A Stockton City Council candidate has filed a lawsuit seeking to be placed on the June primary ballot, alleging city and county election officials improperly denied him a chance to resolve deficiencies in his nomination papers.
Shakeel Samuel Carpenter, who also goes by Sam Carpenter, filed a verified petition for a writ of mandate Thursday, March 12, in San Joaquin County Superior Court, representing himself against the city of Stockton, San Joaquin County, City Clerk Katherine Roland and Registrar of Voters Olivia Hale.
Carpenter is seeking to qualify for the District 5 seat in the June 2 municipal election, currently held by incumbent Brando Villapudua. Other candidates in the race are Ruben Harper, with no ballot designation; Mary Elizabeth, a scientist and registered environmental health specialist; Desiree Lynch Gutierrez, a post-surgery recovery nurse; and Max Beas, a small business owner.
Carpenter serves as vice chair on the Council Salary Setting Commission, to which he was appointed in January, and has advocated for raising councilmembers’ pay from about $30,833 to $45,000 next year.
According to the petition, Carpenter submitted nomination papers with 24 signatures to the city clerk’s office on the morning of March 5. The documents were forwarded to the San Joaquin County Registrar of Voters later that morning.
Carpenter alleges he was not informed that his submission was deemed insufficient until after business hours that same day. The filing period for nomination papers extended through March 6, but city hall was closed that day due to a scheduled furlough, preventing him from submitting additional signatures before the deadline, the petition states.
When city hall reopened the next business day, Carpenter attempted to provide supplemental signatures, but the city clerk did not accept them, citing limits on the number of nomination signatures allowed, according to the filing.
An email from Roland to Carpenter included as an exhibit in the court filing and blind-copied to councilmembers provides the official explanation for the rejection. Roland said Carpenter submitted 24 signatures, only four of which were valid. Fifteen were from people not registered to vote, and three listed addresses outside of the district.
Roland cited Stockton City Charter Section 703, which requires at least 10 valid signatures from registered voters in the district, and noted that only one supplemental signature could be accepted, bringing the total to a maximum of five valid signatures. She also referenced California Elections Code Sections 100 and 10220, which require nomination papers to be signed by eligible registered voters and submitted during normal office hours within the nomination period.
Roland further explained that office hours were posted as Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and every other Friday. She said communications in print media, social media and the candidate handbook noted that city hall would be closed March 6, with all submissions due by 5 p.m. March 5.
“Transparency and fairness are key to a successful election,” Roland said in the email. “All candidates were given the same opportunity and information.”
The petition argues that the timing of the notification and the closure of city hall deprived Carpenter of a “meaningful opportunity” to correct the deficiency during the statutory filing period.
Carpenter is asking the court to order election officials to restore his access to the ballot, contending that any errors in the nomination process were the result of administrative handling rather than his failure to comply with requirements.
The case is being brought under provisions of California election law that allow courts to intervene when there are alleged errors or omissions in the administration of elections. The petition requests expedited consideration, noting that election-related matters take priority due to upcoming ballot deadlines.
City officials did not respond to a request for comment. Hale said she could not comment on the ongoing litigation.
Carpenter’s lawsuit is not the first of its kind.
District 2 Councilmember Mariela Ponce and former Councilmember Ralph Lee White filed a petition for a writ of mandate against former City Clerk Eliza Garza and Hale after they were disqualified from their races in 2023.
At the time, court documents said White was left short of the required signatures after a clerical delay and missing or invalid entries prevented timely certification. Hale said Ponce was disqualified because she was inaccurately listed as “not a registered voter.” Both were added to the ballot after a judge reinstated them.
An ex parte hearing is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Wednesday, March 25, in Department 10B of San Joaquin County Superior Court.
Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at hworkman@recordnet.com or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Disqualified Stockton City Council candidate sues to gain June ballot spot
Reporting by Hannah Workman, The Stockton Record / The Record
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