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Andrew Nosrati’s four years on Turlock’s City Council began with a promise to bring a technology developer’s approach to local problems. They brought arguments over housing, a failed recall campaign and a disagreement about where a commuter-train station should go. The record also includes his support for the city’s 2020 Black Lives Matter vigil—one part of a much wider national moment that played out on Turlock’s streets.
Former District 3 councilmember, 2018–2022.
From product development to District 3
In an October 2018 candidate report, The Modesto Bee described Nosrati as a 30-year-old vice president of product development at AdShare. The company worked with musical artists’ online earnings, and he worked remotely from Turlock. He argued that startup experience could help him find flexible solutions rather than respond to city problems with short-term decisions.
Nosrati told FairPlanet in a November 2018 interview that he had been active in community causes in New York before returning to his hometown. Family connections made Turlock a place where he thought he could contribute directly. He described elected office as a way to weigh competing priorities and work within the system, rather than focus on a single cause.
The interview also recorded interests beyond campaign tactics: broader arts and STEM opportunities for young people, more affordable housing, and a closer relationship between the region’s agricultural economy and technology. Those were his stated ambitions as a candidate; they are useful context for reading his later council record, rather than a list of completed projects.
What he campaigned on—and the final vote
At the League of Women Voters’ October 2018 forum, Nosrati identified housing as his leading concern. He wanted the city to encourage private development serving residents who struggled with rent. On the budget, he pointed to experience evaluating a startup’s spending ideas and developing revenue. His opponent, incumbent Bill DeHart, emphasized the differences between municipal and business finances.
The city’s certified election results show Nosrati winning District 3 with 3,176 votes to DeHart’s 2,741. That final canvass is the appropriate result to use; election-night and interim news reports contained earlier totals. Nosrati took office in December 2018, as Amy Bublak began her first term as mayor and Nicole Larson joined the council in District 1.
The 2020 Black Lives Matter vigil
After George Floyd’s death, Turlock residents organized a candlelight vigil that moved from Central Park to City Hall. The Journal’s account of the event described a peaceful gathering, with poetry, prayer and personal experiences. Organizers and police coordinated traffic escorts for the march.
In its June 2020 reporting on Turlock Black Lives Matter organizers, The Modesto Bee said Nosrati, Gil Esquer and Nicole Larson attended the vigil. Organizer Elisha Coleman described Nosrati as supportive of the movement. The same report included organizer comments that Mayor Bublak was willing to speak directly with them.
The reporting establishes Nosrati’s participation and organizers’ account of his support. It does not establish the motives behind other council disagreements.
The recall effort and the dispute over public conduct
In July 2020, residents organized as SAVE Turlock began an effort to recall Nosrati. The Journal’s August 2021 follow-up reported that organizers objected to policy decisions and his social-media conduct. They had until December 24, 2020, to collect the required signatures. They fell short, and the recall did not reach an election.
The disagreement extended to his exchanges with critics online. In October 2020 reporting, the Journal described resident Ron Bridegroom’s request that the council censure Nosrati over his comments. Other residents defended the councilmember, while Nosrati said he was responding to attacks on his character. The article reported a request for censure; it should not be read as a finding that the council imposed one.
In the 2021 follow-up, Nosrati acknowledged that he had sometimes been too confrontational. Organizer Michael Camara disputed his description of the recall as personal, saying it concerned his public positions and interactions with residents.
The petition’s failure left Nosrati in office for the rest of his term.
The rail argument was about ACE and station location
A March 2022 Journal report documents a disagreement involving Nosrati, Larson, Vice Mayor Pam Franco and Bublak over Turlock’s proposed Altamont Corridor Express station. ACE is the commuter-rail service involved in this account; the dispute should not be labeled a vote over California’s high-speed rail project.
Franco proposed asking the rail authority to move the station downtown. Bublak supported that location, with downtown revitalization among the arguments advanced. Nosrati and Larson wanted clearer answers about costs and the land needed for a move. Nosrati favored the more central location near the transit center at Fulkerth Road and North Golden State Boulevard.
The issue was continued so rail representatives could participate. The report captures a dispute about access, land ownership, costs and the benefits of a particular location—not a simple division between supporters and opponents of train service.
Leaving office in 2022
Nosrati did not seek another term in 2022. The Bee’s coverage of that election identified both Nosrati and Larson as outgoing incumbents who were not running again. He therefore did not lose a reelection contest.
The December 13, 2022 meeting minutes record the city recognizing both outgoing councilmembers and administering the oaths to Kevin Bixel and Cassandra Abram. Abram succeeded Nosrati in District 3. For the serving council and public office contacts, use our current representatives directory.
The record in brief
- 2018: Elected to District 3 after campaigning on housing and approaches to city finances.
- 2020: Participated in the local Black Lives Matter vigil; faced a recall effort that did not qualify for an election.
- 2022: Questioned the costs and land implications of moving the proposed ACE station downtown.
- December 2022: Finished his term; Cassandra Abram took the District 3 seat.
For the wider civic history, read Turlock’s mayors. Our Amy Bublak profile covers her council and mayoral service, while the 2026 mayoral-race report follows the current contest.
Compare the mayor’s record and the other current councilmember profiles.
This independent profile examines a former public official’s public record and statements. Send documented corrections or responses to LocalTurlock.
