Santa Barbara City Council District 5 · Nov 3, 2026

Cevin Cathell

Candidate for City Council District 5

15 candidates · 4 seats4 sourced positions

Cevin Cathell is running for Santa Barbara City Council District 5 in the Nov 3, 2026 election, against James Zurlinden and Ian J. Baucke.

Vote-by-mail ballots mailed and ballot drop-off locations open · Mon, Oct 5, 2026

Today

Film producer who helped form the Santa Barbara International Film Festival as its program director. Has lived in Santa Barbara for 26 years.

Where Cevin Cathell stands: positions on the record

Rent stabilization1 sourced position

as reported by SB Newsmakers; not a direct quote except the quoted words
Said she opposes the rent stabilization ordinance and believes it will discourage more housing.
“it will discourage more housing, and we need more affordable housing.”
Own statementSB Newsmakers · Jul 23, 2026

State Street1 sourced position

as reported by SB Newsmakers; not a direct quote except the quoted words
Said the lower four blocks should stay closed to traffic and the upper blocks should be more flexible.
“Open it up with the option of closing it.”
Own statementSB Newsmakers · Jul 23, 2026

Vacancy tax1 sourced position

as reported by SB Newsmakers; not a direct quote
Said she opposes a vacancy tax on unused downtown properties or housing units but might support a higher Transient Occupancy Tax.
Own statementSB Newsmakers · Jul 23, 2026

Ranked-choice voting1 sourced position

as reported by SB Newsmakers; not a direct quote
Said she has not studied ranked-choice voting but would support putting it on the ballot in a regular even-year election.
Own statementSB Newsmakers · Jul 23, 2026

Every claim here links to its source and was checked against it before publishing. How this guide works →

See something wrong? Report an error

Something wrong or missing? Tell us what and where, with a link to a source if you have one. Reports feed the next verification run.