Gurm, Lott lead Fresno City Council District 7 race

Housing pressure, policing, infrastructure and neighborhood investment are now driving the Fresno City Council District 7 race, where early returns put Nav Gurm and Ariana Martinez Lott in front and left businessman AJ Rassamni well behind. With 4,554 votes counted in one early tally, Gurm held 38.53 percent and Lott 36.44 percent, a margin that suggested the city’s open seat was moving toward a November runoff.

The district stretches across east-central Fresno and parts of southeast Fresno, including Manchester, Radio Park, Romain Park, Lafayette Park and Fresno High, along with sections of the Blackstone Avenue corridor and neighborhoods near Shields and Temperance avenues. That puts the winner in line to shape decisions on infill, commercial redevelopment and how the city responds to long-running concerns about safety and basic services. The seat opened because Council President Nelson Esparza was term-limited.

The race quickly divided into two different political networks. Gurm entered with endorsements from Esparza, Councilmember Tyler Maxwell and former councilmember and county supervisor Henry R. Perea, along with support from Senator Adam Schiff and Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer. GV Wire also reported that Gurm received a $10,000 contribution from a firefighters union in January. Lott’s coalition was different: labor leader Dolores Huerta and progressive organizations lined up behind her, and her donor list included Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula, who gave $5,500.

Money reinforced that split. Gurm outraised Lott by nearly three to one, giving him a financial edge that matched his early vote lead. Lott’s 2025 filing showed she raised $20,301 in the first half of the year and had $12,632 cash on hand, a showing that still left her far short of Gurm’s war chest but kept her competitive in a crowded field. The Fresno Bee withheld a primary endorsement, saying the race reflected several important needs in District 7 and featured three accomplished newcomers.

Rassamni, who spent 15 years operating a car wash business in central Fresno, pitched himself as a business-minded candidate focused on safety, cleanliness, zoning reform and bringing more tax revenue to the city. The campaign also drew scrutiny after he updated a Facebook post that referred to a 2023 forum as a recent town hall, and Dyer said he preferred candidates not use his photo in campaign materials because it could create the appearance of an endorsement.

The broader backdrop is Fresno’s growth debate, especially the Southeast Development Area plan shaped by workshops and listening sessions in 2022. City planning materials say rent increases in Fresno in 2021 and 2022 ranked among the 10 highest in the nation, a reminder that District 7 voters are not choosing between personalities so much as competing governing styles. Fresno County’s unofficial results showed 112,407 ballots cast out of 527,431 registered voters, a 21.31 percent turnout, with all 222 precincts reported. The final decision now appears to rest with the coalitions around Blackstone, Manchester and southeast Fresno that will decide whether Gurm or Lott inherits one of City Hall’s most influential seats.