Shirley Nakawatase Announces Treasurer Bid
- Certified public accountant Shirley Nakawatase entered the 2026 race for San Diego County Treasurer-Tax Collector, joining interim officeholder Larry Cohen, Supervisor Joel Anderson and former Oceanside treasurer Victor Roy in the June 2 primary. - Nakawatase says she has more than 40 years as a CPA, runs HNK CPAs with offices in Imperial Beach and El Cajon, and is campaigning as a financial expert rather than a politician. - The race opened after San Diego County appointed Larry Cohen to the post, with candidates able to win outright if someone tops 50% in the June primary. (ballotpedia.org)
Shirley Nakawatase, a San Diego County certified public accountant, is running for county Treasurer-Tax Collector in the June 2, 2026 primary. (ballotpedia.org) (imperialbeachnewsca.com) Nakawatase says she has worked as a CPA for more than 40 years and is making her experience in tax preparation, financial consulting and business turnarounds the center of her campaign. (shirleyforsandiego.com) (imperialbeachnewsca.com) Her campaign site says HNK CPAs employs 18 people and serves clients from offices in Imperial Beach and El Cajon. Nakawatase says the county needs “a real financial expert — not a career politician.” (shirleyforsandiego.com) (imperialbeachnewsca.com) The office she wants oversees county cash management, investment of public funds and tax collection. San Diego County’s annual report lists Larry Cohen as the current Treasurer-Tax Collector. (sandiegocounty.gov) That makes this more than a routine campaign launch. The race follows a 2025 vacancy process for the elected office, and Nakawatase was one of the applicants who sought appointment before the 2026 election. (sandiegocounty.gov) Ballotpedia lists Nakawatase in a nonpartisan primary scheduled for June 2, 2026, alongside Cohen, Joel Anderson, Carrilyn Ford and Victor Roy. If no candidate wins a majority, the top two advance to Nov. 3. (ballotpedia.org 1) (ballotpedia.org 2) Voice of San Diego reported in March that Anderson, a county supervisor, joined a field that already included Cohen, Nakawatase and Roy. That turned the contest into a broader fight over whether the office should be led by an elected politician or a finance specialist. (voiceofsandiego.org) Nakawatase is also pitching herself as a taxpayer-focused manager who would modernize services, cut waste and expand financial literacy and tax relief outreach. Her campaign says the county has about 3.3 million residents. (shirleyforsandiego.com) The next test is not a rollout event but the ballot. San Diego County voters will decide on June 2 whether Nakawatase’s CPA-first pitch is enough to move her into November — or end the race outright. (sdvote.com) (ballotpedia.org)
