The San Mateo City Council is moving ahead with raising local candidates’ individual campaign contribution limits from $500 to $1,000 for the next election and potentially introducing public financing for the 2028 cycle.
Increasing the limit was touted as a way to create the same maximum amount allowed for both individuals and organizations — the latter of which is currently $1,000 — for consistency and administrative ease. Councilmembers Danielle Cwirko-Godycki and Nicole Fernandez pushed back against the $1,000 individual limits during a meeting Feb. 18, stating the increase wouldn’t help the council’s ultimate goal, which is to diversify the candidate pool, especially in areas that have historically seen less representation.
“It is interesting that the councilmembers from the equity priority districts are actually asking for lower contribution amounts than the districts that tend to have significantly more wealth, and I do think that needs to be called out,” Cwirko-Godycki said.
According to a staff report, among California cities of comparable size to San Mateo, the average individual donor limit is $768.
Elections for District 2, currently represented by Fernandez, and District 4, represented by Cwirko-Godycki, were held in 2024, with the remainder of districts up for reelection in 2026. On average, about $49,000 was raised per candidate — of which there were three total — a 70% increase from the 2022 election. Fernandez raised the highest amount of contributions by any candidate in the last two elections — about $83,000 — almost half of which came from donations that were $500 or more.
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At the end of 2023, the council also passed a voluntary expenditure limit policy, which is often used to curb exorbitant spending practices among candidates with higher access to wealth and resources. Candidates typically opt in as a way to signal their commitment to more equitable elections and are subsequently listed publicly as a participant on the city’s website and other publications. While candidates do not face financial or legal penalties for overspending, noncompliance could result in constituent backlash, subsequently hindering reelection efforts.
The city’s voluntary expenditure ordinance sets the spending cap at $2.50 per person in each candidate’s district, which amounts to roughly $50,000 per candidate, and would not include filing-related expenses or legal fees associated with litigation arising out of the campaign.
Fernandez said there aren’t strong enough incentives to commit to the voluntary expenditure limits.
“I chose not to take the voluntary expenditure because the only thing that the candidate gets for having a voluntary expenditure is a mention on the website and a mention in the Daily Journal,” Fernandez said. “I would have liked to have taken the voluntary expenditure, but the reason to do it wasn’t there.”
The council also raised the possibility of using public funds for candidate campaigns, which will likely be discussed toward the end of the year.
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