San Joaquin County voter guide 2024: Stockton City Council candidates

San Joaquin County residents will cast their vote on March 5 to determine who will represent Districts 2, 4, and 6 on Stockton City Council.

This election year, voters will notice three seats up for grabs on council. The rest of the seats will not be up for re-election until Dec. 31, 2026. Those seats are filled by Michele Padilla in District 1, Michael Blower in District 3, and Brando Villapudua in District 5.

Districts up for election are:

• District 2, which is currently served by Dan Wright who is running for Mayor of Stockton. He has served the district for two terms since 2017.

• District 4, is currently served by Susan Lenz.

• District 6, Kimberly Warmsley has served the district since 2021. She became Vice Mayor in 2023. She is running for re-election.

Here is a brief rundown of the council candidates.

Anthony Silva, District 2 candidate

Silva served as mayor from 2013 to 2017. He lost the mayoral race to Michael Tubbs who received 70% of the vote in the 2016 election.

Silva was the CEO of the Stockton Kids Club, formerly the Stockton Boys & Girls Club. The Stockton Boys & Girls Club’s charter was revoked in 2013 by the national Boys & Girls Club of America, it was renamed after.

Silva was arrested at his youth camp in 2016 and accused of recording an alcohol-fueled game of strip poker on his cell phone, involving camp counselors, The Record reported on Aug. 18, 2016.

Silva faced several charges but as part of a plea agreement, he pleaded no contest to giving alcohol to a person under 21, and was sentenced to a year of probation and 40 hours of community service. Other charges were dropped.

The year before, in 2015, a gun stolen from Silva was the murder weapon in the south Stockton killing of 13-year-old Rayshawn Harris. Silva failed to notify authorities of the theft of the murder weapon until one month after Harris’ death, according to a San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office report.

Silva faced eight new charges, in 2018: two counts of grand theft embezzlement, two counts of embezzlement of a public officer, money laundering, conflict of interest, possession of a firearm, and possession of ammunition. He pleaded no contest to a single felony conflict of interest charge after the prosecution agreed to drop all other counts of financial misconduct and was sentenced to 90 days in jail. His felony conviction was reduced to a misdemeanor.

In 2022, it was expunged from his record.

• District: 2

• Occupation: Business owner

• Campaign platform: Silva's priorities are homelessness and recruiting more police officers, Silva told The Record in December.

Pamela Pettis-Houston, District 2 candidate

Pettis-Houston is a business owner and serves as the director at The Little Red Wagon Daycare & Preschool in Stockton, according to her personal Facebook page.

She is also a "local pastor" according to her campaign's Facebook page.

• District: 2

• Occupation: Business owner

• Campaign platform: Pettis-Houston's priorities are unclear.

Mariela Ponce, District 2 candidate

Ponce was reinstated to the District 2 race by San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Jayne Lee in late December. She was disqualified after being inaccurately listed as "not a registered voter," Olivia Hale, the county's election official told The Record.

Ponce is a healthcare worker.

• District: 2

• Occupation: Healthcare worker

• Campaign platform: Ponce's priorities are unclear.

Waqar Rizvi, District 2 candidate

Rizvi is no stranger to the District 2 race.

He ran in 2016 but didn't make it past the primary ballot. He is a county technology manager.

In his campaign website, Rizvi states that he has served as Delta College’s Student Body President, graduated from the University of the Pacific with a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration, and has a doctorate in Organizational Innovation from National University.

He is the chair for the Stockton Planning Commission and the Salvation Army’s Stockton Advisory Council. Rizvi also states he is the District Governor of 53 Rotary Clubs across the Central Valley.

• District: 2

• Occupation: County technology manager

• Campaign platform: Rizvi's priorities are to make streets more safe, make the government more effective, and make the economy more competitive.

Jerome Clay, District 4 candidate

If elected, Clay stated that he would focus on quality of life, homelessness and public safety.

According to his campaign website, Clay is USAF veteran, Law School and Civil Rights attorney, Deputy Attorney General, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People volunteer and a youth advisor.

• District: 4

• Occupation: business owner and attorney

• Campaign platform: Clay's priorities are the quality of life, homelessness and public safety.

Gina Valadez-Bracamonte, District 4 candidate

There are three issues that Valadez-Bracamonte will address, if elected: "Keeping Stockton families safe, addressing stockton’s homeless crisis, and improving our quality of life."

According to her campaign website, she is the founder of "Bread of Life," a nonprofit that helps those in need and is also a credit manager for Zuckerman Companies, Inc.

• District: 4

• Occupation: Businesswoman

• Campaign platform: Valadez-Bracamonte's priorities are to keep Stockton families safe, to address Stockton’s homelessness crisis and to improve the quality of life.

Mario Enríquez, District 4 candidate

Enríquez is the director of the Center for Identity and Inclusion at the University of the Pacific.

Enríquez states on his campaign website that he is the son of immigrant parents and was a first-generation college student. He is running on various issues including homelessness, housing affordability and education.

• District: 4

• Occupation: College educator and director

• Campaign platform: Enríquez priorities are public safety and health, improving infrastructure, local economy and jobs, homelessness, housing affordability, education, arts and culture, transparency, accountability, and accessibility.

Ray Zulueta Jr., District 4 candidate

Zulueta is a Stockton Unified Board of Education trustee. His term ends in December.

On his campaign website, Zulueta states that he is a "fourth generation Stocktonian and a product of Stockton Unified School District."

He also states that he owns an "educational support services business."

• District: 4

• Occupation: Education Board trustee

• Campaign platform: Zulueta's priorities are academic achievement, fiscal planning, community support, accountability, and vocational education.

Henry Rodriguez III, District 4 candidate

As stated on his campaign website, Rodriguez is the founder of Sutter House of Hope, and CEO of Drugless Society.

• District: 4

• Occupation: Nonprofit director

• Campaign platform: Rodriguez's priorities are unclear.

Jason Lee, District 6 candidate

Lee is the founder and CEO of Hollywood Unlocked.

Lee states on his campaign website that he was a former union member and a staff director on the Kaiser Permanente division.

The Stockton native priorities are reducing crime and violence, fighting homelessness, and empowering youth and businesses.

• District: 6

• Occupation: businessman

• Campaign platform: Lee's priorities are reducing crime and violence, fighting homelessness, adding more shopping options, and empowering youth and businesses.

Ralph Lee White, District 6 candidate

White, who ran for Mayor of Stockton in 2020, is now running for District 6. The former councilman was the second candidate to be added to the primary ballot after being disqualified from the race.

San Joaquin County Superior Court Judge Jayne Lee reinstated him and Ponce in District 2.

He was first elected to the City Council in 1971 but was defeated in 1983. White returned to the council in 1984 after a recall ousted his replacement.

In 2016, he ran for Board of Supervisors District 1 but lost to Miguel Villapudua. In 2018, ran for Stockton Unified Board of Education Trustee Area 2, but lost to AngelAnn Flores.

White stated in a Facebook post that he has "61 years experience in politics."

• District: 6

• Occupation: businessman

• Campaign platform: White's priorities are unclear.

Kimberly Warmsley, District 6 candidate

Warmsley is running for re-election in District 6. Stockton's vice mayor stated in her campaign website that during her term the promises she made, she kept.

They are:

• Reopened our fire station and improved emergency response times

• Renovated our levees and parks after they were ignored for decades

• Revived our investments in public safety, youth education, and mental health

Warmsley stated she would like to maintain a collaborative approach and foster collective thinking when addressing the district's needs.

• District: 6

• Occupation: Councilwoman and social worker

• Campaign platform: Warmsley's priorities are addressing mental health needs, promoting health and equity in the community, and bringing new jobs and business development resources to her district.

Satnam Singh, District 6 candidate

Satnam Singh is a Punjab, India native but raised in Hong Kong and South Stockton, a campaign kick-off flyer states.

He has experience serving in non-profit organizations. In the flyer, it states "fostering a vibrant, inclusive, and resilient future for our district."

• District: 6

• Occupation: financial advisor and trucker

• Campaign platform: Singh's priorities are deterring youth from crime and finding funding for youth programs.

Ronnie Murray, District 6 candidate

In 2014, The Record reported that he was the founder of the Christ-Side Disciples Movement Center on Wilson Way. It is unknown if he has any political experience.

• District: 6

• Occupation: pastor

• Campaign platform: Murray's priorities are unclear.

Zobeyda "Zoyla" Moreno, District 6 candidate

Moreno states in a Facebook post that she is a "Latina Community Leader for the past 37 years," and her running for city council is already a win in itself.

"I hope that seeing me running will empower not only Latinos but all minorities," she stated.

• District: 6

• Occupation: community volunteer

• Campaign platform: Moreno's priorities are reducing crime and violence, and fighting homelessness.

Various primary election forums are happening in Stockton through February where you can hear more from the candidates.

The Record will publish voter guides for the following local elections: Stockton City Council, Stockton Mayor, San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors and San Joaquin County Board of Education over the next four days.

Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. To support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton City Council voter guide