What a difference two years makes. That sentiment could be widely heard, from Maine to Marin Tuesday night, as the results of national and local elections displayed a marked flip from one party to another—again, as they had in 2024.
At the state level, and the local one, Healdsburg native Mike McGuire was declared the winner of the newly redistricted CA-01 seat, which includes both Sonoma County where he’s from and Yuba County where his opponent, James Gallager, lives. McGuire’s win officially flips the seat from Republican to Democrat, adding to the national victories the Democratic Party claimed.
“Folks from every corner of Northern California spoke up, turned out and delivered an overwhelming message—they’re tired of the constant chaos and an economy that works against them,” McGuire said in a statement released at about 11pm. “They want bold leadership that delivers on a promise to make life better for working families, saves healthcare for millions of Americans and fights for an economy that works for all.”
The election to fill two of five Sonoma County supervisor seats was officially uncalled at press time Wednesday morning, but in the 4th District (Larkfield and north) Melanie Bagby held onto a slight lead over Tom Schwedhelm, roughly 52% to 48%. Although the heavily endorsed and well-connected Schwedhelm outspent Bagby by a considerable amount, her risky “only Democrat in the race” gambit seemed to resonate.
In Healdsburg, Mathew Lopez opened with a generous lead of 301 votes to 185, 55% to 34%, indicative of the relatively small number of eligible voters in the small Healdsburg 2nd District. In Healdsburg at press time, only 594 ballots had been counted out of 1,640 ballots issued. Alex Wood, who withdrew from the race in September, drew 53 votes.
The unopposed Chris Herrod won 100% of the votes in his 4th District. Another current City Council member, Evelyn Mitchell, also lives in the 4th District but decided not to run for a third term. The likely effect, pending final tallies, is that Lopez replaces Mitchell on the City Council for the next two years.
When election results began to come in on Tuesday night, Lopez was in his classroom grading papers. “Like the worker bee I am, I’m planning on using this evening to be in my classroom,” he told The Tribune. A small group of friends who were following the results texted him at the high school to tell him he was winning.
Despite the assertion by the Registrar’s office the reported total 100% of precints, there remains a large number of votes not yet report, including from the drop box at City Halle. They tell us they are hopeful of a “complete the count before the Dec 3 deadline for certifying the election. Results will be updated at least twice per week until the election is certified.”
City council elections took place in nearby cities from Cloverdale to Santa Rosa, with candidates and offices too numerous to explore. In the race for mayor of Windsor Tanya Potter was well ahead of Rick Massell, at 78% to 22%.
Unlike Healdsburg, Windsor elects town council members from its four districts but a mayor separately, a model some in Healdsburg would prefer. However there will be no further redistricting until after the 2030 census.
For latest Sonoma County voting totals, visit this page.
