What to Know About the Santa Barbara Mayoral Race Ahead of Sept. 30 Forum

As Election Day approaches, the candidates running for Santa Barbara mayor have been ramping up campaign efforts, collecting public endorsements, raising funds, and making the rounds to speak at community forums and town hall events.

The Santa Barbara Independent is hosting our own Mayoral Candidate Forum at the Alhecama Theatre on Wednesday, September 30, where voters will have a chance to hear from the three leading candidates — Eric Friedman, Wendy Sims-Moten, and Kristen Sneddon. This forum is free to the public, and while all seats have already been reserved, the event will be livestreamed to both our YouTube and Instagram pages, and the entire recording will be available in full on our website for anyone unable to attend in person.

Who Are the Candidates?

After current mayor Randy Rowse dropped his plans to run for reelection, three leading candidates have emerged as the most viable contenders to fill his soon-to-be-empty seat at the head of council.

Two of these candidates, Sneddon and Friedman, are sitting councilmembers twice elected by their respective districts. Both were first elected in 2017, Friedman in District 5 and Sneddon in District 4, and both were elected again in 2021.

Sneddon and Friedman represent either side of the ideological divide on City Council. Both are lifelong Democrats, though they have navigated different pathways during their council terms, with Sneddon taking a more progressive leadership stance on city issues such as rent stabilization, while Friedman emerged as a moderating voice willing to push back on items such as the city budget.

Sneddon (who works as a geology professor at SBCC) earned the early endorsement of the State and County Democratic Party, and former Mayors Marty Blum and Sheila Lodge, three members of the County Board of Supervisors, the Sierra Club, CAUSE Action Fund, and a number of unions, including city workers, teachers, and firefighters.

Friedman (who works a side job at Trader Joe’s) is endorsed Congressmember Salud Carbajal, Mayor Rowse, and a range of business and trades associations, including the South Coast Chamber of Commerce, Santa Barbara South Coast Business Action Fund, Santa Barbara Association of Realtors, Tri-County Building and Construction Trades Council, and unions representing sheet workers, electricians, plumbers, and pipefitters.

Friedman has raised more than six figures, with large donations from business owners, real estate agents, investors, architects, contractors, land use consultants, and one maximum donation of $5,900 from billionaire real estate developer Herb Simon, majority owner of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers and the WNBA’s Indiana Fever.

Sneddon has raised at least $70,000, with contributions from three former mayors, members of city review boards, housing advocates, historic preservationists, and a recent $2,000 donation from Shatter PAC, a grassroots Central Coast committee that raises money for Democratic women running for office.

Sims-Moten, a former school boardmember and longtime director of the First 5 program, is taking on both candidates, making a run for mayor to offer a fresh perspective on the divisive issues that have dominated City Hall. While Sims-Moten has not announced any endorsements or filed major campaign contributions, she has gained community support through on-the-ground campaign efforts.

Sim-Moten is a community leader who pushed the needle on racial justice and youth development opportunities. She has built up a strong grassroots network over the years and gained a bump following an appearance at the first mayoral candidate forum earlier this month, when she said city leaders should avoid politics and center people first: “What do the people who are most impacted think?” she asked.

Where Do They Stand on Big Issues?

This election cycle has been dominated by discussion over the hot topics of rent stabilization, State Street, and the city budget.

Sneddon’s campaign has mirrored her time on City Council, with consistent support for a strong rent stabilization ordinance, which she helped steer to its current drafted version. She has repeatedly voted in favor of keeping State Street closed to cars, and has a history of calling for a permanent source of funding for the city’s Local Housing Trust Fund.

Friedman has voted against the proposed rent stabilization ordinance throughout the planning process, saying the current version is much too strict and could cause unintended consequences to the city’s already volatile rental market. He pushed for a different approach to State Street, floating the idea of a half-open/half-closed model. He has been critical of the city’s budget planning, and raised concerns about taking on large-scale projects while the city is dealing with depleted reserve funds.

Sims-Moten has spoken in support of rent stabilization as a way to keep families in their homes, giving the city stability to address the roots of the housing crisis. She has questioned the motivations behind the State Street Master Plan, asking if residents and workers of downtown were truly considered in the planning process. She said she would use her experience on the school board with navigating the city budget, and that she would not support any new taxes that would impact residents.

Editor’s Note: Santa Barbara resident Mathhew Kilrain, known as “Boat Rat Matt,” is also running for mayor of Santa Barbara. Kilrain has not claimed any campaign donations or endorsements. Kilrain previously ran for mayor in 2021, when he finished sixth out of six candidates with 0.68 percent of the vote.