DISTRICT 4 ELECTION PREP MOVES AHEAD
Voters to choose a replacement for Nathan Fletcher
After the county Board of Supervisors authorized plans Tuesday to fill the empty seat for District 4, an upcoming county special election will advance at a whirlwind pace — starting with candidate paperwork and election preparations today.
The special election will determine the replacement for former Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, who stepped down last week, weeks after being accused of sexual misconduct in a lawsuit. He has denied the allegations.
The board had the option to appoint a successor or hold an election and voted unanimously to put the choice to voters, given the three and a half years left in Fletcher’s term and the chaotic circumstances of his departure.
“It was very important to provide the process for District 4 voters to select their representatives,” Board Chair Nora Vargas said Tuesday.
Supervisors voted earlier this month to hold a primary on Aug. 15 with a potential runoff on Nov. 7, and they finalized that plan Tuesday, launching an expedited process to elect a successor.
That starts at 8 a.m. today, as the registrar of voters prepares to receive candidate nominations, print ballots and reach voters in multiple languages, registrar Cynthia Paes told the board.
“Administration of the election is most critical as we consider the compressed timeline,” she said.
Each phase of the election is expected to cost between $2.1 million and $2.6 million, for a possible total cost of up to $5.2 million if no candidate wins a majority in August and a runoff is required. The plan calls for a vote center model, providing District 4 voters the choice of casting their ballots by mail or in person.
All voters will receive a mail ballot, which they can return by mail, in person or at one of 27 ballot drop boxes stationed throughout the district. They can also return the ballot or vote in person at any of 14 vote centers that will be open on Election Day, seven of which will also offer in-person voting for 10 days before then.
The candidate nomination process begins almost immediately after Tuesday’s