served in the Marine Corps for 20 years and joined the council in 2014. In July 2026, he abstained from a state grant vote for a homeless shelter.

Shanese Risper

Shanese Risper is a first-time candidate and Veteran and Entrepreneur challenging incumbent McArthur Wright. Risper is Community Outreach Director for The Hope Center, sponsored by The Sanctuary Church. They have urged the city to help convert a building into a homeless shelter.

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

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