Erica A. Stewart is the incumbent mayor of San Luis Obispo, having served since 2021. Stewart studied home economics with a food concentration at Cal Poly, and she is currently a Communication Studies lecturer within Cal Poly’s College of Liberal Arts. With a background in community engagement, Stewart said she prioritizes housing and homelessness.
“Housing and homelessness of course is an issue that I think will stay a top priority for the city,” Stewart told Mustang News. “We have quite a bit of affordable housing coming open in the next five years, about 500 units.”
Stewart is also focused on environmental sustainability, working toward the city’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2035. She said that this would include expanding public transportation options and increasing the number of electric vehicle charging stations in the city.
“We’re helping create more charging stations for electric cars [and] making sure that people have other ways to get around this community, whether it’s by walking, riding a bike or a scooter,” Stewart said.
In her role as mayor, Stewart established an Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in 2023 to engage with various community members and address issues of inclusivity. She believes that open communication is key to understanding and addressing the needs of the community.
To better engage with Cal Poly students, Stewart has made efforts to connect directly with campus clubs and organizations ahead of the November election.
“I started off [the] beginning of September meeting with the student leadership,” Stewart said. “[I’m focused on] just understanding what the student government has planned.”
Stewart’s main objectives:
- Increase affordable housing for middle-income residents and graduates.
- Support diversity, equity and inclusion in local businesses and nonprofits.
- Reach citywide carbon neutrality by 2035 with sustainable energy and transportation.
- Expand and improve public transportation services.