The race for District 2 county supervisor has begun, but challengers remain elusive.

There are 12 weeks until ballots are mailed for the primary election, when registered voters will cast their votes in several races, including Monterey County supervisor for Districts 2 and 3. While three candidates have so far filed papers to enter the District 2 race – including incumbent Supervisor Glenn Church – information about the two challengers and their reasons for running remains slim.

According to campaign filings, the candidates running against Church to represent North County are Derek Satterlee, a technician at Vistra’s Moss Landing Power Plant, and Ramon Gomez, chief of staff for Santa Cruz County Supervisor Felipe Hernandez, whose district includes most of Pajaro Valley and the city of Watsonville. Gomez also serves on the North Monterey County Fire District board and on the Monterey County Planning Commission. The Board of Supervisors reappointed him on Feb. 10 as planning commissioner to a four-year term through 2030.

“I’ve always figured there’s going to be opposition,” Church says. “It’s a district that has a lot of political activism, and that’s a good thing.”

Candidates will face several hot-button issues, including future plans for battery energy storage at Moss Landing following the fire in January 2025. Flooding in Pajaro has complicated efforts to expand affordable housing while levee work continues, and wildfire risk remains a concern. Among these, Church sees water as a top priority. “There are some expensive projects coming down, and I’m really concerned about the affordability of it, for the entire county,” he says.

According to a biography provided to the Board of Supervisors, Gomez lives in Prunedale with his wife and children and was raised in North Monterey County and Watsonville. He earned degrees in economics and history from UC Santa Cruz, and served as president of the board of directors of the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments. He’s also served on Watsonville City Council and has been involved with North County Parks and Recreation District, the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and Manzanita Little League, among other organizations. Gomez did not respond to requests for comment.

Satterlee is a Prunedale resident, according to campaign statements. He began working for Vistra in 2024 and recently applied to be appointed to the Monterey County Regional Fire District board. (His application was denied because his residence is located outside MCRFD territory.)

Satterlee launched a GoFundMe campaign in December and has raised more than $2,000 for Monterey County election filing fees. He wrote: “I’m running for Monterey County District 2 Supervisor to build economic progress, strong communities, and protect individual freedom.” Satterlee declined to be interviewed.

“From the input I have from the community, I feel pretty good about things. I really don’t know the issues that either one of them is running on,” Church says, “so it’s kind of hard to know what the criticism is.”

In South County’s District 3, no challengers have filed; incumbent Chris Lopez is so far unopposed. The filing deadline for the June 2 election is March 6.

As of Dec. 31, Lopez reported a formidable campaign fund balance of $138,000. Church had $43,000.