Rebecca King, a former deputy city attorney and military spouse who has lived on the island for 11 years, announced Thursday, Aug. 20, that she is running for one of two open Coronado City Council seats in the November election.
King, 56, laid out a four-plank platform in a letter published in the Coronado Eagle & Journal: a permanent fix for the Tijuana River sewage crisis, greater transparency in city contracts, faster construction of modern fire stations and replacement of aging water and wastewater pipes.
Her entry brings the confirmed field to five candidates competing for two seats. Incumbent Kelly Purvis, Keith James, Andrew Gade and Ricky Hoyt have also filed, according to The Coronado News. The seats are opening because Council Member Carrie Anne Downey did not file for reelection after four nonconsecutive terms, and Council Member Purvis is completing a two-year appointment she received in 2024 when John Duncan was elected mayor.
Background and endorsements
King first arrived in Coronado in 2007 when the Navy stationed her husband, a physician and former Surface Warfare Officer, at Naval Base Coronado. The family made the island their permanent home in 2018.
She practiced law for more than a decade, including nearly eight years as a deputy and assistant city attorney in Norfolk, Virginia, and briefly served as an assistant commonwealth's attorney before recently passing the California bar. In Coronado, she chaired the Design Review Commission before it was consolidated with the Planning Commission last year and served on the school district's Guiding Coalition.
King said she brings municipal government experience that would serve her on council, telling The Coronado News she is not new to how government procedures work despite being a first-time candidate. In her announcement letter, she said Council Member Downey and former Mayor Casey Tanaka have endorsed her campaign. Tanaka served as Coronado's 50th mayor for eight years before losing the November 2024 mayoral race to Duncan.
Platform details
On water quality, King pointed to the Tijuana River sewage crisis. Coronado beaches had unsafe water quality 256 days in 2025, with average bacteria levels more than four times the safe threshold and peak readings more than 500 times above safe levels, according to Emerald Keepers' analysis of county water quality data.
King's transparency plank stems from personal experience. She described filing public records requests with the city and encountering redacted revenue and cost figures related to city contractors.
"I think the city could and should be more transparent than it is," King told The Coronado News.
On public safety, she wants to fast-track construction of modern fire stations that meet the city's Community Risk Assessment recommendations. Coronado's two firehouses are the only major city facilities not rebuilt during the community development era of the 1980s; the city is currently conducting a risk assessment on both stations. King also called for amending the city's e-bike ordinance to include impoundment and a mandatory safety course.
King acknowledged her Democratic affiliation but framed the nonpartisan race in local terms, saying all neighbors share the same concerns regardless of national politics. Five candidates are now confirmed. Voters will fill the two open council seats in the November 2026 general election.
