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Polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. today

Voters across the county, at least those who have not yet cast early ballots or mailed them in, go to the polls today with everything from the highest office in the land to city council seats at stake. Polls in Sonoma County open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m Tuesday.

With Valerie Brown stepping down, 1st District voters will elect a new District Supervisor. After a hard-fought and, of late, contentious race, either Susan Gorin or John Sawyer will soon represent the Valley on the Board of Supervisors.

In the city of Sonoma, four candidates – Madolyn Agrimonti, David Cook, Cameron Stuckey and incumbent Laurie Gallian – vie for two open City Council seats.

Redistricting has shifted some familiar faces around. Democrat Mike Thompson, who had previously served in Washington representing the 1st Congressional District, is seeking the same seat in the newly fashioned 5th District, running against Republican Randy Loftin. Two new State Assembly Districts that include parts of the Valley are up for grabs. In District 10, including parts of the city of Sonoma, current San Rafael city council member Marc Levine (Dem.) is challenging Michael Allen (Dem.), a sitting member of the Assembly. In District 4, which includes the Springs and part of the city, John Munn (Rep.) takes on Mariko Yamada (Dem.).

Valley voters will also weigh in on several state ballot propositions; among them Proposition 30, Gov. Jerry Brown’s bid to fund education and other local programs; Proposition 34, which seeks to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment; and Proposition 37, the effort to label GMO foods.

A significant portion – as much as 70 percent – of Sonoma County voters choose to vote by mail. As of press time, some 118,775 vote-by-mail ballots had already been received by the Registrar of Voters, about 15,000 of which were dropped off during two collection days this weekend.

Sonoma County Clerk Janice Atkinson expects about 35,000 more to be dropped at polling places on election day, and estimates the total number may eventually reach 163,000 with the total number of ballots for the 2012 election, including those cast today, estimated at 221,000.

If you’re registered to vote in Sonoma Valley, you should have received your sample ballot in the mail, which is marked with your local polling station. Be aware that this is not always the closest station to you.

If you are unclear about where you need to vote, you can check online at vote.sonoma-county.org or call the Registrar of Voters office at 565-6800.