Sonoma County begins casting votes on candidates, amendment

The polls are open and Sonoma County voters Tuesday morning have begun casting votes on everything from a presidential pick in the November election to a host of local races, plus a tax increase to help pay for wetland and wildlife habitat restoration projects in the San Francisco Bay.

Polls remain open until 8 p.m.

Voters can drop mail-in ballots at any polling location on Election Day. The county also has 24-hour drop-off locations set up at the Registrar of Voters office at 435 Fiscal Drive, the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Building and the Petaluma Veterans Memorial Hall.

Voter turnout in this year’s primary is expected to be around 60 percent, higher than the past few California primary elections, voting officials said.

“Historically, what we’ve seen is 40 or 50 percent turnout in primaries, so in comparison, 60 percent is on the high end,” said Liz Acosta, the county’s deputy Registrar of Voters.

Voting officials said turnout could be higher this year due to attention on local and national races, including the Democratic presidential primary contest between former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.

Already, more than a third of Sonoma County voters have cast votes in this election. More than 76 percent of local voters are registered as permanent vote-by-mail voters, though many are expected to drop off their mail-in ballots on Election Day.

There are 253,860 registered voters in the county. Voting officials reported that 92,924 ballots had been returned by Monday afternoon.

The most highly watched local race is the 5th District county supervisor election to replace Efren Carrillo. The five hopefuls vying for the open west county seat are former state senator and Santa Rosa councilwoman Noreen Evans; Lynda Hopkins, an organic farmer and political newcomer; Tim Sergent, a special-education teacher at Maria Carrillo High School; Tom Lynch, a county planning commissioner; and Marion Chase, a county social services worker.

In the 1st District, incumbent Supervisor Susan Gorin is facing two challengers: Gina Cuclis, president of the Sonoma County Board of Education, and Keith Rhinehart, who ran unsuccessfully in 2014 for 4th District supervisor. Supervisor Shirlee Zane is unopposed in her bid to retain her 3rd District seat, which includes central Santa Rosa and northern Rohnert Park.

Other contests include two congressional races. Incumbents Mike Thompson and Jared Huffman face a field of challengers for their seats in the House of Representatives. Four state legislative races are also underway, three in the Assembly and one in the state Senate.

County supervisor races take place in Mendocino and Lake counties.

Voters in all nine Bay Area counties will also be asked whether they support Measure AA, a $12 parcel tax increase to pay for wetland and habitat restoration projects in the San Francisco Bay. If approved, it would generate $45 million for the North Bay over 20 years and shore up additional state and federal dollars for key wetland restoration projects, including along Sonoma Creek, the Petaluma River and in San Pablo Bay.

You can reach Staff Writer Angela Hart at 526-8503 or angela.hart@pressdemocrat.com.