Aug. 7 filing deadline passes with some El Cerrito, Kensington races locked in, some contested, and some still open

Several elected positions representing El Cerrito and Kensington drew only one candidate for each open seat by the Aug. 7 deadline, so those candidates will face no opposition on Nov. 3. Those races are for the boards of the Kensington Community Services District, AC Transit District Ward 1, and EBMUD Ward 4.

The El Cerrito City Council race has six candidates for two seats. There are three candidates for Contra Costa County Board of Education Area 2 (which includes none of El Cerrito and only a part of Kensington.)

Because incumbents did not file, the nomination period for three races affecting El Cerrito and Kensington has been extended to Aug. 12. They are Contra Costa Community College District Ward 1, three seats on the Stege Sanitary District, and West Contra Costa Unified School District 5. Incumbents cannot file during the extension.

RACES WITH ONLY ONE CANDIDATE PER OPEN SEAT

For the Kensington Community Services District board, Rodney K. Paul, Daniel S. Levine, and Adam Bastein filed to run for the three four-year terms, while Alexandra Aquino-Fike was the only one who filed for a two-year term.

In October 2025, the Kensington Fire Protection District and the Kensington Police Protection And Community Services District consolidated to become the Kensington Community Services District. The move brings police, fire, parks, and solid waste together in one district. The size of the board has been shrinking since the districts merged and will eventually be down to five.

For Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District Ward 1, Harpreet S. Sandhu is the only candidate. Following the death of H.E. Christian Peeples, Sandhu was appointed in October 2025 to serve on the board until the Nov. 3 election results. This race is to serve through Dec. 1, 2028.

For East Bay Municipal Utility District Ward 4, incumbent Andy Katz is the only candidate. 

CONTESTED RACES

For the El Cerrito City Council, six candidates will compete - incumbents Gabe Quinto and Carolyn Wysinger and challengers Mary Ann Jawili, Forrest Lanning, Wally Nowinski, and Kimberly White.

For Contra Costa County Board of Education Area  2, the candidates are incumbent Sarah Butler and challengers Pamela West and Sibyl Minighini.

RACES WITH NOMINATION PERIOD EXTENDED TO AUG. 12

For Contra Costa Community College District Ward 1,  Raquel Donoso and Cameron Sasai have filed papers, while incumbent John E. Marquez has not.

For the three seats on the Stege Sanitary District, incumbent Dwight Merrill and challengers Ted Lam, and Alex Borys are running.  Not seeking reelection are Tessa Beach and Juliet Christian-Smith.

For West Contra Costa Unified School District Area 5, Caitlin Garibaldi has filed papers, but incumbent Leslie Reckler did not.

For more details on the El Cerrito City Council race, the WCCUSD race and other election news see Election news

Photo of curbside voting near El Cerrito City Hall during the June 2, 2026 election