Sonoma County’s latest results update added 6,043 votes, leaving Melanie Bagby with a 52% to 48% lead over Tom Schwedhelm in the 4th District supervisor race. The county estimates that 76,045 ballots remain to be processed countywide, so the outcome is not settled.
A Razor-Thin Margin With Thousands of Ballots Left
As of the November 9 update, 24,927 ballots had been processed, according to The Press Democrat. The newspaper estimated Schwedhelm would need just under 54% of the remaining 4th District votes to pass Bagby. The next update is expected Wednesday afternoon.
The race has moved only incrementally since Election Day. Early returns posted Nov. 4 at 10:10 a.m. showed Bagby ahead 52.3% to 47.7%, according to krcb.org. By November 5, with 18,884 votes counted, Bagby's lead had settled into the same 52%-48% split that held through the latest count, the same report noted.
Two Longtime Local Figures, One Open Seat
The winner will succeed Supervisor James Gore, who has held the 4th District seat since 2015. Bagby is a former Cloverdale mayor and two-term council member; Schwedhelm is a former Santa Rosa mayor and retired police chief, according to The Press Democrat.
This year's general election marked the first in 16 years with two open seats on Sonoma County's five-member Board of Supervisors, a rare shake-up for the board's makeup, as noted by The Press Democrat. In the county's other open race, Petaluma City Schools trustee Joanna Paun, running as the progressive candidate, was elected in the southern 2nd District, where she led Sylvia Lemus 61.4% to 38.6% as of the November 5 count.
Candidates Urge Patience as Count Continues
Bagby said the latest batch of results was encouraging, adding, “the latest batch is really encouraging so we're going to wait and watch the process play out.” She has also said a few more days would likely be needed before the outcome is known, and that voters needed to feel their votes were counted.
Schwedhelm could not be reached for comment on the latest update. He told The Press Democrat on Friday that he was encouraged by the direction of the votes and that the county registrar of voters’ process should be trusted.
Ballot deadlines and the Board’s role
The Sonoma County Registrar of Voters says voters whose vote-by-mail return envelopes have a signature challenge have until 5 p.m. Wednesday, November 25, to fix it for their ballot to be counted. County elections officials have until December 3 to certify the November 3 election. The supervisor’s board also serves as the governing body for several special jurisdictions, including the Sonoma County Water Agency, the Agricultural Preservation and Open Space District, County Sanitation Districts and the Community Development Commission, according to the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors.
