EBMUD's Ward 7 covers Castro Valley, Cherryland, Fairview and Norris Canyon, along with parts of Hayward, San Leandro, San Lorenzo and San Ramon. The director helps set water and wastewater rates for the district's East Bay customers.

The 2022 race was a squeaker

Chan won the seat in 2022 with 34.6% of the vote, 14,424 votes to Corina Lopez's 14,283 and Matt Turner's 12,987, according to Ballotpedia. She succeeded longtime director Frank Mellon, first elected in 1994.

The candidates

  • April Chan (incumbent) is running on affordable rates, accountability and transparency, Danville San Ramon reported. She points to a fire hydrant inspection standard, votes to cap rate increases and end the 8% drought surcharge, and opposition to a soil dumping project near Lake Chabot. She has also raised concerns about $279 million moved between district projects without public review.
  • Gary Wolff, a first-time candidate, is a civil engineer who was appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to the State Water Resources Control Board in 2006 and served as its vice chair, then led StopWaste from 2009 until retiring in 2015. In June he announced endorsements from the directors representing Wards 2 through 6, including board president Luz Gómez.
  • Luis Reynoso, a former Hayward Unified board member first elected in 2008, is also running for the BART and AC Transit boards this year. He told the Walnut Creek Record he wants "rigorous scrutiny of spending" and reasonable rates, and backs pipeline replacement and treatment upgrades.
  • Joseph Grcar is on several ballots this fall, including AC Transit, East Bay Regional Park District and Castro Valley school and sanitation races. He says he won't vote for any rate increases and has proposed desalination powered by small modular nuclear reactors.

How to vote

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls and vote centers close at 8 p.m., and mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive within seven days. You can check your registration and ballot status at sos.ca.gov/elections. California lets you register and vote the same day at a vote center.

More races and measures: our 2026 election hub.