Voters in the El Camino Healthcare District will decide Measure S on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. It would limit the district’s elected directors, who also sit on the board of El Camino Hospital, to four four-year terms, or 16 years in total. It needs a simple majority.

Why it matters: The district has no term limits today. The five directors oversee a tax-funded public agency and serve on the nonprofit hospital’s board, so the measure affects who governs one of the South Bay’s largest hospital systems.

Who gets to vote

The district was formed in 1956. It covers most of Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills, a large part of Sunnyvale and small parts of Cupertino, Santa Clara and Palo Alto, the Mountain View Voice reported. If you live inside those boundaries, Measure S is on your ballot. Check our Bay Area Election 2026 hub for the other measures in those cities.

The ballot question

According to the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters, the question reads: “Shall the measure amending the Bylaws of the El Camino Healthcare District to limit District Directors to four four-year terms be adopted?”

What a yes or no vote means

  • Yes: Directors could serve no more than four full four-year terms. It is a lifetime cap, so a director who reaches it could not return later.
  • No: The district keeps its current rules with no limit on terms.

The limit would count only terms that begin after Dec. 1, 2026. Partial terms, including appointments to fill a vacancy, would not count toward the cap, the Voice reported. Because only future terms count, the cap could not force any director off the board for at least 16 years.

Who is on the board now

The current directors are John Zoglin, Carol Ann Somersille, Julia Miller, Peter Fung and George Ting. Zoglin, first elected in 2008, is the longest-serving.

How it got on the ballot

The board voted 3-2 in May to place Measure S on the ballot, with Zoglin and Ting voting no, according to the Voice.

“I’m not in favor of this,” Zoglin said at the time. “I feel it’s a solution for a problem that doesn’t exist.” He also noted the estimated cost of putting the measure on the ballot, about $300,000.

In June, Ting told the board he did not recall opposing the measure and voted for the board to submit a supporting argument for the county voter guide. Zoglin cast the only no vote on that.

Arguments for and against

The official argument in favor is signed by Director Julia Miller on behalf of the board. “Term limits work,” Miller wrote, arguing they open seats to qualified candidates, including people who have been underrepresented, “reduce entrenchment and the institutional resistance to change,” and keep the board accountable to the community.

No formal argument against Measure S was filed, according to county records.

Other races nearby

Many of the same voters are also deciding Mountain View Measure E and the Valley Water District 7 race. Vote-by-mail ballots have been mailed to all active registered voters, and vote centers are open on Election Day.