Costa Mesa Preliminary Mayor Results: Buley Leads Gameros in Early Count

Election-night update: preliminary results

Official source snapshot: November 3, 2026, 8:07:13 p.m. Pacific. Mike Buley led the reported tally at that update. The count is incomplete and this article does not declare a winner.

Unofficial results — costa mesa
Candidate	Votes	Share of reported candidate votes
Mike Buley	8,535	52.55%
Loren Gameros	7,708	47.45%

These figures are from the registrar’s election-night dashboard, reached through its official results page. They are an early snapshot, not a certified result or a measure of how much of the final vote has been counted.

Percentages describe reported votes in this contest, not the percentage of all eligible voters or all expected ballots. Additional ballots and verification can change totals and margins. Read the official Orange County results and check later updates.

The campaign reporting below provides pre-election context. Personal voting appearances remain subject to the verification limits stated in that reporting.

COSTA MESA, California — Mike Buley and Loren Gameros are the two qualified candidates for mayor in Costa Mesa’s November 3, 2026, municipal election, according to the Orange County Registrar of Voters’ candidate register.

The official ballot designations identify Buley as a councilmember, attorney and parent, and Gameros as an instructor and councilmember. California58 has not independently confirmed when, where or by what method either candidate personally voted.

Buley: permitting, oversight and essential services

Buley’s official campaign advocates faster business and building permits, support for investors and entrepreneurs, and fully resourced police and fire departments. He also calls for parks, recreation and community events that bring residents together.

The campaign emphasizes financial oversight and more participation by citizen committees and commissions in planning and spending decisions. It presents efficient government and responsible budgeting as central to his approach. These are campaign proposals and descriptions of his record, not independently verified future outcomes. Buley’s official campaign.

Gameros: housing opportunity and resident services

Gameros’ official platform calls for supporting law enforcement while scrutinizing technology’s effects on privacy. It advocates assistance for renters facing higher costs and opportunities for first-time homebuyers, alongside protection of existing neighborhoods.

His homelessness agenda emphasizes shelter, services and routes to stable housing. He also calls for maintaining recreation, childcare and services for different age groups, and responding to street conditions, traffic and dangerous intersections.

The campaign links those commitments to responsible budgets and city leadership that responds to residents. The platform does not by itself establish funding for every proposal. Gameros’ official campaign.

Final qualification matters

Earlier intention filings included additional prospective candidates. Those filings are not the same as qualification for the final ballot. This article uses the county’s qualified-candidate register to identify the two-person mayoral field.

No candidate’s office address or campaign event is presented as a polling location, and no winner is declared here.

Official source: Orange County qualified-candidate register. Policy descriptions come from the linked campaign websites.

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