Thoughtful, Thorough, Knowledgeable, Independent

Who is Charles?

Charles was born in Iowa and raised in Modesto. He came to SLO County as a transfer student to Cal Poly where he majored in Business and participated in Army ROTC. When he graduated in 1983, he began a long career as a full time officer with the California Army National Guard where he ultimately served many years as a Colonel responsible for all federal funds, property, equipment, and contracting for the Calguard.

In 1984, Charles married his college girlfriend, Melissa, and in 1985 they first moved to Atascadero when Melissa began a long career teaching in Atascadero schools including as a founding teacher at San Gabriel and later the Fine Arts Academy. They raised their two children, Kenny and Matthew in Atascadero.

Upon retiring from the National Guard, Charles became the Finance Director for the City of SLO. Upon leaving SLO City, Charles became a serial volunteer in Atascadero giving freely of his time. He continued to volunteer after in various roles after being elected to the City Council in 2016.

How has Charles supported Atascadero?

Charles has volunteered for a wide variety of causes in our community including:

Police volunteer focused on graffiti abatement
CASA mentor for foster youth.
RISE Board member (North County Womens’ Shelters and Sexual Assault Services)
Rotary Club member (Club President 2017-18)
ALPS volunteer, maintaining trails, installing signs
Life Member Atascadero Historical Society
Personal member Atascadero Chamber of Commerce
City of Atascadero Adopt a Road volunteer trash pickup
Driver for Loaves and Fishes

Volunteering in such a wide variety of activities with a wide variety of people has reinforced to Charles what a wonderful community-minded city we live in and what we can accomplish when we work together.

Charles considers it an honor to serve on the City Council and throughout his terms has donated all his City Council pay to good causes in our community, from scholarships, to building signs, to sponsoring events, and contributing to numerous charitable organizations.

Vote Charles Bourbeau

Mayor of Atascadero

November 2026

Charles on the City Council

Charles is known on the Council for his thorough homework on issues. Charles reads all of the hundreds of pages of staff reports, performs additional research, visits sites, and talks with affected parties. Charles asks thoughtful and probing questions from all angles before making a decision on the issues before the Council. Charles has worked in federal, state, and local government settings. His work as a city finance director makes him particularly knowledgeable about the financial issues facing our city and his genuine interest in all matters affecting the city make him effective. Charles is not affiliated with any party and is respected for his independent decision-making. Charles is well respected by his colleagues and is ready to continue as Mayor.

Why is Charles Running for Mayor

While I have been on the City Council, our City has made great progress. We have improved funding and staffing for public safety and other services. Substantial investment in infrastructure has resulted in improved neighborhood roads, new bridges, and new facilities including pickleball courts, the inclusive Joy Playground, and many others. The Council is promoting responsible economic development and exciting events for our residents and visitors. Our downtown is more vibrant than ever. We are building a new fire station 1 and updating fire station 2 and the police station. The City is well run and financially stable with a AAA bond rating. I want to continue that record of progress for another term as Mayor.

Donate

For the Mayor's race, Charles will be accepting donations up to $250. If you are interested in donating, click here or on the donate button at the top. Actually, ignore this, since no one filed to run against Charles he will not accept any more donations.

Volunteer to help Charles

Since no one is running against Charles there is obviously no need for volunteers.