The seats for the mayor and City Council members in districts 1 and 4 will appear on the Vista ballot this year.
The current candidate filings are preliminary and come ahead of the city’s official nomination period, which runs from July 13 through Aug. 7. Candidates must submit nomination papers during that window to officially qualify for the November ballot.
In an early look, Mayor John Franklin is running for the District 5 seat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. Running for his seat are former City Councilmember Joe Green and resident Kenneth Zuniga.
Green served two terms on the City Council from 2016 to 2024, representing District 2 and is a real estate broker at his business Green Team Realty. He also served for years as president of the Del Norte PTA. He previously ran for mayor in 2018.
Green has said that as mayor, his top priorities would include public safety, infrastructure, business development, affordable housing, smart growth and strengthening community events and spaces.
He has also said he wants to get the City Council back on track and promote unity among elected officials.
“I’ve always wanted to really represent my city as a whole,” Green previously told The Coast News. “I don’t like that the national politics have crept their way into the council chambers … I see those dynamics, and I feel like there’s so much friction and tension that there’s not as much business being done.”
Zuniga is a production photographer and graphic designer who serves on the city’s Homelessness Commission. He highlighted his advocacy over the past several years for preserving bike lanes, keeping ICE out of the community, pushing back against surveillance technology, and supporting those who are homeless and on the brink of homelessness.
As mayor, he said he will focus on producing affordable housing, investing in road repair and biker and pedestrian connectivity, supporting local businesses and local labor, increasing green spaces, getting unhoused people off the streets and into services, and promoting Vista as a destination city.
“I’m running because Vista’s working families deserve a mayor who fights for them. Not for the well-connected. Not for special interests. For us,” Zuniga said.
District 1 City Councilmember Corinna Contreras is running to represent the 48th Congressional District this election. Frank Nuñez and Yolanda Kenniston-Alvarez have both filed to run for the seat.
Nuñez is a lifelong Vista resident and small business owner who previously ran for the Vista Unified School District board in 2024. He serves on the Vista Irrigation District Board.
He said his top priorities are supporting law enforcement with the resources it needs, addressing homelessness, investing in parks, roads, and other public spaces, responsible budgeting, and increasing local housing opportunities.
“I love Vista, but I also know we can do better as a community. As your voice on the Vista City Council, I will fight to keep our neighborhoods safe, repair and maintain our roads, upgrade our parks, support small businesses, and make Vista a more affordable place to live, work, and raise a family,” Nuñez said.
Kenniston-Alvarez has not shared a campaign website and did not respond to questions from The Coast News. On social media, she stated that she is focused on making sure all residents are heard and that underserved communities can stay informed and receive the same level of communication from the city as everyone else.
She also said she wants to address high-speed traffic and neglected properties in local neighborhoods to keep residents safe and protect property values.
District 4 City Councilmember Dan O’Donnell is running for re-election to a second term. No other candidates have filed to run for the seat.
O’Donnell currently serves as the deputy mayor and said he is committed to continuing to take residents’ feedback to improve the city.
He highlighted key accomplishments from his first term, including voting to add new deputies and EMTs for local public safety, supporting needed road safety and infrastructure improvements, such as new streetlights and crosswalks in his district, and working directly with Vista Little League and the Vista Unified School District to secure practice fields.
Looking ahead, he is focused on supporting affordable housing opportunities, securing dedicated local land for baseball fields, supporting mixed-use development at 650 Sycamore Avenue, and more.
“Looking ahead, I am running for re-election because the work is not finished,” O’Donnell said. “For our small businesses, I will fight to streamline permitting through faster approvals, reduced fees, and an overall smoother process. I will also continue to make sure our first responders have the resources they need to protect this community.”
