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HomeElections CodeDiv. 10Pt. 4§ 10505 District Officer Term Lengths

§ 10505 District Officer Term Lengths

Elections Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 10505 District Officer Term Lengths

This law tells you how long the first elected leaders of a brand‑new district stay in office, depending on whether the district started in an odd or even year, and how those leaders split into two groups with different term lengths.

Key Takeaways

  • •If a district starts in an odd year, the first elected officials serve until the first Friday in December two years later.
  • •If a district starts in an even year, they serve until the first Friday in December four years later (the second odd year after formation).
  • •After taking office, directors split into two groups as evenly as possible; the larger group gets a four‑year term, the smaller gets a two‑year term.
  • •All other elected officers get a four‑year term (or until their replacement is ready).

Example

A new school district is created in 2023 and holds its first election that November.

Because the district started in an odd‑numbered year, the people elected now will stay in office until noon on the first Friday in December of the next odd year (2025). After they take office, they will sort themselves into two groups; the bigger group will serve four years and the smaller group will serve two years.

How to Calculate

EndDate = first Friday in December of (NextOddYear) for odd‑year formations; EndDate = first Friday in December of (SecondNextOddYear) for even‑year formations.

  1. Identify the year the district was formed.
  2. If the formation year is odd, add 2 to get the next odd year; if even, add 3 to get the second next odd year.
  3. Look at the calendar for that odd year and find the first Friday that falls in December.
  4. The term ends at 12:00 PM (noon) on that Friday.

District formed in 2022 (an even year).

Result: Term ends at noon on Friday, December 5, 2025.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 10505 District Officer Term Lengths

The terms of office of elective officers in all new districts shall be determined as follows: (a) If the district is formed in an odd-numbered year, the officers elected at the formation election shall hold office until noon on the first Friday in December of the next following odd-numbered year, provided officers elected at an election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November shall hold office as provided in subdivision (c). (b) If the district is formed in an even-numbered year, the officers elected at the formation election shall hold office until noon on the first Friday in December of the second next following odd-numbered year. (c) The directors elected at the first general district election held in a district and at a formation election held at the same time as the general district election shall meet as soon as practicable after taking office and classify themselves by lot into two classes, as nearly equal in number as possible, and the terms of office of the class having the greater number shall be four years and the terms of office of the class having the lesser number shall be two years. All other elective officers elected at the election shall hold office for a term of four years or until their successor is elected and qualifies. (d) Pursuant to Section 10404, a special district electing members of the governing body in odd-numbered years may, by resolution, require that its elections of governing body members be held on the same day as the statewide general election. (Amended by Stats. 2015, Ch. 731, Sec. 6. (AB 1535) Effective January 1, 2016.)

Last verified: January 10, 2026

Key Terms

electionresolutionformationdirector

Related Statutes

  • § 10404 Special District Election Timing
  • § 10515 Uncontested District Election Rules
  • § 8062 Nomination Signature Requirements
  • § 9222 City Ordinance Voter Approval
  • § 10229 Municipal Election Candidate Shortage

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Elections Code. Section 10505.
View Official Source