Mara Elliott
Candidate for State Senate District 40
Mara Elliott, born Mara Woodworth, is a Democrat. She is running for California State Senate District 40. The election is in November 2026. She served two terms as San Diego City Attorney. That ran from December 2016 to December 2024. She was the first woman elected to that office. She won the seat in 2016. Before that, Elliott worked as legal counsel. She advised school districts. She also advised a local transit authority and the County of San Diego. She holds an undergraduate degree from UC Santa Barbara. She holds a J.D. from McGeorge School of Law. Her campaign says her father was a longshoreman. Her mother was a secretary. She was the first in her family to finish college. She is married with two children. She lives in San Diego, within Senate District 40. As City Attorney, she set up a citywide Gun Violence Response Unit. She wrote a Safe Storage of Firearms rule. It was later adopted statewide. She started diversion programs for drug offenses. She also started mental-health conservatorship checks. She pursued lawsuits on consumer protection and worker misclassification. One target was Instacart. She left the City Attorney's office in December 2024. She is now running for the open Senate District 40 seat. Home: San Diego, California, Senate District 40. Occupation: Attorney. She is a former San Diego City Attorney. She is now a State Senate candidate. Prior office: Former San Diego City Attorney, 2016 to 2024. She holds no elected office now.
On the issues
- Economy & Jobs
Supports cracking down on labor brokers, expanding essential-worker protections, and holding companies accountable for worker misclassification, while also supporting small businesses.
Source → - Taxes & Cost of Living
Prioritizes affordability for families facing rising costs and supports tax incentives for employers in the district.
Source → - Housing & Homelessness
As City Attorney, directed recovered funds toward homelessness solutions (including hotel acquisitions to house homeless individuals) and secured resources for a domestic violence shelter; endorsed by YIMBY.
Source → - Public Safety & Policing
Prioritizes gun violence prevention, including expanding regional support for Gun Violence Restraining Orders and building on her record authoring a statewide-adopted Safe Storage of Firearms ordinance.
Source → - Criminal Justice & Courts
Supports Proposition 36 implementation and substance-abuse treatment programs, and favors diverting people with drug or mental-health issues into treatment rather than incarceration, building on programs she created as City Attorney.
Source → - Health & Health Care
Supports ensuring access to healthcare including reproductive healthcare, and favors mental-health treatment pathways as an alternative to incarceration for those with serious mental illness.
Source → - Reproductive & Social Issues
Supports protecting access to reproductive healthcare, citing her participation in the state Reproductive Rights Task Force and strengthening buffer-zone protections for reproductive healthcare facilities as City Attorney.
Source → - Education & Schools
Supports expanding educational access and investment in apprenticeship programs.
Source → - Family & Social Services
Supports safeguards for seniors and people with disabilities in independent living facilities and protective resources for domestic violence and elder abuse survivors.
Source → - Environment, Energy & Climate
Has advocated addressing Tijuana River pollution and corporate environmental contamination, and lists enhancing fire prevention and emergency response as a priority.
Source →
Profiles are compiled from the candidate’s own statements and public records. We never tell you how to vote.