Sonoma County voters cast ballots in record numbers

Sonoma County voters head to the polls Tuesday to choose between vastly different candidates for the presidency, California’s 12 propositions and a host of consequential local races and measures dealing with issues from taxes to law enforcement oversight. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.

A record number of Sonoma County voters have already voted ahead of Election Day with nearly 70% of the county's 300,586 registered voters having submitted their ballots as of Monday, an all-time high “that is pretty amazing,” county elections chief Deva Marie Proto said.

In addition to the critical presidential race between incumbent Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden, county voters are weighing in on 24 city council seats in nine cities, 19 local ballot measures and 29 school board seats — all amid a historic pandemic.

“People really are seeing this is a very important election,” Proto said.

Sonoma County residents began voting in October after the elections office mailed ballots to registered voters Oct. 5. Nearly 4,800 people have cast ballots in person since Saturday, when polls opened for early voting throughout the county.

Thousands more residents are expected to cast their ballots Tuesday at 30 polling locations and 20 drop boxes throughout the county. Voters can go to any of these locations, unlike years past when they were assigned a specific polling place.

(For an interactive map of polling places and drop-off locations, go here.)

To protect people’s health during the coronavirus pandemic, California mailed ballots to every registered voter in the state in advance of Election Day, a first for the state. More than 83% of voters in Sonoma County were already registered to vote by mail.

Tuesday is the last day to submit a ballot by mail, at a drop box or in person at any of the county’s polling sites.

“But it’s not the last day for the vote to be counted,” Proto said.

The county must certify local election results no later than Dec. 1, but Proto expects to finish counting ballots before then.

“We are trying to do it correctly as opposed to doing it fast,” Proto said.

The election could reshape city councils across the county.

Two cities are holding their first district elections for council seats, Rohnert Park and Santa Rosa, including a three-way race for Santa Rosa’s new westside district.

In Healdsburg, five political newcomers and one incumbent are vying for three seats in an election sure to reshape the political leadership of a city in financial turmoil.

County spending on mental health and homeless services would increase with the passage of Measure O, a proposed quarter-cent, countywide sales tax.

It is just one of eight local revenue measures on local ballots.

Measure P proponents want to to bolster civilian oversight of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office by providing more funding and investigative powers to the Independent Office of Law Enforcement Review and Outreach.

The measure has been met with fierce opposition from Sheriff Mark Essick, the Sonoma County Deputy Sheriff’s Association and Sonoma County Farm Bureau, drawing a late infusion of money to the anti-Measure P cause.

At a time of intense scrutiny for schools exploring the possibility of resuming in-class instruction during the pandemic, Santa Rosa City School board’s most tenured member is being challenged by a school counselor backed by the 500-member Santa Rosa Teachers Association.

The county’s elections office expects to publish initial results shortly after 8 p.m. Tuesday, but will continue counting ballots until they are done.

Sonoma County voters are so far mostly white, over the age of 50 and registered Democrats, according to Political Data Inc., a nonpartisan research firm that captured a glimpse of local voter demographics at a point when about 60% of registered voters had submitted ballots.

About 62% of ballots were cast by Democrats, 21% by independents and 16% Republicans.

Latino voters represent 14% of the local electorate and white voters make up 82%, the company reported.

The largest age group to vote is 65 and older, representing about 40% of ballots so far with a strong turnout. They are followed by people 50 to 64, who cast 28% of the ballots; people 35 to 49, who cast 17% of the ballots; and 18 to 34, who cast 15% of the ballots, according to the firm.

Mailed ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day, Nov. 3, and will be counted as long as they reach the elections office by Nov. 20.

The high turnout before Election Day means late Tuesday results, though preliminary, will be “more statistically significant than results we’ve had previously because it is a higher volume,” Proto said.

The highest turnout on record was 93.4% in the 2008 election that sent Barack Obama to the presidency, followed by 84.1% turnout in 2012.

“It’s a high mark to hit,” Proto said of the 2008 record. “I think we’ll get close, I’m not sure we’ll beat it.“

You can reach Staff Writer Julie Johnson at 707-521-5220 or julie.johnson@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @jjpressdem.