Four candidates are vying for two seats up for grabs on the La Quinta City Council.
La Quinta voters choose their mayor every two years and councilmembers every four. On Nov. 3, the mayor position and two at-large council seats are up for election. Incumbent councilmembers Deborah McGarrey and John Peña are running for reelection, and their challengers are Carene Hensley and Julian Herrera.
Here’s what to know about the La Quinta City Council candidates.
Who is Carene Hensley?
Hensley, 40, has lived in La Quinta for 10 years. She is a homecare provider for her husband.
It is her first time running for council. She said she joined the race because council decisions aren't done with residents in mind, such as the long-delayed SilverRock luxury resort.
If elected, she said
her goals for the city include the following:
- Advocating for residents.
- Supporting council term limits so there can be new ideas in the city.
- Supporting public safety while being mindful of budgeting.
- Having accountability and transparency regarding council decisions.
Who is Julian Herrera?
Herrera is the youngest candidate in La Quinta’s council race at 18 years old. He’s lived in the city his whole life. Herrera is a student at College of the Desert and also works as a tutor.
He said he’s running for council for two reasons — his love for La Quinta and his concerns that the council prioritizes affluent citizens’ interests rather than seniors and youth. He wants to be someone who is willing to stand up against other councilmembers, Herrera added.
If elected, he said his goals for the city include the following:
- Start what he described as a committee for opportunity. It would include business leaders and educators but be mostly made up of students. They would discuss how the city can collaborate more with them, but the committee’s main purpose would be to create a program that connects students with jobs at local businesses.
- Reevaluating flock cameras and their removal.
- Maintaining fiscal responsibility while finding ways to expand needed services for residents, such as investing in code enforcement, events, hiring more staff, parks and supporting nonprofits.
Who is Deborah McGarrey?
McGarrey, 61, has lived in La Quinta for about 25 years. She works as a public affairs manager for the Southern California Gas Company. She said she's been involved in the desert for around 40 years, which includes currently serving as a board member for FIND Food Bank and Friends of the Desert Mountains. She was also board chair of the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership — a nonprofit organization that used to help local businesses but is now defunct after declaring bankruptcy in March 2026.
She is seeking a second consecutive term on the council. She said she is running for reelection because she wants to follow through on the progress La Quinta has made over her first term. If elected, she said her goals for the city include the following:
- Making progress on the city's Cultural Campus Project that includes upgrades to its museum and the prolonged SilverRock luxury resort project development.
- Moving forward with the Highway 111 Specific Plan, which aims to make the area more walkable and also guide development like affordable housing.
- Continue working on items the city already has in motion and positively collaborating with other councilmembers.
Who is John Peña?
Peña, 71, is a lifelong valley resident. He works as a business consultant. Peña was elected to the council in 1984, then mayor from 1988 to 2002. He was reelected in 2014, having come out of retirement. He said he also served four months as the city’s interim city manager in the 1980s.
Peña said he's running for reelection because the community encouraged him to do so, and because there are unresolved city issues that he feels some of his opponents are not qualified to fix. If elected, he said his goals for the city include the following:
- Continuing much of the work the city is already doing, such as helping local businesses get open, funding public safety and appointing qualified people to its commissions.
- Addressing lack of power. New developments are not able to deliver the power they need to, which is an issue throughout eastern Riverside County, Peña said. He added that he would have to abstain on energy-related council decisions since his work deals with that industry.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Get to know the candidates vying for a La Quinta City Council seat
