The Bee endorses a bright leader for Sacramento City Council District 5 | Opinion

The 5th District of the Sacramento City Council is a microcosm of the city’s present challenges and opportunities. Oak Park, a neighborhood with a rich history, has become increasingly popular, attracting new residents and visitors, while simultaneously grappling with rapid growth and change. Fruitridge Manor, long-underserved, needs road repairs. Valley Hi and parts of Meadowview are vibrant communities in need of more attention.

Caity Maple is running for re-election to the 5th District. At 34, she is the youngest member of the city council and a local success story, having grown up in Sacramento attending local public schools and graduating from UC Davis. In her current race, Maple is being challenged by Henry Harry, who worked for the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office before retiring and Sergio Morales, an analyst for the state.

Maple was only 30 when we endorsed her for the city council in 2022.

Endorsing any candidate, like voting for one, is an act of faith, a roll of the dice and a hope for the best. In 2022, this is what we hoped to see in Maple:

“As Oak Park and the new District 5 wrestle with displacement and the need for deeper investment to ensure neighborhoods are safe and businesses can thrive, Maple offers a brand of pragmatic progressivism that can deliver thoughtful leadership in an era of rapid transformation.”

For the most part, Maple has realized her potential in her first term. She has been a thoughtful leader. Because of her experience and because we believe she is the most knowledgeable candidate on the issues concerning her district and the city at large, we endorse Maple for another term.

Maple has an opportunity to grow if re-elected. She arrived on the scene as an advocate, but we believe Maple can benefit her constituents and the city by growing into more decisive leadership—taking initiative and shaping solutions to the city’s most pressing challenges. She’s already showing glimpses of standing out among some of her council peers.

We appreciate that a new tiny home community for unhoused seniors, aged 55 and up, is set to open in Maple’s district near the Sacramento Executive Airport, a tangible example of progress in addressing homelessness at the neighborhood level. Other members of the council have dragged their feet or looked for any way to undermine efforts to have neighborhoods citywide share in getting more people off our streets.

Maple frames the shelter as a crucial step in advancing the city’s broader objective: expanding shelter opportunities for Sacramento’s unhoused population.

“We do not have enough places for people to go,” Maple said. “There are not enough housing units, and there are not enough shelter beds. We currently have thousands and thousands of people on the wait list, including families and children, and so space is really important.”

Maple also addressed housing, emphasizing the need to rethink the city’s approach to developing new homes.

“I think it’s really also a culture change where we need to say our priority is to get housing built faster,” Maple said. “And so how do we get to yes? How do we empower our staff to think creatively and work with the folks who are trying to build housing to do it better, but also adhere to all the rules that we have because they’re the reason why those are in place? We want to make sure people are safe.”

She highlighted the city’s work to cut red tape, making it easier for developers to build needed housing.

“We passed one of the most progressive general plan updates about a year and a half ago, which really stripped away things like single-family only zoning, making sure that we can build more dense communities around transit,” Maple said.

Maple has served in nearly every corner of government. From lobbyist to legislative advocate, she has amplified important issues and helped people connect with Sacramento’s decision-makers. She enjoys widespread support among elected leaders and the most influential labor unions in the region.

If re-elected, we hope Maple continues growing into the kind of leader Sacramento needs, one that works for what’s best for her city as much her district.

This story was originally published April 27, 2026 at 11:00 AM with the headline "The Bee endorses a bright leader for Sacramento City Council District 5 | Opinion."