Filing for the 2026 Martinez municipal elections closed Friday with little fanfare. Martinez Mayor Brianne Zorn and Councilmember Debbie McKillop were both reelected by virtue of not being challenged in November. Councilmember Jay Howard has one challenger, Martinez resident Nakenya Allen.
City elections were not always this quiet.
Before 1978, Martinez had a five-member City Council, with members elected citywide to four-year terms. The council operated on a three-two election cycle: three council seats were up for election in one cycle, followed two years later by the remaining two seats. Elections were held in the spring of even-numbered years.
This system produced crowded and competitive elections every two years. When the three-member cycle was up, the three candidates receiving the most votes won seats. When the two-member cycle was on the ballot, the top two vote-getters were elected.
The system also allowed candidates to win a seat without necessarily representing a majority of the town’s voters, providing an opportunity for alternative voices to be heard.
Once the new council was seated, its members would select one of their colleagues to serve as mayor for the coming year. At the end of that term, the council would select another member to serve as mayor. This was known as a rotating, or “weak mayor,” form of government and was common in many smaller California cities.
During the 1970s, state law was changed to allow smaller cities to elect their mayors directly rather than relying on a rotating mayor.
In 1976, Martinez voters approved a local measure allowing the city to directly elect its mayor. A second question asked whether the mayor should serve a two-year or four-year term.
Voters enthusiastically supported the idea of an elected mayor, approving the measure by an overwhelming 80% to 20% margin in favor of directly electing the mayor. On the question of the mayor’s term, however, voters were more cautious and chose a two-year term.
The 1978 election was therefore the first in which Martinez voters directly elected their mayor.
Because the first election following the successful initiative coincided with the two-member council cycle, voters faced a citywide mayoral election as well as a separate citywide race for a single council seat. Councilmember John Sparacino ran for mayor and was successful, becoming Martinez’s first directly elected mayor. Councilmember Jim Thelen ran for reelection and won a four-year council term.
Two years later, in 1980, the mayor’s two-year term was up at the same time that the three-member council cycle was on the ballot. The result was a contest for mayor and three council seats—a total of four city offices being contested in the same election.
The same awkward imbalance continued in 1982. The two-member council cycle was up, along with the citywide mayoral election and a single citywide council race.
In 1984, the three-member council cycle returned, again coinciding with the mayoral election. Four council and mayoral seats were therefore up for election at the same time.
Recognizing the problem created by the two-year mayoral term and the alternating three-two council cycle, the council adjusted council terms. The candidate finishing third in the three-seat election would serve only a two-year term. This adjustment was intended to establish a more consistent pattern, with the mayor and two council seats appearing on the ballot every two years.
By 1986, Martinez had settled into a system in which the directly elected mayor and two council seats were contested together.
There was another change taking place in California during the late 1980s. Many cities felt that holding municipal elections in the spring, a state primary in June, and a general election in November created too many elections in a single year. Cities also bore the full cost of their municipal elections.
Moving municipal elections to November allowed cities to share election costs with the other jurisdictions and measures appearing on the general-election ballot. The move also brought a significant increase in voter turnout and participation, putting local elections on the same ballot as state and national races.
After the 1988 election, the community began to question whether a two-year mayoral term was long enough. In 1990, voters were asked whether the mayor should serve a four-year term or continue with a two-year term.
Mayor Mike Menesini was unopposed for reelection that year, while Measure J asked voters to extend the mayor’s term to four years. Voters approved the measure, giving Menesini his first four-year term.
The final major adjustment to Martinez’s current council system came in 2018, when the city was compelled to move to district elections following a lawsuit.
Today, Martinez has one mayor elected citywide and four City Council members, each elected from a single-member district.
The evolution of Martinez’s election system reflects a much different era in local politics. What once produced competitive, citywide races every two years—with multiple council seats and a rotating mayor—has evolved into a system of district representation, a citywide mayor, and, at least in 2026, very little competition on the ballot.
The quietness of this year’s election is therefore a striking contrast to the crowded and often competitive municipal elections that once defined Martinez politics.
By Tim Farley
Martinez, CA