Five residents, including incumbent Tom Ramsey, have thrown their hats into the ring for the Nov. 3, 2026 City Council election. There are three seats open; terms are four years.
The new candidates are Nancy Beninati, Sunny Bostrom-Fleming, Bill Reichle, and Adam Hundt.
You can read their candidate statements here. The Exedra will run interviews with the candidates in the coming weeks.
As for the Board of Education election, on Monday night the City Council voted to cancel it, as the two incumbents running for re-election for the two spots were unopposed and could be appointed instead.
Under California Education Code, if the number of nominees does not exceed the number of offices to be filled the qualified nominees can be appointed during a regular school board meeting before Nov. 3, 2026.
Per a city memo, without a competitive Board of Education race, the cost of the November election will be borne completely by the city. As previously quoted by the Registrar of Voters, the cost for this election will be between $5 and $7 per registered voter in Piedmont. There are approximately 9,000 registered voters in the city. The proposed FY 2026-2027 Budget includes an appropriation of $63,000 for election expenses.
I see that our city is going to have to pay $63,000.00 for our election. The people on the Board of Education are going to be appointed since there are only 2 people interested in serving in the 2 positions. Therefore, the only reason we have to have an election at all is because there are more than 3 candidates for city council, specifically 5. I am one. If there were only 4 candidates, I would drop out and save the city the $63,000.00, but there would still be 4, requiring the election. If I am elected, grateful to even to come in a distant 3rd place, I will work very diligently to see that our mighty little gem of a city gets it’s money’s worth.
Sunny