what’s at stake?

The council leadership makes the ultimate call on what gets put on the agenda for discussion, and how council meetings are run, including public comment.

The Fresno City Council re-elected Councilmember Mike Karbassi for a second term with the president’s gavel on Thursday during the first meeting of 2026, the last year that most of these politicians serve their term in their respective districts. 

Central Fresno Councilmember Nelson Esparza was also elected as vice president. 

The vote comes after an ordinance passed in 2024 amending city code to allow for re-elections, as opposed to a procedural rotation as seen at the county’s board of supervisors. 

This year marks the final year this makeup of the city council will still exist, as a majority of the dais leave or seek a different office — offering local voters the possibility of introducing a massive shift to the city’s political landscape. 

Councilmember Brandon Vang will seek re-election this summer for the southeast city district, after winning a special election to finish an incomplete term; Councilmembers Annalisa Perea and Mike Karbassi will seek higher office, with the west city districts up for grabs, and a chance at an opening of the northwest seat should the latter win a bid for county supervisor; Councilmembers Miguel Arias and Nelson Esparza will term out of their seats, guaranteeing new representation in the central and southwest districts. 

Esparza announced on Thursday morning a bid for the California Board of Equalization. 

Mayor Dyer reassured of Gov. Newsom’s $250 million commitment to Fresno

The last of a $250 million commitment from the state toward the city’s downtown revitalization efforts is in the governor’s recently announced budget for the next fiscal year, according to Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer.

The mayor said at Thursday’s council meeting that he was assured by the director of the state’s department of finance on a recent call that the remaining $100 million is in the recently presented budget by California Gov. Gavin Newsom. 

“There were a lot of naysayers out there that said it would never materialize, that the governor wouldn’t come through,” Dyer said. “I’m here to tell you, looks like the governor’s going to come through with all $250 million.”

Newsom initially pledged the funding in 2023 to help the city replace severely outdated infrastructure to Fresno’s downtown district — a problem the mayor and developers have singled out as one of, if not the most, significant hurdles in Dyer’s desire to get 10,000 living in the heart of the city. 

The governor’s investment inflated to nearly $300 million after an influx of housing infrastructure support.  

However, it remains to be seen whether the nine-figure investment will survive the budget’s May revisions. The governor’s commitment to downtown Fresno funding has been delivered in installments, at least in part, due to the state’s need to constantly shore up projected deficits. 

The state budget has a projected $18 billion deficit heading into the next fiscal year, and the state’s independent analysis group has already poked significant holes into Newsom’s proposals.  

Related