Mike Karbassi

Mike Karbassi is a member of the Fresno City Council in California, representing District 2. He assumed office in 2019. His current term ends on January 2, 2029.

Karbassi won re-election to the Fresno City Council to represent District 2 in California outright in the primary on March 5, 2024, after the general election was canceled.

Karbassi completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Mike Karbassi was born in Fresno, California. He earned a bachelor's degree from California State University, Fresno. His career experience includes working as a small businessman. Karbassi has been also affiliated with the Fresno Rotary Club.^[1]

Elections

2024

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Fresno City Council District 2

Incumbent Mike Karbassi won election outright against Matthew Gillian and Jajuane Smith in the primary for Fresno City Council District 2 on March 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Karbassi (Nonpartisan)	72.2	10,901
	Submit photo	Matthew Gillian (Nonpartisan)	27.8	4,201
	Submit photo	Jajuane Smith (Nonpartisan) (Write-in)	0.0	6

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 15,108
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

To view Karbassi's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Karbassi in this election.

2022

General election

General election for California State Assembly District 27

Esmeralda Soria defeated Mark Pazin in the general election for California State Assembly District 27 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Esmeralda Soria (D)	51.3	45,721
	Submit photo	Mark Pazin (R)	48.7	43,335

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 89,056
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for California State Assembly District 27

Esmeralda Soria and Mark Pazin defeated Amanda Fleming, Mike Karbassi, and Randall Pellissier in the primary for California State Assembly District 27 on June 7, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Esmeralda Soria (D)	40.1	20,395
✔	Submit photo	Mark Pazin (R)	35.0	17,801
	Submit photo	Amanda Fleming (R)	16.8	8,541
		Mike Karbassi (D)	8.1	4,107
	Submit photo	Randall Pellissier (L) (Write-in)	0.0	4

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 50,848
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Campaign finance

2020

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Fresno City Council District 2

Incumbent Mike Karbassi won election outright in the primary for Fresno City Council District 2 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Karbassi (Nonpartisan)	100.0	15,135

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 15,135
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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2019

General election

Special general election for Fresno City Council District 2

The following candidates ran in the special general election for Fresno City Council District 2 on August 13, 2019.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Mike Karbassi (Nonpartisan)	58.2	5,568
		Lawrence Garcia (Nonpartisan)	16.3	1,557
	Submit photo	Jared Gordon (Nonpartisan)	10.9	1,040
		Oscar Sandoval (Nonpartisan)	10.8	1,036
	Submit photo	George Herman (Nonpartisan)	2.2	213
		Phil Arballo (Nonpartisan) (Unofficially withdrew)	1.4	135
		Other/Write-in votes	0.1	12

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 9,561
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Endorsements

Karbassi was endorsed by the following organizations and elected officials:^[2]

Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims
Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer
Assemblyman Jim Patterson (R-23)
Former Fresno Mayor Alan Autry
Fresno City Employees Association
Nissei Farmers League

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

Mike Karbassi completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Karbassi's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Born and raised in northwest Fresno, I attended local public schools and graduated from Fresno State having majored in business management. My family started a small retail business in northwest Fresno over 42 years ago. My roots in our community run deep.

I ran for City Council in 2019 because I wanted to ensure that our local representative took our neighborhood issues to heart. For too long we weren’t getting our fair share. Our residents work hard and contribute a lot to our city. It wasn’t unreasonable to get want our hard earned tax dollars reinvested in our neighborhoods.

I have spend nearly five years reinvesting million back into NW Fresno. The completed Veterans Blvd overpass has led to reduced commute times and less congestion. I will continue the focus on upgrading traffic signals and crosswalks around our schools to protect our most treasured resource - our kids.

Speaking of safety, I have kept the promise of my “No New Cops, No Budget” pledge. Thats why in the last five years, we have funded 163 NEW Firefighters and Police Officers to keep our homes and businesses safer. That’s led to the dramatic reduction in violent crime in Fresno. In 2023 alone, homicides are down 43%, commercial burglaries down 44%, and home burglaries down 25%, to name a few.

Our work isn’t done yet. We must now focus on nonviolent crimes. Our work on combatting street racing has been successful. We need to continue to go after red light runners and distracted drivers.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

DELIVERED RECORD NUMBER OF COPS & FIREFIGHTERS
KEPT OUR ROADS SAFE FOR FRESNO FAMILIES
IMPROVED NW FRESNO ONE BLOCK AT-A-TIME

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Focus areas include Transportation and Infrastructure, Public Safety, High-Value Job Creation through economic development, and Housing, to name a few.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

Having been the incumbent and serving our northwest community for nearly five years, I am the only candidate with real experience and a proven record. I set specific goals during the initial campaign in 2019, promising to reduce crime by hiring more police officers and firefighters, fund a new traffic signal to slow down traffic on Audubon Drive, upgrade the traffic signal in front of Starr Elementary at Sierra and West, and complete Veterans Blvd. All those things have been done and are in progress . In short: Promises Made, Promises Kept.

I’ve demonstrated success and would like to continue working with my northwest Fresno neighbors to continue our progress.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My first job as was working in the family business. I was three years old and it was my job to greet all the customers. I was very committed to that.

But my first job in adulthood was an internship with Gottschalks through Fresno State’s business internship program. I was very fortunate to have this opportunity to learn and grow.

What is your favorite book? Why?

That’s a tough one. I like historical fiction like The Day of the Jackal by Frederick Foresyth. Thirteen Days by Robert F. Kennedy comes to mind. It’s a good account of the Cuban Missile Crises in 1962. The lesson I learned is that when you feel that your back is to the wall, don’t despair. Rely on the people you can trust. Don’t be afraid to think outside the box and expand your options. You don’t have to only do what is expected and be boxed in. Don’t be afraid to do what is right to do your job.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Jack McCoy from Law and Order. The two who I’d like to meet are Josiah Barlet and Josh Lyman.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

Non-governmental experience is really important. We need more elected officials to understand how the real world works beyond government. While there’s a lot local government can do to help residents, I also believe that government isn’t the “go to” answer for every problem. There are times it can make things worse. Having private sector, small business experience has given me a broader perspective. We must approach problems in a way that ensures “the cure isn’t worse than the disease”. My small business experience helps me to do just that.

Tell us your favorite joke.

All the dad jokes out there. I’m known for that.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Fresno County Sheriff John Zanoni, Sheriff Margaret Mims (ret.), DA Lisa Smittcamp, Mayor Jerry Dyer, Fresno Firefighters Local 202, Fresno Chamber of Commerce, Fresno City Employees Association, Fresno Building and Construction Trades Council, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 100,

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

2022

Mike Karbassi did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Mike Karbassi did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

Mike Karbassi did not complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.

Campaign website

Karbassi's campaign website stated the following:

“

Public Safety: Car thefts and burglaries have skyrocketed in Northwest Fresno and our streets don’t feel the same anymore. Now, more than ever, it is critical our law enforcement is provided with the resources they need to keep our neighborhoods, parks, and businesses safe.

Fiscal Responsibility: I am committed to bringing my business knowledge to improve services without raising taxes. Fresno must live within its means. We cannot become the city of tomorrow if we can’t pay for the city of today.

Open for Business: I will work to cut red tape at City Hall and guarantee Fresno becomes an innovative environment where businesses can start, grow, and thrive. Creating jobs will expand our tax base and ensure our city remains open for business.^[3]

”

—Mike Karbassi’s campaign website (2019)^[4]

External links

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Candidate

Fresno City Council District 2

Website

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Officeholder

Fresno City Council District 2

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on January 30, 2024
↑ Ballotpedia's Elections Team, “Email communication with Mike Karbassi," June 3, 2019
↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
↑ Mike for Fresno, “Home,” accessed July 8, 2019

Political offices
Preceded by -	Fresno City Council District 2 2019-Present	Succeeded by -

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on January 30, 2024

[2] Ballotpedia's Elections Team, “Email communication with Mike Karbassi," June 3, 2019

[quotedisclaimer-3] Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[4] Mike for Fresno, “Home,” accessed July 8, 2019

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Mike Karbassi

Biography

Elections

2024

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Fresno City Council District 2

Endorsements

2022

General election

General election for California State Assembly District 27

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for California State Assembly District 27

Campaign finance

2020

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for Fresno City Council District 2

2019

General election

Special general election for Fresno City Council District 2

Endorsements

Campaign themes

2024

Ballotpedia survey responses

2022

2020

2019

Ballotpedia survey responses

Campaign website

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Footnotes

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