[Rancho Santa Margarita] is an incorporated community governed by a city council.

! Issues

! Election History

Year indicates the start of term, not the election.

%%zebra-table
|| Year || Member 1 || Member 2 || Member 3 || Member 4 || Member 5 || Mayor || Mayor Pro Tem || Race || Notes
| 1999 | [Gary Thompson] | [Neil Blais] | [Jim Thor] | [Debra Lewis] | [Carol Gamble] | | | [1999 RSM City Council] | November 2, 1999 Election
| 2000 | | | | | | [Debra Lewis] | [Carol Gamble] | |
| 2001 | | | | [Christy Riley] | | [Carol Gamble] | | | [Debra Lewis] resigned to move to San Diego county[2]\\[Christy Riley] appointed in Feb 2001
| 2002 | | | | | | | | [2002 RSM City Council] \\ |
| 2003 | [Gary Thompson] | [Neil Blais] | [Jim Thor] | [Jerry Holloway] | | [Gary Thompson] | | |
| 2004 | | | | | | | | [2004 RSM City Council] | [Carol Gamble] resigns
| 2005 | | | | [Jerry Holloway] | [Tony Beall] | [Jerry Holloway] | | |
| 2006 | | | | | | | | [2006 RSM City Council] |
| 2007 | [Gary Thompson] | [Neil Blais] | [Jim Thor] | | | [Tony Beall] | | |
| 2008 | | | | | | | | [2008 RSM City Council] |
| 2009 | | | | [Jerry Holloway] | [Tony Beall] | [Gary Thompson] | | |
| 2010 | | | | | | [Jerry Holloway] | | [2010 RSM City Council] |
| 2011 | [Gary Thompson] \\[Carol Gamble] | [Jesse Petrilla] | [Steven Baric] | | | [Tony Beall] | [Gary Thompson] | | [Gary Thompson] resigned in March[1] \\[Carol Gamble] appointed Apr 2011
| 2012 | | | | | | [Tony Beall] | | [2012 RSM City Council] | [Brad McGirr] won short term seat
| 2013 | [Brad McGirr] | | | [Carol Gamble] | [Tony Beall] | [Tony Beall] | [Carol Gamble] | |
| 2014 | | | | | | [Carol Gamble] | [Brad McGirr] | [2014 RSM City Council] |
| 2015 | [Brad McGirr] | [Mike Vaughn] | [Jerry Holloway] | | | [Brad McGirr] | | |
| 2016 | | | | | | [Tony Beall] | [Carol Gamble] | [2016 RSM City Council] |
| 2017 | | | | [Carol Gamble] | [Tony Beall] | | | |
| 2018 | | | | | | [Mike Vaughn] | | [2018 RSM City Council] |
| 2019 | [Brad McGirr] | [Anne Figueroa] | [Jerry Holloway] | | | [Jerry Holloway] | [Brad McGirr] | |
| 2020 | | | | (election) | (election) | [Brad McGirr] | [Tony Beall] | [2020 RSM City Council] |
/%

! Sources and Articles

* [Rancho Santa Margarita Opts for Cityhood|https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-nov-03-mn-29369-story.html] (Nov 1999)
* [Gamble Was No Gamble, but a Known Quantity|https://patch.com/california/ranchosantamargarita/gamble-was-no-gamble-but-a-known-quantity] (Apr 2011)
* [Thompson Gets the 'Welcome' Sign as a Show of Thanks|https://patch.com/california/ranchosantamargarita/thompson-gets-the-welcome-sign-as-a-show-of-thanks] (Jun 25, 2011)
* [Holloway Says He's Running for City Council|https://patch.com/california/ranchosantamargarita/holloway-says-hes-running-for-city-council] (Nov 15, 2013)
* [Gamble appointed as Rancho mayor|https://www.ocregister.com/2013/12/19/gamble-appointed-as-rancho-mayor/] (Dec 2013)

! Footnotes
[#1] [Gary Thompson Resigns as City Councilman|https://patch.com/california/ranchosantamargarita/gary-thompson-resigns-as-city-councilman]\\
[#2] [https://newspaperarchive.com/rancho-santa-margarita-news-oct-18-2002-p-15/]
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