Editor’s note: This article has been updated to include newly scheduled events and links to video of past events.
MENDOCINO Co., 3/26/18 — California’s primary elections will happen on June 5, and here in Mendocino County we are having a very crowded and competitive election season. Eight candidates are running for supervisor in the Third District and five in the Fifth District, as well as a couple of countywide offices, city council elections, and the State Senate, Assembly and House election. We’ve put together a list of some upcoming candidate events to help you make up your mind, some of which we’ll be live-streaming. In addition, we’re interviewing as many of the candidates as possible live on Facebook, so you can ask questions while the interview happens.
All local races are non-partisan, meaning that candidates do not have to declare party affiliation, and in California we have an open primary, so the two people with the most votes in the primary will move on to the general, even if they are of the same party.
You can register to vote in the primary up until May 21, and register online here. To vote in Mendocino County you must be a U.S. citizen and live in Mendocino County.
Here’s the list of upcoming events. Please let us know if we missed anything by emailing [email protected] or adding your event to the comments below. The links to our candidate interviews are listed with their names, or you can read all of our 2018 election coverage here, including the complete list of candidates.
Fifth District:
Our interviews with the candidates are linked to their names: Arthur Juhl of Gualala – Real estate broker; David Roderick lists a PO Box in Hopland for location – Farmer and business owner; Alan Rodier of the Ukiah area – Farmer and attorney; Chris Skyhawk of Albion – Youth and family counselor; Ted Williams of Mendocino – Fire chief of Albion Fire District and programmer.
- March 12 – candidate’s forum hosted by Mendocino Access Television at the Greenwood Community Center. You can watch the recording here.
- Saturday, March 30 – “Cannabis inclusive“ candidates forum in Comptche, Comptche Community Hall, 30672 Comptche-Ukiah Road, 3 – 6 p.m. (first hour is the opening reception).
- Wednesday, April 11 – Mendocino Coast Chamber of Commerce will be hosting a meet the candidates forum at the Little River Inn, 7750 N. Highway 1 in Little River, from 6 – 7:30 p.m. More details can be found at the event’s Facebook page.
- Wednesday, April 18 – Mendocino Access Television will be broadcasting a debate live from the Fort Bragg studio, 2 – 4 p.m. There will an in-house audience and moderator asking questions. You can watch it here, along with other interviews of the candidates.
- Friday, April 27 – Mendocino candidates forum organized by the Mendocino Cannabis Industry Association at the Mendocino Recreation and Community Center from 5:30 – 7:30p.m. (“Mendo Time.”)
- Tuesday, May 1 – The City of Point Arena will host a candidates forum at the Veteran’s Memorial Building at 451 School Street in Point Arena from 6 – 8:30p.m. The forum will focus on roads funding, the housing crisis, health care/mental health access, county management, and employee relations. There will be time for public questions.
- You can ask questions of the candidates in this Facebook group created for the fifth district.
Third District:
Our interviews with the candidates are linked to their names: Susy Barsotti of Laytonville – Business person and festival producer; Pamela Elizondo of Laytonville – Environmental healing consultant; John Haschak of Willits – Public school teacher, frequent head of the local teachers union and chair of the statewide teacher’s union’s budget committee; Michael Horger of Willits – Retired; Shawna Jeavons of Willits – Educator; Cyndee Logan of Willits – Housing director; John Pinches of the Island Mountain area – Former supervisor and rancher Tony Tucker of Covelo – Emergency childcare worker, and current member of the Round Valley School Board.
- Thursday, April 5 – “Cannabis inclusive” candidates forum, Willits, at the Little Lake Grange, 291 School Street, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m.
- Saturday, April 14 – Covelo candidates forum, Covelo at the Round Valley Commons, 23925 Howard Street, 3 p.m.
- Thursday, April 19 – Willits candidates forum, Willits at the Willits Community Center, 111 E. Commercial Street, 6:30 p.m. You can watch the video here.
- Saturday, April 28 – Laytonville candidates forum, Laytonville at Harwood Hall, 44400 Willis Ave., 2 p.m.
- Sunday, May 6 – Candidates forum sponsored by the Little Lake Grange, Mendocino Women’s Political Coalition the Willits Branch of American Association of University Women. This event includes candidates for county recorder, superintendent of schools, and supervisor, from 2 – 5 p.m.
- The Covelo Cannabis Advocacy Group will be hosting candidates on Fridays in the Library Commons at 3pm in Covelo. The following dates are scheduled: Tony Tucker (March 23rd); Shawna Jeavons (April 6th); Susy Barsotti (April 13th); John Pinches (April 27th).