Politics & Government

Election Season Kicks Off

Few seats up for grabs in San Rafael

Barely a month after Marin voters cast ballots in the June primary, election season kicked off Monday with the opening of the filing period for open seats in the Nov. 2 election. And after two consecutive elections that were packed with contentious races, this fall should be a decidedly lighter affair, particularly in San Rafael.

The election features only a handful of races of local import but two of the five seats on Marin Municipal Water District board that affect San Rafael are open. One is currently held by Jack Gibson, who oversees Terra Linda, Santa Venetia, Marinwood and Lucas Valley. Gibson said he is running for re-election.

"I pulled papers today," he said on Tuesday. "Then I walked some neighborhoods."

Find out what's happening in San Rafaelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In addition, a seat held by Armando Quintero that represents San Rafael, East San Rafael, Bret Harte, Sun Valley, Dominican, Bayside Acres, Country Club, Point San Pedro, Loch Lomond, Glenwood, Peacock Gap and China Camp is up for grabs.

Quintero also said he intends to seek re-election."

Find out what's happening in San Rafaelwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Three seats on theMarin Health Care District board, for which the seats are not divided geographically, are available.

The most contentious race in Marin likely will be that of the Marin Healthcare District board, which ushered in a new era two weeks ago with the termination of Sutter Health as the operator of Marin General Hospital. The move ended the hospital's tumultuous, 5-year relationship with Sutter.

Three seats on the five-member district board are up Nov. 2, and each of the three incumbents intend to run for re-election, they said.

"There's more work to be done," said fellow incumbent Jamie Clever. "The best firewall of all to protect the hospital from the at times crazy politics on the district board is to have a tradition of good people running for office."

Board Chairman Larry Bedard said he anticipates a smooth transition and looks forward to taking to the voters a bond measure needed to finance construction of a new, earthquake-safe hospital building. The district must complete the project by 2015, and intends to take a $250 million general obligation bond to voters in 2011. The bond will have to get two-thirds approval of voters in the healthcare district, which includes all of Marin except Novato.

"The board election and the bond issue will be one in the same in many ways," Clever said.

Upon the June 30 transition from Sutter, the district board appointed 11 people to the Marin General Hospital Corp.'s board of directors, including four Mill Valley residents: David Hill, Ann Kaom Paul Kirincic and Timothy Sowerby.

The deadline to submit paperwork to run on Nov. 2 is Aug. 6 at 5pm. In seats where the incumbent chooses not to run again, the filing period will be extended to Aug. 11. The deadline for voters to register to vote in the Nov. 2 election is Oct. 18.

Prospective candidates can obtain nomination papers at the Marin County Registrar of Voters, Room 121, Civic Center, 3501 Civic Center Drive, San Rafael, CA 94903. 

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