Soledad voters will decide on the future of district elections, and elect a new council member.

Over recent months, Soledad residents have lost confidence in their City Council during the transition from at-large to district elections. On Oct. 4, council voted 3-2 to approve a five-district map and a rotating mayor, despite community outcry.

This triggered the formation of Soledad Committee for Voting Rights, a group that pushed for a referendum. They collected 1,405 signatures by Oct. 30, well over the required threshold to get a referendum on the ballot – 841, or 10 percent of the number of registered voters in Soledad. Monterey County Elections Department officials verified 862 as valid signatures of registered voters, meaning the referendum on district lines will be on the ballot in Soledad in the March 5, 2024 primary election.

During this political upheaval, Soledad City Councilmember Alejandro Chavez and his wife, Erica Padilla-Chavez, a Hartnell College trustee, resigned from public office due to a move out of their districts. Chavez’s resignation took effect Oct. 31, and Padilla-Chavez’s on Nov. 2.

During a special meeting on Nov. 13, Soledad City Council voted to fill Chavez’s vacancy by election, rather than making an appointment. “We’ve seen in the past that the appointment process has not been fair and impartial,” said Monica Andrade, a spokesperson for Soledad Committee for Voting Rights (also also the wife of City Councilmember Fernando Cabrera).

The councilmember election will also take place on March 5, and will be an at-large position to fill the remainder of Chavez’s term, through 2026.

As of Nov. 27, no one has filed documents to run for the vacant council seat. The last day to file is Dec. 8.

At Hartnell, the board of trustees opted to appoint a new member. Three people applied and on Nov. 21, the board selected Sonia Jaramillo to represent District 6 until the next election, in November of 2024.