It's Time, Healdsburg: Meet Your New Mayor

HEALDSBURG, CA — Each December, shortly before the holidays, a new mayor and vice mayor are selected to lead the executive branch for the coming year.

On Monday evening, as part of this annual selection, outgoing Healdsburg Mayor Evelyn Mitchell passed the gavel to Chris Herrod.

"I am humbled and honored" to serve as mayor, he said, vowing to "maintain the accountability and respect of this council."

Herrod started his political career as a member of the Healdsburg Parks and Recreation Commission, where he served for seven years before his election to the council.

“I love this town deeply, andI look forward to helping a little bit more if the opportunity comes to me," he said Monday.

In addition to naming a new mayor, the council selected Councilmember Ron Edwards to fill the vice mayor's seat.

He was nominated by Hegele.

During his November 2024 campaign, he ran on the premise of advocating for residents, addressing inadequacies in government-community communication, and furthering a "solutions-oriented environment in our elected offices."

"I am humbled to do this," the new Vice Mayor Edwards said Monday.

Councilmembers thanked Mitchell for her "steady, professional leadership.”

“You run great meetings, truly, and you kept us on track," Councilmember Ariel Kelley said, who has filled the mayor's role as well.

"Thank you for taking us through where no Healdsburg mayor has been before, and that was districting," Edwards said.

“It’s been an honor, and I’m pleased to do it — not on Zoom," Mitchell said.