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, independently re-downloaded via direct curl for this shard: within the City of Woodlake's own contests, exactly one appears -- "Woodlake City Council, Council Member" (district 5082), flagged ON BALLOT, Vote For 3, with four qualified candidates: William "Memo" Valero ("Incumbent"), Frances S. Ortiz ("No Ballot Designation"), Florencio Guerra Jr. ("Community School Coordinator"), and Josh Diaz ("School Teacher"). The document's own "Incumbent(s)" line names Valero, Ortiz, and Misty Lynn Wallace as holding their current terms via "Appointed in Lieu" status, but Wallace did not file, leaving her seat open; the contest's district code carries the document's own extension flag
cityofwoodlake.com (opens in a new tab)City of Woodlake -- its own Government page: confirms a five-member, at-large City Council elected to staggered 4-year terms, with the Council appointing a Mayor and Vice Mayor from among its own members; names the sitting Council by role -- Rudy Mendoza (Mayor), Frances Ortiz (Vice Mayor), Jose Martinez, Misty Wallace, Memo Valero -- an exact match against the county's roster, and lists each member's outside committee assignments (Valero: San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and Council of Cities, both alternate; Ortiz: Tulare County Regional Transit Agency and Economic Development Corporation, both alternate)
cityofwoodlake.com (opens in a new tab)City of Woodlake -- its own About page: states the city incorporated in 1940 as "Tulare County's seventh city" and names Ramon Lara as City Administrator
en.wikipedia.org (opens in a new tab)Wikipedia -- "Woodlake, California": used narrowly for the city's 2020 Census population (7,419); does not cover the 2026 election
thesungazette.com (opens in a new tab)The Sun-Gazette, Oct. 24, 2018, "Woodlake councilmembers rejoice in city improvements" (by Paul Myers): states "Vice mayor Frances Ortiz has been on the council since 1999 and serves as an alternate to the Tulare County Association of Governments committee and the Tulare County Transportation Authority committee," and quotes her on the city's downtown and infrastructure improvements
thesungazette.com (opens in a new tab)The Sun-Gazette, Feb. 9, 2022, "Former Woodlake council member loses seat, lashes out at council" (by Ben Irwin): details Florencio Guerra Jr.'s automatic removal from his Woodlake council seat in January 2022, under the city's municipal code, for repeated unexcused absences (missed while serving as Woodlake High School's varsity girls soccer coach, for which he won a co-coach-of-the-year honor from the East Sequoia League and CIF, and while seriously ill) without providing the required advance written notice; quotes councilmembers Jose Martinez and Memo Valero defending the rule at the Jan. 24, 2022 meeting, and Guerra Jr.'s own response
thesungazette.com (opens in a new tab)The Sun-Gazette, Sept. 17, 2024, "ELECTION 2024: Q&A with Woodlake City Council candidate Florencio Guerra Jr." (by Serena Bettis; paywalled beyond an initial excerpt): confirms Guerra Jr. was raised in Woodlake, graduated Woodlake High School, holds two Fresno Pacific University bachelor's degrees (political science and psychology), and has roughly 24 years in social services, about 20 of them in a school setting; states his 2024 platform focused on a south-Woodlake city park (he said the south side had zero parks against 14 in the north) and higher police pay for officer retention; also confirms he previously won a short-term council seat in 2020 and was automatically removed in January 2022
thesungazette.com (opens in a new tab)The Sun-Gazette, Sept. 17, 2024, "ELECTION 2024: Q&A with Woodlake City Council candidate Josh Diaz" (by Serena Bettis; paywalled beyond an initial excerpt): confirms Diaz is a fourth-generation Woodlake resident educated in Woodlake schools K-12, holds a Fresno State bachelor's in social science and a teaching credential via the Tulare County Office of Education, and had been a Woodlake homeowner for eight years as of 2024; states his 2024 platform was council term limits, a switch to district elections, and a formal interpreter-request process for town halls, and quotes him saying he was self-funded with no campaign donors
sjvwater.org (opens in a new tab)SJV Water (nonprofit newsroom), March 22, 2023, "City of Woodlake braces for more water as residents demand answers": pictures Vice Mayor Frances Ortiz on the panel of city officials at a public flood-response meeting, listening to resident complaints (no direct quote attributed to her); quotes Josh Diaz describing his home's flood damage and lack of flood insurance
sjvwater.org (opens in a new tab)SJV Water (nonprofit newsroom), Nov. 8, 2023, "Legal actions on behalf of San Joaquin Valley flood victims piling up": profiles Josh Diaz, a Woodlake high school teacher, as one of the most outspoken local voices on the March 2023 flooding -- his home was inundated with more than three feet of floodwater, requiring evacuation and a full renovation funded partly by FEMA and personal savings -- and describes him pursuing legal action after appeals to local officials were denied
theballotbook.com (opens in a new tab)The Ballot Book -- independent election-history records for Woodlake City Council: confirm Frances Ortiz won reelection in 2014 (369 votes) and 2018 (545 votes), both 3-seat races; confirm Memo Valero was already an incumbent by the November 2020 election, where he won reelection (425 votes, 25.6%) alongside newcomer Florencio Guerra Jr. (555 votes, 33.4%, top vote-getter) in a 4-candidate race for 2 seats; and confirm both Guerra Jr. and Josh Diaz lost the November 2024 election (453 votes/20.1% and 552 votes/24.5% respectively) to incumbents Rudy Mendoza and Joe Martinez
cal-access.sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)A negative-result campaign-finance search: California's Cal-Access campaign-finance search (cal-access.sos.ca.gov) returned an Incapsula bot-detection challenge page instead of results for a direct filer search against each of the four candidates' surnames (Valero, Ortiz, Guerra, Diaz) this session, the same recurring bot-detection failure mode documented elsewhere in this dataset. Cal-Access covers only state-level committees in any case, not local city-council candidates. Documents the absence of a reachable financial-disclosure source for this contest, not any candidate's actual finances

Last updated September 1, 2026.

City of Woodlake

Woodlake City Council

This person would hold one of three at-large seats up this cycle. Woodlake's City Council has five members and staggered 4-year terms. They vote on city laws, the budget, and land use. Woodlake is a Tulare County city of roughly 7,400 residents. The council picks the Mayor and Vice Mayor from among its own members. Voters do not choose either office directly. A City Administrator appointed by the council runs day-to-day operations.

Four candidates are running for three at-large seats on the Woodlake City Council. Incumbents William "Memo" Valero and Frances Ortiz are seeking new terms. Challengers Florencio Guerra Jr. and Josh Diaz are running too, and the top three win.

This person would hold one of five at-large seats on the City Council of Woodlake, a Tulare County city of 7,419 residents (2020 Census) that incorporated in 1940. Councilmembers serve staggered 4-year terms, so 2 or 3 seats come up each cycle; this year it's 3. The Council sets city ordinances, the budget, and land use, and appoints a City Administrator to run day-to-day operations. Woodlake has no separately elected Mayor or Vice Mayor -- the five councilmembers choose both titles from among themselves after each election.

All three seats up this cycle are currently held by councilmembers the county's own filing document lists as holding their seats via "Appointed in Lieu" of election status, rather than the seat's most recent election: Valero, Ortiz, and Misty Wallace. Wallace did not file for a new term this cycle, leaving her seat genuinely open, while Valero and Ortiz are both seeking to keep theirs. With four candidates filing for the three seats, this cycle is a real, contested election -- unlike the status that produced the incumbents' current terms.

William "Memo" Valero

William "Memo" Valero's 2026 ballot designation is "Incumbent." In 2020 he won reelection with 425 votes to Guerra's 555, placing second. No 2026 campaign platform, website, or news coverage was found for him.

Frances S. Ortiz

Frances S. Ortiz's 2026 filing lists "No Ballot Designation." She is Woodlake's sitting Vice Mayor and has served on the council since 1999. No 2026 campaign platform, website, or news coverage was found for her.

Florencio Guerra Jr.

Florencio Guerra Jr.'s 2026 ballot designation is "Community School Coordinator." He won a seat in 2020, but was removed in January 2022 for unexcused absences. He has spent about 24 years in social services, mostly in schools.

Josh Diaz

Josh Diaz's 2026 ballot designation is "School Teacher." He holds a bachelor's degree from Fresno State and a teaching credential from Tulare County. He ran for council in 2024 and lost, finishing third.

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