Berkeley's District 4 City Council seat, which covers downtown Berkeley and parts of central and north Berkeley, is a two-person race in the Nov. 3 election. Councilmember Igor Tregub is seeking his first full term against Majdi "Gaith" Abuhamdieh, a policy analyst and co-founder of a Berkeley coffee roasting and bakery business. The City of Berkeley's official nominee list puts Abuhamdieh first in ballot order, as "Entrepreneur/Technologist/Parent," followed by Tregub.
Igor Tregub
Tregub, 41, has held the seat since 2024, when he won a special election after his predecessor, Kate Harrison, resigned mid-term, Bay City News reports. A native of Ukraine, he came to Berkeley as a UC Berkeley student 23 years ago and earned degrees in mechanical engineering and political science, he told The Berkeley Scanner. Before joining the council he served on the Rent Stabilization Board, the Housing Advisory Commission, the Behavioral Health Commission and the AC Transit Parcel Tax Oversight Committee. He also sits on the Ava Community Energy board.
His campaign points to the reopening of Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park and new affordable housing downtown. His signature issue is downtown vacancies: he says the commercial vacancy rate has dipped below 10% for the first time since 2019, and that items he authored will cut red tape for small businesses and require landlords to provide utility hookups so empty spaces are ready to rent. He names the city budget as a top challenge, saying the council recently closed a structural deficit of nearly $30 million, and says he is looking for steady revenue to bring back a mobile crisis team for nonviolent mental health calls.
Endorsers include Rep. Lateefah Simon, state Sen. Jesse Arreguín, Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, Aisha Wahab, Mayor Adena Ishii and council members Terry Taplin, Ben Bartlett, Shoshana O'Keefe, Brent Blackaby, Cecilia Lunaparra, Mark Humbert and Rashi Kesarwani, according to Bay City News.
Majdi Gaith Abuhamdieh
Abuhamdieh, 37, co-founded Jaffa Coffee Roasters with his siblings and says he has more than a decade of experience in tech trust and safety policy. A UC Berkeley graduate, renter and parent who has lived in Berkeley about 10 years, he served on the city's Peace and Justice Commission. He describes himself as a dual-citizen Palestinian American who grew up between San Francisco and Napa Valley.
He told The Berkeley Scanner he would strengthen and extend Berkeley's empty-homes vacancy tax, which expires in 2034, and push for a new tax on empty storefronts. He also backs social housing, community land trusts and a right to counsel for tenants, and wants a single online "one-stop shop" for business permits and lower health permit fees. On public safety, he would send mental health calls to unarmed responders and opposes license plate reader cameras such as Flock. He says he will not take developer, police union or "AIPAC-aligned" money. Former council members Kriss Worthington and Cheryl Davila and Emeryville Councilmember Kalimah Priforce have endorsed him.
Money and voting
Both candidates are using Berkeley's public financing program. Tregub expects to spend $50,000 to $70,000. Abuhamdieh expects to spend $60,000 to $70,000 and reported raising about $47,200, including about $35,700 in public matching funds.
Early voting is under way. Berkeley's first two vote centers open Oct. 24 and the rest on Oct. 31, The Berkeley Scanner reports. Compare the city's other contests in our guides to the District 8 race and the Rent Board election, and see every measure in our 2026 Bay Area election guide.