The Cathedral City Council voted unanimously Dec. 10 to pursue an appointment to fill the District 3 seat left vacant by the death of Councilmember Mark Carnivale, setting deadlines and a special meeting to interview applicants.

City Clerk staff will accept statements of interest through 5 p.m. on Dec. 29, 2025, and the council scheduled a special meeting at 3 p.m. on Jan. 7, 2026, for interviews and deliberation, Mayor John Gregory said as he moved the plan. "We will accept statements of interest submitted to the city clerk's office by 12/29/2025 at 5PM," Gregory said when proposing the procedure.

Why it matters: District 3 will be without a seated representative until the vacancy is filled, and several residents told the council that an appointment would restore representation faster and avoid an estimated special-election cost. Staff said a special election could cost approximately $45,000 and would delay District 3’s representation for months.

What the council decided: Under the approved process, the clerk will verify applicants’ eligibility and invite qualified candidates to a public special meeting where each applicant may present to the council and members of the public. Councilmembers debated the format and agreed that, depending on the number of applicants, three minutes per candidate was a reasonable starting point; the council left flexibility to expand presentation time to five minutes if the applicant pool is small.

Public input and substance: More than a half-dozen District 3 residents urged appointment during public comment. Cole Colby Gregory, a lifelong resident and small-business owner, urged the council to "consider what I believe would be the most continuity and study representation for the residents of District 3, an appointment rather than the lengthy and costly special election route." Dakota Galindo, an Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians member who said they were raised in Mark Carnivale’s district, likewise urged an appointment so the district “is not left waiting for months.”

Legal limits and timeline: Staff explained that under the city charter and state law the council must either call a special election or appoint a qualified elector within 60 days of the vacancy (Government Code §36512(b)). The city attorney advised that a 2–2 tie at the dais would result in no action and that the council would need to either adopt an alternative motion or continue the item in public.

Next steps: The council directed staff to accept statements of interest by Dec. 29, verify eligibility, and hold the Jan. 7, 2026 public meeting for presentations and deliberations, with the aim of filling the seat before mid-January to meet statutory deadlines.