![\"Westlands](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/westlands-big-sign-1536x1026.jpg\" "\\"Westlands")
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Westlands Water District office on Cromwell Avenue in north Fresno. Allison Hunter \/ SJV Water.<\/p>\n
SJV Water<\/p>\n
There are dozens of Fresno County water board seats up for election this November but one of the most consequential won\u2019t be on this, or any future ballots.<\/p>\n
Westlands Water District is the largest agricultural water district in the United States. It covers more than 1,000 square miles in western Fresno and Kings counties and provides water to 700 farms.<\/p>\n
Because of increasing surface and groundwater restrictions, Westlands is also poised to become home to the largest \u2013 136,000 acres \u2013 solar installation in the country, substantially changing the use and tax base of a huge swath of Fresno County.<\/p>\n
But, general voters do not get to vote on who the directors are that make decisions about how Westlands operates.<\/p>\n
Why?<\/p>\n
Well, this year the election was actually canceled as none of the four seats had a challenger.<\/p>\n
Incumbents Donald Ross Franson III, Jeremy Hughes and Justin Diener are unopposed and only one person, Charles Herrin Jr., filed for Ernie Costamagna\u2019s seat. Costamagna, who took office in 2022, opted not to seek a second term.<\/p>\n
But even in years when seats are hotly contested, as happened in 2022<\/a>, general voters don\u2019t have a say.<\/p>\n That\u2019s because Westlands was formed in the 1950s under a special Water Code designation that only allows landowners with water contracts in the district to vote on its board of directors.<\/p>\n And even then, not all landowners have an equal say, with some holding many more votes than others.<\/p>\n Westlands uses \u201cweighted voting\u201d so that landowners are given one vote per dollar\u2019s worth of their land based on a \u201cspecial benefits\u201d assessment that the district created in 2017.<\/p>\n And that value is tied to water.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019ve got 100 acres and it\u2019s assessed at $1 an acre, then you get 100 votes,\u201d explained Stephen Farmer, chief administration officer for Westlands. \u201cOne vote per dollar of assessed value.\u201d<\/p>\n Westlands holds federal contracts for water from the Central Valley Project (CVP) and other sources.<\/p>\n To assess the value of property, Westlands hired an engineering firm that used delivery records from 2006-2016 to determine how much water came from CVP versus other water sources.<\/p>\n The firm found that the agency had delivered 68% of water to landowners from its CVP contract and 32% from other water sources.<\/p>\n Not all parcels are eligible for CVP water, so those landowners were only assessed for the other-water, or non-CVP, benefit. Since all CVP parcels were automatically eligible for other-water sources, a CVP-parcel was assessed for both benefits.<\/p>\n The assessment value was used to charge landowners for the district\u2019s operations and maintenance costs plus debt service on certain bonds, a total of $17,208,522 at the time of the report.<\/p>\n The engineering firm split the $17.2 million between the two benefit categories using the 68\/32 delivery split, then divided each dollar share by its eligible acreage for that benefit. Land eligible for CVP was valued as higher because the district\u2019s dollar share for CVP delivery, 68 percent of the total, was spread across fewer eligible acres than the other-water share.<\/p>\n Yes, that means landowners with more acreage and larger water contracts have more sway in elections. But they also pay bigger assessments.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s just the way it works,\u201d Farmer said. \u201cThat\u2019s the way the law was written. And that\u2019s how our election is run.\u201d<\/p>\n To avoid any perception of conflict, the district hires a third-party firm to issue, collect and count the ballots.<\/p>\n \u201cNo district employees ever touch a ballot,\u201d Farmer said.<\/p>\n Though its elections aren\u2019t on the county ballot, Westlands follows the same election rules as the county and the county certifies its results. In fact, the Fresno County Board of Supervisors must formally appoint the four new Westlands directors before the first Friday in December 2026.<\/p>\n Westlands\u2019 nine-member board of directors serve staggered, four-year terms.<\/p>\n The terms for Jeff Fortune, Jim Anderson, Frank Coelho Jr., William Bourdeau and Ryan Ferguson are up in 2028.<\/p>\n Westlands directors may serve unlimited terms.<\/p>\n Other Fresno County water board races on the ballot include:<\/p>\n Laguna Irrigation District, Division 3 (shared with Kings County) \u2014 Incumbent Tony Thomas and challenger Reid Potter for one open seat.<\/p>\n Malaga County Water District \u2014 incumbents Frank J. Cerrillo Jr., Salvador Cerrillo and Carlos Tovar and challenger Felipe Leal for three open seats.<\/p>\n Pinedale County Water District \u2014 incumbents David Rodriguez, Bradly J. Peranick and Christine P. Silva and challenger Ron Vega for three open seats.<\/p>\n Riverdale Public Utility District \u2014 challengers Tristan R. Mauger, William Miller Jr., Tracy L. Morgan, Anthony Da Costa and Ranzy \u201cRowdy\u201d Brooks Robinson Jr. for two open seats.<\/p>\n Races not on the ballot include:Alta Irrigation District, Division 1 \u2014 Incumbent Christopher \u201cCJ\u201d Myers is unopposed.Alta Irrigation District, Division 2 (shared with Tulare County) \u2014 Incumbent Jack Brandt is unopposed.Consolidated Irrigation District Division 1 \u2014 Incumbent Greg Thonesen is unopposed.Consolidated Irrigation District Division 4 (shared with Kings County) \u2014 Kirpal \u201cPaul\u201d S. Sihota is unopposed.Consolidated Irrigation District Division 5 (shared with Kings and Tulare Counties) \u2014 Tony Lewis is unopposed.Freewater County Water District \u2014 Incumbents Val \u201cPhil\u201d Viau, Kirk Brown and appointed to the vacant seat, Bradley Moglia, are unopposed.Fresno Irrigation District, Division 1 \u2014 Incumbent Jerry Prieto, Jr. is unopposed.Fresno Irrigation District, Division 3 \u2014 Incumbent Ryan Jacobsen is unopposed.Fresno Irrigation District, Division 4 \u2014 Incumbent George Porter is unopposed.Hills Valley Irrigation District (shared with Tulare County) \u2014 Incumbent Marco Rinaldi is unopposed.Laguna Irrigation District, Division 1 (shared with Kings County) \u2014 incumbent Monty Hoggard unopposed.Riverdale Irrigation District, Division 2 \u2014 Incumbent Leonard Acquistapace is unopposed.Riverdale Irrigation District, Division 3 \u2014 Incumbent John L. Mendes is unopposed.Tranquillity Irrigation District \u2014 Incumbent George Ayerza Jr. is unopposed.Tranquillity Public Utility District \u2014 Incumbents Jo Ann R. Minnite and Michael Pucheu are unopposed.Pinedale Public Utility District \u2014 No candidates for one seat. Vacant.<\/p>\n SJV Water is an independent, nonprofit news site covering water in the San Joaquin Valley, www.sjvwater.org. Email us at sjvwater@sjvwater.org<\/p>\n This story was originally published August 30, 2026 at 6:49 AM.<\/p>\n![\"Westlands](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Westlands-WD-01042018-1187x1536.jpg\" "\\"Westlands-WD-01042018-1187x1536.jpg\\"")
Westlands Water District map <\/p>\n