Ricardo Valencia Focuses on Housing, Immigrants in Fifth District Supervisor Race

When Ricardo Valencia was first urged to run for the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, his instinct wasn't ambition — it was hesitation. The high school teacher and Santa Maria-Bonita school board member told Noozhawk that he was apprehensive about taking on a responsibility that large. What changed his mind, he said, was the people doing the asking: community members who saw in him someone who would stand up for women, immigrants, students and working families.

Now, with the November election days away, Valencia is the top vote-getter heading into a head-to-head runoff for the Fifth District seat — the northernmost stretch of Santa Barbara County, including Santa Maria — being vacated by Steve Lavagnino, who is retiring after 16 years on the board.

A First-Generation Story Meets a Housing Crisis

Valencia is the son of working-class Mexican immigrants, and he frames his candidacy around a stubborn contradiction in one of California's most scenic counties: abundance alongside exclusion.

"What motivates me is knowing that we have so much wealth and opportunity here in our county, but not seeing working-class families always having access to opportunities to thrive," Valencia told Noozhawk.

The numbers back up his framing. Median household income in Santa Maria sits at just under $85,000, according to U.S. Census data, while the typical home costs roughly $665,000, per Zillow. That gap — a home price nearly eight times annual income — has become the defining pressure point of North County life, pushing longtime residents toward the exits.

"People are leaving the coast for more affordable options out of state," Valencia said. "I think if we prioritize housing to meet the needs of working families, we can have our residents raise families here and thrive here on the Central Coast."

His prescription is to build, and specifically to build workforce housing near where people already work. He pointed to county-backed efforts in Guadalupe, Santa Maria and Tanglewood as projects that would let workers live close to their jobs rather than endure long commutes. He also singled out Escalante Meadows in Guadalupe — formerly public housing, converted into permanent supportive housing for veterans, households experiencing homelessness and other vulnerable residents — as a model of state and local cooperation.

Standing Up to ICE — Within the Law's Limits

Perhaps the sharpest edge of Valencia's platform is his stance on federal immigration enforcement. He has been an outspoken critic of recent ICE raids, which he says target hardworking members of the community, and he wants the county to pass ordinances making it harder for ICE to operate locally.

One concrete proposal: follow Los Angeles County's lead and require ICE agents to present a signed judicial warrant. Valencia is candid that the county cannot stop federal agents outright — but he insists it can hold them to the law.

"We've got to make sure that they're at least following the law, and that's not currently taking place right now," he told Noozhawk. "I do think we should use every legal measure available to us to make sure that we are making that as difficult for ICE to operate here, and an ordinance does that."

In a district where immigrant families are woven into the fabric of schools, fields and neighborhoods, the position is more than policy talk — it's personal for many voters.

Childcare as an Economic Issue

Valencia's third pillar is childcare, which he describes as quietly reshaping family economics across the region. Costs have become so unaffordable, he said, that many parents are forced to choose between working and staying home — and the burden often falls on women, limiting their job opportunities and career advancement.

His stated approach is collaborative: work directly with childcare providers to find a path toward affordability, rather than treating it as an unsolvable market problem.

A Runoff Against a Veteran Councilwoman

Valencia's path to November ran through a competitive June primary. He finished first in a three-person field with 36.7% of the vote, according to the County Elections Office. Santa Maria City Council member and attorney Maribel Aguilera — who represents District 4 on the council, where she goes by Maribel Aguilera Hernandez — took second with 33.4%. Cory Bantilan, Lavagnino's chief of staff, finished third, 374 ballots behind Aguilera, and did not advance.

Noozhawk reported that its staff repeatedly reached out to Aguilera and her campaign for pre-election interviews, but she declined to participate.

At an early October candidate forum, Aguilera staked out a different lane, calling for streamlined county permitting, reduced development fees and a small-business ombudsman to guide applicants through the bureaucracy. "What the county needs is they just need to get out of the way," she said. She also prioritized road repairs, arguing they should come first. With 16 years of combined service on the Santa Maria Planning Commission and City Council, she leaned on her record: "I'm not telling you I'm going to do something new. I'm telling you what I've done and how I want to bring that to the county."

The Case Valencia Makes for Himself

Valencia counters with his own record: six years on the Santa Maria-Bonita school board, during which, he says, the district's budget has stayed balanced.

"I am fiscally responsible, and as a fiduciary, I take that responsibility very seriously," he said.

If elected, he wants a dedicated county staff position to conduct audits and hunt for inefficiencies — with an explicit goal of finding savings without laying off workers.

For Fifth District voters, the choice is between two experienced Santa Maria public servants with deep local roots but sharply different instincts: one urging government to step back, the other arguing it should step up — for housing, for childcare, and for families living under the shadow of federal raids. Whoever wins will inherit Lavagnino's seat at a moment when the North County's affordability crunch feels less like a cyclical problem and more like a slow exodus.