With five races on the ballot, Salinas City Council could see a dramatic flip.

With Election Day approaching Nov. 5, Salinas City Council might experience more of the same direction – or a sharp shift. Five out of seven seats are up for grabs, including the mayor. There are 14 candidates running, only three are women, so there is a chance constituents would only have male representatives. (Currently, there are two women on council. Neither Mayor Kimbley Craig nor Councilmember Carla Viviana González are seeking re-election.)

Two defined factions have emerged with different stories about the current Salinas City Council: one that believes the council is dysfunctional, and those who praise recent decisions despite challenges. (Decisions include upgrading parks, approving a 2.75-percent rent stabilization ordinance and also firing the former city manager last year.)

“I think my colleagues are doing a phenomenal job,” says Councilmember Tony Barrera, who has represented District 2 for 18 years, and is not up for re-election this year. “But the message has gotten lost on attitude, and how divisive it is.”

The dysfunctional discourse intensified with former councilmember Steve McShane’s resignation in April, leaving the District 3 seat empty. Eleven people applied to fill his vacancy, and Jesus Valenzuela was appointed in May for a six-month term. He is now running for the remaining two-years of the term, along with three others: Cary Swensen, an educator and officer for the League of United Latin American Citizens, who ran against McShane in 2022; David Maisonneuve, a real estate appraiser; and Margaret D’Arrigo, a Hartnell College trustee with experience in agribusiness, the region’s economic engine.

District 1 will have a new representative, with two candidates for the seat: Alex Ayala, a general contractor and restaurant owner in San Jose; and Jose Luis Barajas, a business adviser at the Monterey County Business Council.

In Districts 6 and 4, incumbents Anthony Rocha and Orlando Osornio are seeking their second terms. Rocha has one challenger, Aurelio Salazar Jr., a Hartnell College trustee. Osornio is facing two challengers: Gloria De La Rosa, who represented District 4 for 22 years and endorsed Osornio upon her retirement in 2020; and Albert Lomeli, a teacher who ran and lost against Osornio in 2020.

Issues in District 4 include a visible increase in sex trafficking along King and Roosevelt streets. This isn’t new in the area, but it increased after Gov. Gavin Newsom repealed penal code sections that made it a misdemeanor to loiter for the purpose of prostitution. Salinas police regularly close a pathway between Kern and King streets to reduce prostitution activity. Earlier this year, the council passed the Red Light Abatement Act, holding Salinas property owners accountable for prostitution activity on their property.

Lomeli says the focus should be on human trafficking and efforts to diminish it. Osornio has met with local organizations and organized a march to bring light to the issue.

Like District 4, the mayoral race also includes a former official, Dennis Donohue, who served as mayor from 2006-12, alongside De La Rosa. Donohue works in ag tech, and is committed to elevating Salinas’ profile in that regard. “We are a global destination in the ag tech world,” he says. But his campaign focuses on a broader view of economic development; he describes the train station as “an underutilized asset” that could become a hub.

Chris Barrera is a real estate agent and president of a LULAC chapter in Salinas, who ran unsuccessfully against Craig in 2020, coming in second in a five-way race. Retired principal Ernesto González García, who finished third in that election, is running again.

Councilmember Andrew Sandoval is running Barrera’s campaign. Much of the dysfunction – including McShane’s resignation – has focused on Sandoval’s conduct. “There’s nothing wrong with asking questions and holding people accountable,” Barrera says. “Things are changing, and along with change comes arguing.”

Most candidates object to a lack of transparency and community involvement behind the upcoming Amazon warehouse project in South Salinas. Another thing candidates largely agree on is the importance of Measure G, a sales tax initiative that is critical to the city’s operations and is set to sunset in 2029. It is projected to generate $24 million this fiscal year.

Topics residents are concerned about include public safety and street/sidewalk disrepair. Several candidates want a more robust police department. Barrera calls for the city to hire more officers and increase officers on patrol. Donohue says the city should provide alternatives, like use of technology to aid police officers because it will take time to hire. González calls for updating city policies to better attract local candidates to SPD jobs.

On rent stabilization, the candidates diverge into two camps. Opponents of the recently approved policy include Donohue and D’Arrigo, who say they would look to benefit both landlords and tenants. Barajas says he would instead focus on getting affordable units built. Lomeli notes the ordinance only applies to a small percentage of homes and says it won’t solve the housing stock problem. “Rent stabilization didn’t work in New York – why does City Council think it will work in Salinas?” says Salazar, who thinks the priority should be higher-paying jobs.

Rocha, Osornio, Valenzuela, Barrera, Ayala, González, García and Swensen all support the ordinance.

Sara Rubin contributed reporting for this story.