Get general information about the election, news coverage, an interactive ballot guide and results on election day.
What does a councilmember do?
The City Council is the policy-making body of Poway. They take action on city ordinances, resolutions, contracts. The council also appoints the City Manager and City Attorney.
Source: City of Poway
How much does a councilmember get paid?
Poway City Councilmembers are paid $21,750.84 a year. They also get $4,320 a year for mileage and $720 a year for cell phone costs.
Source: City of Poway
Meet the candidates
| Vanessa Springett |
- Party: No party prefernce
- Professional background: Mortgage broker and member of the Poway Chamber of Commerce
- Top three priorities:
- Smart growth and development
- Transparency in governance
- Public safety
Springett’s platform is that she is endorsed “exclusively by Poway residents.” Her campaign website lists endorsements from community leaders, educators and longtime residents.
Total raised: $4,775.00
Some campaign reports were not available when this explainer was written. However, you can track the most recent filings yourself through the city's Netfile Public Portal.
How to find the data:
Some campaign reports were not available when this explainer was written. However, you can track the most recent filings yourself through the city's Netfile Public Portal.
How to find the data:
- Visit the portal page.
- Select the City Council Special Election, then select District 2. Then select the candidate name.
- Find the most recent Form 460. Poway’s portal sorts the most current form at the top of the list.
- Download the PDF.
- Check Line 5, Column B on the Summary Page to see the "Calendar Year to Date" total. This automatically combines the contribution amounts from previous months.
- Go to Schedule A to see donor names and other details
| Anita Edmondson |
- Party: Republican
- Professional background: Communication consultant, small business owner and former Poway councilmember
- Top three priorities:
- Local control and land use
- Public safety
- Transparency in governance
- Republican Party of San Diego
- Poway Firefighters Association
- Deputy Sheriff’s Association
Total raised: $7,939.91
Some campaign reports were not available when this explainer was written. However, you can track the most recent filings yourself through the city's Netfile Public Portal.
How to find the data:
Some campaign reports were not available when this explainer was written. However, you can track the most recent filings yourself through the city's Netfile Public Portal.
How to find the data:
- Visit the portal page.
- Select the City Council Special Election, then select District 2. Then select the candidate name.
- Find the most recent Form 460. Poway’s portal sorts the most current form at the top of the list.
- Download the PDF.
- Check Line 5, Column B on the Summary Page to see the "Calendar Year to Date" total. This automatically combines the contribution amounts from previous months.
- Go to Schedule A to see donor names and other details
The issues
- Vanessa Springett’s platform is centered on responsible development and smart growth. She wants to preserve Poway’s “City in the Country” identity and to give residents a say in development projects, especially in the early stages. Springett also wants to hold developers to their promises to the community. She is a firm supporter of the 35-foot limit for new buildings and larger setbacks to prevent what she calls “high-density canyon” effects on major corridors. Springett also wants to increase the “in-lieu” fees to ensure that developers actually build affordable housing
- Anita Edmondson also wants to preserve Poway’s rural roots but her platform emphasizes local control. She is a vocal opponent of the state-mandated housing laws and density bonus rules. She says they take power away from residents and city councils. Edmondson believes growth should not outpace the city’s infrastructure, such as traffic flow and water systems.
- Vanessa Springett believes proactive prevention and neighborhood maintenance are the keys to public safety. She says addressing nuisance properties and neglected landscaping would prevent blight and reduce fire hazards. She advocates for strengthening city codes to require the removal of dead vegetation and palm fronds, which are fire hazards.
- Anita Edmondson links public safety to physical infrastructure. She advocates for continued investment in public safety personnel and equipment to maintain response times and service levels. She says there is a need to improve traffic flow on major corridors, such as Poway Road, to reduce congestion and accidents.
- Vanessa Springett's approach to transparency focuses on structural changes to the city’s notification and planning processes to ensure residents have enough time and opportunity to provide input. She wants the city to provide easy-to-read summaries of City Council agendas posted on social media to make government more accessible
- Anita Edmondson’s approach to transparency focuses on the relationship between the City Council and the residents. She wants the City Council to base its decisions on independent information and residents’ feedback rather than information from developers or special interest groups. She also wants residents involved early in the development process to ensure their concerns are addressed during planning rather than after.
