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Voters in San Benito County’s District 5 will have an opportunity to elect a supervisor to serve the remainder of former supervisor Ignacio Velazquez’s term. Velazquez was successfully recalled in the June primary election.
In a quirk of state law, Velazquez is allowed to seek to fill the remainder of the term of office from which he was recalled and will be facing challengers Rodney Bianchi, a business owner, and John Williams, a retired business owner.
Velazquez’s former term runs through 2028.
The District 5 supervisorial race will be among those featured at BenitoLink’s 2026 General Election Forum set for Sept. 17 at 6 p.m. at the Granada Theater.
Here are the candidates.
Rodney Bianchi, 57, is a business owner who has lived in the district his entire life. Previously, he has been elected to the North County Joint Union School District board and the San Benito County Office of Education board.
BenitoLink: Why are you running to fill the remainder of the currently vacant District 5 supervisorial seat?
Bianchi: I am running because I believe District 5 has tremendous potential, and I want to help make sure that growth translates into a better quality of life for the people who already live here.
I want to support policies that create good local jobs and economic opportunities, so residents have more opportunities to work closer to home. A stronger local economy benefits families, businesses, and the entire community.
We need to address traffic and transportation before congestion becomes an even bigger problem. That means being thoughtful about growth, improving our roads and transportation infrastructure, and making sure new development doesn’t simply add more cars to already crowded roads.
I want to expand and improve our parks and recreational spaces. Families deserve places where children can play, people can exercise, and neighbors can come together. Parks and sports complexes aren’t just amenities; they are an investment in our community and quality of life.
I am focused on delivering results on these issues and ensuring our community grows in a way that works for the people who call District 5 home.
Did you support the recall, and is it acceptable for a recalled public official to run to replace themselves, given what some consider a loophole in state law?
No response submitted.
What is the most pressing issue in San Benito County facing the Board of Supervisors, and how would you address it?
One of the most pressing issues facing San Benito County is the lack of high-paying, sustainable employment opportunities for our residents.
When people have to leave the county every day to find good-paying jobs, we create another problem: traffic. Our residents spend valuable time commuting instead of spending that time with their families or participating in our local community.
That is why I believe creating more local jobs can help address several of our challenges at once.
As a supervisor, I would focus on making San Benito County a place where businesses want to invest, grow, and hire locally. We should look for ways to streamline the process for responsible businesses to open or expand, support existing local businesses, attract industries that fit our community, and invest in the infrastructure and workforce needed to support those employers.
The goal is not simply to bring any jobs to the county. We need quality, sustainable jobs that allow our residents to build a career without leaving San Benito County every morning.
If we can create more opportunities here at home, we can reduce the number of people commuting out of the county, take some pressure off our roads, keep more money circulating in our local economy, and give families more time back in their day.
For me, economic development, traffic, and quality of life are all connected. Create more local jobs, and we can begin solving the traffic problem while making San Benito County a stronger place to live, work, and raise a family.
Ignacio Velazquez, 61, is a business owner and has lived in San Benito County for over 30 years. He was previously mayor of Hollister and a San Benito County Supervisor. Velazquez was recalled in the Primary and lost his seat.
BenitoLink: Why are you running to fill the remainder of the currently vacant District 5 supervisorial seat?
Velazquez: I’m running for county supervisor to finish the work I was doing as supervisor to stop out-of-control development, fix roads and stop deficit spending.
Housing developers continue to try to take thousands of acres of farmland to develop endless houses, which is causing major problems on our infrastructure which will end up costing local residents hundreds of millions of dollars to fix. In my first year as supervisor, I was able to stop out-of-control development by working with the current Board of Supervisors to approve a new Housing Element plan that meets all the state requirements and prevents thousands of acres of farmland from becoming housing developments.
I was also able to work with fellow supervisors to focus on getting several roads repaired in my first year, which included Shore Road, Frazier Lake Road, Fairview, Union Road, Cole Road and San Juan Highway. There are many more roads that need to be repaired and as supervisor I will continue to get these road projects done.
One of the most important things I did as a new supervisor in my first year was to put a stop to deficit budgeting. In previous years bad financial information being presented to the Board of Supervisors led to financial decisions that were costing tax payers millions of dollars.
Did you support the recall, and is it acceptable for a recalled public official to run to replace themselves, given what some consider a loophole in state law?
Absolutely not!
It’s important for the public to know that NO “loophole in the state law” was used to run for office again. The law is very clear about the process of how recalls work. The public also deserves to know that those behind the recall violated several laws, purposely misled voters and spent over $100,000 from sources outside of the county.
The recall was financed by developers and special interest groups from outside of our community that were angry at me for putting an end to out-of-control housing development and my opposition to a battery storage facility similar to the one that caught fire in Moss Landing.
What we do know as factual is that signature gatherers from Florida and Los Angeles were brought into our community by these special interest groups to collect signatures by misleading and lying to voters.
What is the most pressing issue in San Benito County facing the Board of Supervisors, and how would you address it?
The most important issue in our community is the ongoing attempts by housing developers to take thousands of acres of farmland for more housing developments. I have been very clear about my opposition to these types of developments for the past 10 years. In my first year as a county supervisor, I worked very hard with fellow supervisors to pass a plan that meets state requirements and puts an end to out-of-control growth. Our community can’t afford to go back to the old ways of approving housing projects based on old friendships. Our residents deserve to have a supervisor that works for them rather than developers and special interest groups.
John Williams, a retired business owner who did not provide his age,, has lived in his district for 27 years. He has not previously held elected office.
BentioLink: Why are you running to fill the remainder of the currently vacant District 5 supervisorial seat?
Williams: I’m a lifelong Hollister resident and second-generation San Benito County native. I graduated from Hollister High School and was in the first group of students at Gavilan College. I met my wife here, and we raised four kids in this community.
I’ve watched our county grow fast over the years—maybe too fast. I worry we’re losing the open space and small-town character that make San Benito County special. Growth is coming whether we like it or not, but our leaders need to manage it responsibly and actually listen to residents. Too often lately, politics and personal ambition have gotten in the way of that.
My goals are simple: listen to residents, protect what makes this county special, and plan ahead instead of reacting.
I spent my career in agriculture, so protecting our farmland matters to me personally. We can’t stop housing growth, but we can steer it toward what our community actually needs: affordable housing, and lower-cost options like townhomes, condos, and multifamily units. Our kids should be able to afford to stay here.
We’ve built thousands of new homes without bringing in enough businesses or good jobs to pay for the services that growth demands. Too many people commute hours out of the county for work instead of spending that time with family. That gap in local revenue makes it harder to fund public safety, roads, and infrastructure.
A big reason I’m running is the lack of cooperation on the Board of Supervisors. Politics keeps getting in the way of the actual work, and residents’ voices get lost in it. I want supervisors who leave politics at the door, work together, balance the budget, and focus on the basics people rely on.
I’m not running to be a politician. I’m running to give back to the community that’s been my home my whole life.
My approach has been consistent: find where people need support, and show up—reliably, and for the long haul. As a county supervisor, I would bring that same commitment to accessibility, transparency, and data-driven decision-making to every resident of San Benito County.
My track record of civic and community leadership reflects the same qualities that elected service demands: reliability, accountability, and a genuine commitment to meeting people’s needs. I served for one year on San Benito County’s civil grand jury, which gave me direct experience examining local government operations and identifying where systems could better serve residents. I have also served as president of the Hazel Hawkins Memorial Hospital Auxiliary.
Did you support the recall and is it acceptable for a recalled public official to run to replace themselves, given what some consider a loophole in state law.
I wasn’t part of the recall committee itself, but I supported the effort to recall Mr. Velazquez and I voted in favor of the recall.
My reasons came down to a few key concerns:
Transparency and accuracy. These things are important when you are in office. I had seen a pattern of putting out misinformation and of not being fully transparent in his dealings, both during his time as mayor and later as a member of the board of supervisors.
Residency concerns. There have been lingering, unresolved questions about whether he actually lives in the district he represents. Apparently, his home was purchased after he won. Owning a house there isn’t the same as it being your primary residence, and that distinction has been called into question. And I was dissatisfied with his response when BenitoLink questioned him about this topic and he just said ‘everyone does it.’
The ballot loophole. After being recalled, for someone to be able to run again and get placed on the ballot two months later because of a procedural loophole, it just doesn’t sit right with me. A recall should mean something, and using a technicality to sidestep it undermines the purpose of the process. I think the will of the voters should be respected.
Together, these raised real doubts for me about honesty, accountability to the district, and respect for the recall process and outcome itself, which is why I supported the recall and voted in favor of it.
What is the most pressing issue in San Benito County facing the Board of Supervisors, and how would you address it?
If I had to point to the single most pressing issue facing the Board of Supervisors, it would be economic development. More specifically, how we grow our tax base and create good-paying jobs that allow residents to actually build their lives here, rather than commuting out of the county or leaving altogether.
For years, San Benito County has been caught in an ongoing tug-of-war between “no-growth” and “controlled-growth” camps, and that struggle has, in many ways, stalled real progress. I understand both sides. There are legitimate concerns about preserving the character of our community, our agricultural land, and our quality of life. At the same time, without a stronger local economy, we lose young families and workers to neighboring counties where the jobs and housing actually are, and we lose the revenue that funds our schools, roads, and public services.
I don’t think this has to be an all-or-nothing fight. The path forward is thoughtful, controlled growth. Development should be data-driven, bringing in industry and jobs that pay well, and that is planned with real input from residents, not just the loudest voices on either extreme. Having spent my career in the agricultural industry here, I understand firsthand how important it is to balance economic growth with protecting the land and lifestyle that make this county what it is.
My approach on the board would be to move past the stalemate and start having honest, transparent conversations about what responsible growth actually looks like for San Benito County, grounded in facts and data, not ideology, so we can create opportunity here without sacrificing what makes this place home.
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