Election season is just about back! Yeah, we just got done with one of the damn things, but here in California we tend to have them twice a year on the even-numbered years.

On the local level, last election was all about county offices (supervisor, district attorney, auditor-controller, etc.)

This November, it’s gonna be all about your city offices — your mayors and councilpeople and the like. Take the city of Eureka, for example: You’re going to have three seats on the City Council up for a vote — a council majority — as well as the mayorship. Pretty big deal!

Which seats on the council, you ask? It’s a good question, because Eureka elects its councilmembers by district. Here you go:

The seats up for grabs include the First Ward (purple), the Third Ward (red) and the Fifth Ward (yellow). The First is currently represented by Councilmember Leslie Castellano, who hasn’t yet announced whether or not she is running for reelection (as far as we know). The Third, currently represented by Natalie Arroyo, will be up for grabs: Arroyo was just elected to be a Humboldt County supervisor, and was termed-limited out of office this time around anyway. The Fifth, represented by Kim Bergel, will also be wide open, as Bergel is likewise termed out. 

Mayors can live anywhere in the city limits.

Here’s a zoom-inable map. Would you like to run for office? Do you live in any of these districts, or are you willing to pretend to do so plausibly enough to deceive our historically lax anti-carpetbagging enforcement apparatus?

The details are in the following press release from the City of Eureka:

Filing dates for nomination papers to serve as Mayor or Councilmember begin Monday, July 18, 2022 through Friday, August 12, 2018, at 4:00 P.M. Nomination papers will be available by appointment at the City Clerk’s Office, City Hall, 531 ‘K” Street, Eureka, beginning July 18th at 9:00 A.M., and must be filed with the City Clerk no later than the August 12th, 4 PM deadline. Nominations will be accepted for the following offices:

  • Mayor Full term of four years
  • Council Member, First Ward Full term of four years
  • Council Member, Third Ward Full term of four years
  • Council Member, Fifth Ward Full term of four years

The Eureka Charter requires that anyone filing for the office of Mayor, must be 25 years old and a registered voter residing in the City limits of Eureka. Those individuals interested in a Council position must be 18 and a registered voter and resident of the Ward they wish to represent.

Information on the nomination packet is also available on-line at: Candidate Nomination Packet. Please call Pam Powell, City Clerk for more information or to set up an appointment to review and receive nominations papers.