Ridgecrest Council: Bouyer and Gaceta Lead for Two Seats; Licitra Is 438 Votes Behind

RIDGECREST, Kern County — November 5, 2026. Kern County’s official November 4 election-night count places Tammy “Charlon” Bouyer and Lawrence C. Gaceta in the first two positions in Ridgecrest’s vote-for-two City Council contest. Bouyer has 1,926 candidate selections (22.49%), Gaceta 1,846 (21.56%), while Brenda Licitra has 1,408 (16.44%) in third. The relevant second-to-third gap is 438 selections.

All six candidates in the latest listed batch

Debilyn Kinzler follows with 1,269 (14.82%), John P. “Skip” Gorman with 1,086 (12.68%), and Ron Strand with 1,027 (11.99%). All six totals are county election-night figures from 2:55:39 a.m. November 4. The county shows all 14 Ridgecrest precincts initially reporting, but that does not mean every eligible ballot has completed canvass.

Two seats: why the third-place margin matters

Ridgecrest voters can mark up to two council candidates. The sum of candidate selections is therefore not a number of unique voters. The 22.49% and 21.56% are shares of the valid candidate votes in this contest, not percentages of households supporting a slate.

Mayor and water board are separate

The same election lists Jeremy “JV” Vaughan ahead of Megan Washington in the two-year mayor race, but those votes use a different ballot question. The Indian Wells Valley Water District also has its own vote-for-two contest. California58 has updated its existing mayoral article to the official county result.

The next source to check

The November 4 source is explicitly labeled ‘Unofficial Final Results’ for the election-night reporting period, not a final certified canvass. Readers should not equate early precinct completion with the conclusion of signature verification, mail and provisional-ballot processing.

Primary source: Kern County Elections Division, November 3, 2026 general-election unofficial election-night report, issued November 4 at 2:55:39 a.m. Pacific, checked November 5. Reported leads are not certified outcomes.

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