Daly City Councilmember Pamela DiGiovanni is running for reelection despite being formally censured last year and now declared noncompliant with the terms of that censure, including anger-management training required under the censure that she says she has no intention of taking. The 70-year-old incumbent, first elected in 2018, has spent nearly a decade in office while facing a string of misconduct allegations from city employees, a fellow councilmember, and members of the public.
On September 28, the Daly City City Council voted 4-1 to adopt a resolution declaring DiGiovanni noncompliant with her October 2025 public censure after confirming she had not completed required professional conduct and anger-management training, according to SFGATE. Vice Mayor Teresa Proaño told colleagues during that meeting that DiGiovanni needed to take accountability for ongoing inappropriate behavior toward city staff, calling it “abuse that needs to stop,” per the same report. As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, DiGiovanni has said she plans to remain in office without attending the training, leaving her reelection decision entirely to voters.
A Censure Rooted in a 2024 Investigation
The scrutiny traces back to January 2024, when an independent investigative report commissioned by the city council sustained 18 of 21 employee allegations against DiGiovanni, finding she had treated city staff unprofessionally and misused city vehicles, the station's report notes. That investigation found she used city cars for personal trips, including golf tournaments and errands, according to the Chronicle. The findings led to an initial formal admonishment before the council adopted Resolution No. 25-150 in October 2025, which formally censured DiGiovanni, restricted her use of city vehicles and her service on council or regional committees, and required anger-management and professional-conduct training, according to the City of Daly City.
DiGiovanni has denied wrongdoing throughout, describing the investigation as a witch hunt and telling the Chronicle she believes she is the target of a conspiracy among political opponents. She also denied an allegation that she borrowed $500 from a city employee in 2018 to buy a tablet and repaid less than half of it — the Chronicle reports she repaid $200 in wadded-up bills left on the city clerk's counter and later paid $300 through the employee's car window weeks afterward. DiGiovanni said she was allowed to use a city vehicle under an agreement with former city manager Shawnna Maltbie and denied using city cars for personal purposes.
Allegations of Physical Altercations Span Nearly a Decade
The claims against DiGiovanni extend beyond office conduct and vehicle use to allegations of physical assault. In September 2022, Councilmember Juslyn Manalo reported to colleagues that DiGiovanni assaulted her inside Daly City Hall before a virtual council meeting, alleging DiGiovanni closed a door on her back hard enough to leave a bruise, according to CBS News. Manalo's subsequent civil harassment restraining order petition against DiGiovanni was denied by a San Mateo County court.
Separately, the Chronicle reports that a Daly City political volunteer, Luis Landos, said DiGiovanni slapped him in 2016 after he learned his mother had died. DiGiovanni has denied that allegation as well. A Daly City political volunteer also accused her of slapping him years earlier, a claim she has likewise denied.
Residents Demand Resignation as Election Nears
Public frustration boiled over on September 28, 2026, when community members and residents publicly called for DiGiovanni's resignation during public comment at a city council session, citing harassment and assault allegations, according to ABC7 News. Among the loudest voices has been Glenn Sylvester, who told the Chronicle that DiGiovanni could expose herself and Daly City to a lawsuit and called her “a liability to the city,” urging her to step down.
Not everyone in Daly City agrees with that assessment. Grace David, who said she has known DiGiovanni for about four years, told the Chronicle she has never experienced the bullying alleged against her and believes DiGiovanni is being attacked for her political positions, which include questioning a 2024 proposal to use general fund money for the Top of the Hill Street Festival and opposing expansion of areas where cannabis retailers could locate. DiGiovanni, according to the Chronicle, has said bluntly that no one is going to tell her how to vote.
Legal Limits on Removing an Elected Official
Under California municipal law, a censure functions only as a formal expression of disapproval and cannot legally remove an elected official from office, leaving that power exclusively to voters through elections or recall proceedings, according to Cole Huber LLP. That legal reality means DiGiovanni's political future now rests with voters rather than her council colleagues.
DiGiovanni has chaired the Daly City Planning Commission and served on the Jefferson Elementary School District Citizens Oversight Committee. She has said she was elected to uphold civic values learned from her firefighter father and is originally from the East Coast. DiGiovanni has raised nearly $20,000 for her reelection campaign, with support from the North Coast States Regional Council of Carpenters Power PAC and Plumbers, Pipefitters and HVACR Service Techs Union Local 467, per the Chronicle.
Seven Candidates, Three Seats, One Decision for Voters
DiGiovanni is one of seven candidates vying for three open four-year seats on the Daly City City Council in the November 3 general election, alongside fellow incumbents Rod Daus-Magbual and Proaño, according to the City of Daly City. Daly City is San Mateo County's second-most populous municipality, and its Asian population makes up 57.3% of the city.
DiGiovanni has said she will serve as long as she is able and that if voters want her in office, that will be the will of the people. With the election weeks away, the outcome will determine whether she is reelected or whether the council's years of formal rebukes translate into a decision at the ballot box.
