Candidate filing period opening Monday for local councils, schools, fire agencies and sewer boards

Calling all candidates: Residents interested in serving in local government can file to run for public office beginning July 15, as more than two dozen elected positions will be up for grabs on the Nov. 5 ballot.

The nomination period runs through 5 p.m. Aug. 9, with an automatic extension through 5 p.m. Aug. 14 for challengers only if any incumbent fails to file.

• Tiburon Town Council: Two four-year seats. The terms of Vice Mayor Holli Thier and Councilmember Isaac Nikfar are expiring. Thier, in line to become mayor in December if she wins re-election, was first appointed as interim councilmember in June 2017 and won election that November to complete the remaining three years on the term. She was reappointed after an uncontested election in November 2020.

Nikfar won an August 2023 special election to finish the term of Noah Griffin, who stepped down early for family reasons.

Interested residents who are registered voters in Tiburon may obtain nomination papers at Town Hall from Town Clerk Lea Dilena between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays; she’ll also be available 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday, Aug. 9. Contact Dilena at 415-435-7377 or ldilena@townoftiburon.org.

For more information, visit townoftiburon.org/163.

• Belvedere City Council: Three four-year seats. The terms of Councilmembers Nancy Kemnitzer, Jim Lynch and Sally Wilkinson are expiring. Kemnitzer, first elected unopposed in 2016 and then re-elected in 2020, is wrapping up her second term and has indicated she won’t seek a third, which is customary in Belvedere. This would automatically extend the filing period for all challengers to Aug. 14.

Wilkinson was appointed in July 2020 to complete the term of Councilmember Marty Winter after he moved to Tiburon. She then won election in November 2022 to a two-year seat created when the late Councilmember Steve Block stepped down. Lynch won election to a vacant seat in November 2020.

Interested residents who are registered voters in Belvedere may obtain nomination papers at City Hall from City Clerk Beth Haener 8 a.m.-noon and 1-3 p.m. Mondays-Thursdays, or by appointment on weekdays through 5 p.m. Contact Haener at 415-435-8913 or clerk@cityofbelvedere.org.

For more information, visit cityofbelvedere.org/departments/city-council.

• Reed Union School District board of trustees: Two four-year seats. The incumbents are Jacqueline Jaffee and Liz Webb. Webb was appointed in February 2020, and she and Jaffee were both elected that November. The board oversees the governance of Reed and Bel Aire elementary schools and Del Mar Middle School. For more information, visit reedschools.org/Page/1937.

• Tamalpais Union High School District board of trustees: Two four-year seats. The incumbents are Leslie Harlander and Karen Loebbaka. Harlander was first elected in 2015, and Loebbaka was appointed in 2019; both then won election in November 2020. The board oversees the governance of five area high schools — including Redwood, the main public high school serving the Tiburon Peninsula — and an adult school. For more information, visit tamdistrict.org/board-of-trustees.

• Mill Valley School District board of trustees: Two four-year seats. The incumbents are Elli Abdoli, the board’s liaison for Strawberry Point Elementary School, and Michele Crncich Hodge. Both were first elected in November 2020. The board oversees the governance of six area elementary and middle schools. For more information, visit mvschools.org/domain/10.

• Tiburon Fire Protection District board of directors: Two four-year seats and one two-year seat. The incumbents are Mark Capell and Joy Ho, with the third seat currently vacant. Capell was appointed in October 2021 and Ho in May. The district serves Tiburon southeast of the Reedlands neighborhood and Paradise Drive to the Corte Madera border; Belvedere residents are not eligible. For more information, visit tiburonfire.org/board-of-directors.

• Southern Marin Fire Protection District board of directors: Three four-year seats. The incumbents are Cathryn Hilliard, Ashley Raveche and Clifford Waldeck. Hilliard has served since 2009, Raveche since 2020 and Waldeck since last year. The district serves Tiburon west of the Belveron neighborhood and Strawberry, as well as Mill Valley and Sausalito. For more information, visit arkn.ws/SMFPDboard.

• Strawberry Recreation District board of directors: Two four-year seats and one two-year seat. The incumbents are Pam Bohner, Cale Nichols and Christian Michael. Bohner joined in 2011, Nichols in 2012, while Michael was appointed in April. The district provides park and recreational activities for Strawberry and the surrounding community. For more information, strawberry.marin.org/about_directors.

• Richardson Bay Sanitary District board of directors: Two four-year seats. The incumbents are Jeff Slavitz and Mark Slater. Slavitz was elected in 2016, while Slater was appointed in April. The district, headquartered near Blackie’s Pasture, serves northern Tiburon and Strawberry. It collects waste and pumps it to Mill Valley for treatment as a member district of the Sewerage Agency of Southern Marin. For more information, visit richardsonbaysd.org/about.

• Sanitary District No. 5 of Marin board of directors: Three four-year seats. The incumbents are Omar Arias-Montez, John Carapiet and Richard Snyder. Carapiet has served since 2013, Snyder since 2014, while Arias-Montez was elected in 2020. The district, headquartered on Paradise Drive near downtown Tiburon, serves southern Tiburon and Belvedere as an independent waste-collection and treatment district. For more information, visit sani5.org/board-of-directors.

• Marin Municipal Water District board of directors, Division 5: One four-year seat. The incumbent is Larry Russell, who has served since 2004. The district serves Southern and Central Marin. Division 5 includes Tiburon, Belvedere and Strawberry, as well as Corte Madera, part of Larkspur and San Quentin. For more information, visit marinwater.org/board-members.

• Marin Healthcare District board of directors, Division 2: One four-year seat. The incumbent is Ann Sparkman, who has served since 2011. The district owns and operates MarinHealth Medical Center in Greenbrae. Division 2 includes Tiburon, Belvedere and Strawberry, as well as Corte Madera. For more information, visit marinhealthcare.org/about-us/board-of-directors.

For all offices except the Tiburon and Belvedere councils, candidates must file their nomination papers with the Marin Elections Department, Suite 121 of the Marin Civic Center in San Rafael. The office is open 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays and until 5 p.m. on the Aug. 9 and 14 filing deadlines. Candidate application forms are also available on the county elections website via arkn.ws/marincandidateapply; staff will prepare and email nomination papers with further instructions.

Contact candidate-services official Dan Miller at 415-473-6437 or danmiller@marincounty.org. For more information about the election, including a candidate guide, visit marinvotes.org.

Reach Kevin Hessel at 415-435-2652.