Overview
Seats are either full term (4-years) or short term (2-years).
A short-term seat occurs due to the vacancy during the first half of an officeholder’s term.
Offices Open for Nomination
Education Code §1000, §1006, §35107
Qualifications:
- Any registered voter is eligible to be a member of the county board of education except the county superintendent of schools or any member of his or her staff, or any employee of a school district that is within the jurisdiction of the county board of education.
- A Board of Education candidate must be an elector of the trustee area which he or she represents and shall be elected by the electors of the trustee area.
- Candidates must be a registered voter in the district who is not disqualified by the Constitution or laws of the state from holding a public office.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Marin County Board of Education | Trustee Areas 3 - One full term seat; Trustee Areas 5 - One full term seat; Trustee Areas 6 - One full term seat |
| San Rafael Board of Education (Candidate documents issued by San Rafael City Clerk) |
Trustee Areas 2 - One full term seat; Trustee Areas 4 - One full term seat; Trustee Area 5 - One short term seat |
| Sonoma County Board of Education | Trustee Area 2 - One short term seat |
Education Code §35107
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district who is not disqualified by the Constitution or laws of the state from holding a public office.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Marin Community College District | Trustee Areas 1 - One full term seat; Trustee Areas 3- One full term seat; Trustee Areas 6 - One full term seat |
| Sonoma County Junior College District | Trustee Area 2 - One full term seat |
Education Code §35107
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district who is not disqualified by the Constitution or laws of the state from holding a public office.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Petaluma Joint Union High School District | Trustee Area 3 - One full term seat |
| Tamalpais Union High School District | 3 full term seats |
Education Code §35107
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district who is not disqualified by the Constitution or laws of the state from holding a public office.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Bolinas Stinson Union School District | 3 full term seats |
| Kentfield School District | 3 full term seats |
| Laguna Joint School District | 3 full term seats |
| Lagunitas School District | 3 full term seats |
| Larkspur-Corte Madera School District | 3 full term seats |
| Mill Valley School District | 3 full term seats |
| Miller Creek Elementary School District | 3 full term seats |
| Nicasio School District | 2 full term seats |
| Novato Unified School District | Trustee Areas 4 - One full term seat; Trustee Areas 5- One full term seat; Trustee Areas 6 - One full term seat |
| Reed Union School District | 3 full term seats |
| Ross School District | 3 full term seats |
| Ross Valley School District | 2 full term seats |
| Sausalito-Marin City School District | 3 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
| Shoreline Unified School District | Trustee Area 1 - Two full term seats; Trustee Area 2 - One full term seat |
Gov. Code §34882, Elections Code §10220, §10227
Qualifications: A person is not eligible to hold office as a member of a municipal legislative body unless he or she is otherwise qualified, resides in the district and resided in the district from which he or she is elected and a registered voter of the city at the time nomination papers are issued to the candidate.
- A minimum of 20 sponsor signatures are required for towns/cities.
Municipal candidates must obtain and file nomination documents with city/town clerk
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| City of Belvedere | 2 full term seats |
| City of Larkspur | 3 full term seats |
| City of Mill Valley | 2 full term seats |
| City of Novato | Districts 2 - One full term seat; Districts 4 - One full term seat; District 5 - One short term seat |
| City of San Rafael | Districts 2 - One full term seat; Districts 3 - One full term seat |
| City of Sausalito | 2 full term seats |
| Town of Corte Madera | 3 full term seats |
| Town of Fairfax | Town Council - 2 full term seats; Town Clerk - 1 full term seat; Town Treasurer - 1 full term seat |
| Town of Ross | 2 full term seats |
| Town of San Anselmo | Town Council - 2 full term seats; Town Clerk - 1 full term seat; Town Treasurer - 1 full term seat |
| Town of Tiburon | 3 full term seats |
Election Code §201
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district and qualified to vote for that office at the time nomination documents are issued to the candidate.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Bel Marin Keys Community Services District | 2 full term seats |
| Marin City Community Services District | 3 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
| Marinwood Community Services District | 2 full term seats |
| Muir Beach Community Services District | 3 full term seats |
| Tamalpais Community Services District | 2 full term seats |
| Tomales Village Community Services District | 3 full term seats |
Public Resources Code §9352, §9358
Qualifications: Candidate shall reside within the district and either own real property in the district or alternatively have served, pursuant to the district’s rules, for two years or more as an associate director providing advisory or other assistance to the board of directors; or be a designated agent of a resident landowner within the district.
- Requires signatures of five (5) landowners within the district.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Marin Resource Conservation District | 2 full term seats |
Election Code §201
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district and qualified to vote for that office at the time nomination documents are issued to the candidate.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Bolinas Fire Protection District | 2 full term seats |
| Kentfield Fire Protection District | 3 full term seats |
| Novato Fire Protection District | District Divisions 4 - One full term seat; District Divisions 5 - One full term seat |
| Sleepy Hollow Fire Protection District | 1 full term seat; 1 short term seat |
| Southern Marin Fire Protection District | 4 full term seats |
| Stinson Beach Fire Protection District | 2 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
| Tiburon Fire Protection District | 3 full term seats |
Health & Safety Code §32100, §32110
Qualifications: Candidate must be a registered voter in the district.
No person who is a director, policymaking management employee, or medical staff officer of a hospital owned or operated by a district shall do either of the following:
(1) Possess any ownership interest in any other hospital serving the same area as that served by the district hospital of which the person is a director, policymaking management employee, or medical staff officer. (2) Be a director, policymaking management employee, or medical staff officer of any hospital serving the same area as the area served by the district hospital.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Marin Healthcare District | District Division 1 - One full term seat; District Division 3 - One full term seat; District Division 4 - One full term seat |
Election Code §201
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district and qualified to vote for that office at the time nomination documents are issued to the candidate.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Bolinas Community Public Utility District | 3 full term seats |
| Inverness Public Utility District | 2 full term seats |
Election Code §201, Public Resource Code 5784(c)
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district and qualified to vote for that office at the time nomination documents are issued to the candidate.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Mesa Park Recreation District | 3 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
| Strawberry Recreation District | 3 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
Elections Code § 201
Qualifications: Candidate must reside and be a registered voter in the district. Additional qualifications may be determined by the principal act of the district. Sponsor signatures and filing fees are not required.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Alto Sanitary District | 2 full term seats |
| Homestead Valley Sanitary District | 2 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
| Las Gallinas Valley Sanitary District | 3 full term seats |
| Novato Sanitary District | District Divisions 2 - One full term seat; District Divisions 3 - One full term seat; District Divisions 5 - One full term seat; Division 1 - One short term seat |
| Richardson Bay Sanitary District | 3 full term seats |
| Sanitary District No. 5 | 2 full term seats |
| Sausalito-Marin City Sanitary District | 3 full term seats; 1 short term seat |
Election Code §201, Water Code 71501
Qualifications: Candidates must be a registered voter in the district and qualified to vote for that office at the time nomination documents are issued to the candidate.
| District | # of seats up for Nomination |
|---|---|
| Marin Municipal Water District | District Divisions 1 - One full term seat; District Divisions 3 - One full term seat; District Divisions 4 - One full term seat |
| North Marin Water District | District Divisions 1 - One full term seat; District Divisions 5 - One full term seat |
| Stinson Beach County Water District | 2 full term seats |
Insufficient number of candidates and/or no contest
If the total number of candidates filing papers for your contest does not exceed the number of seats to be filled, you will be appointed in-lieu of an election. In other words the contest and your name will not be on the ballot.
In case there are less candidates than the number of seats, you will still be appointed as if elected, but the other seats must be filled:
- Special District: the Board of Supervisors will conduct a search and appoint any qualified person(s) who will then serve exactly as if elected. Elections Code §10515
- School District: the governing board of the district will conduct a search and appoint any qualified person(s) who will then serve exactly as if elected. Education Code §5328
- Municipal: contact the city/town clerk for specific information.
Name on the ballot and randomized alphabet draw
On the 82nd day before the election, the Secretary of State’s Office and the Marin County Registrar of Voters separately pick each letter of the alphabet at random according to the procedure specified in Elections Code section 13112 compiling their own randomized alphabet list. The randomized alphabetical draw helps determine the order that names appear on the ballot.
Each candidate is placed on the ballot in the order that each of the letters was drawn, based on their surname. For example, the placement of candidates with the surnames Campbell and Carlson will depend on the order in which the letters M and R were drawn.
The Secretary of State’s random alphabet drawing determines name placement for all contests except for State Senator and State Assembly. The name placement for State Senate and State Assembly is determined by the random alphabet drawing conducted by the Marin County Registrar of Voters.
Rotation of candidates for certain offices is specified in Elections Code section 13112.
- For the office of U.S. Representative in Congress, the Secretary of State determines rotations based on Assembly districts.