Election Day 2024: Napa County Voter Guide

NAPA COUNTY, CA — Election Day is here, and some 8 million Californians have already cast their ballots in early voting — both by mail and at Vote Centers that began opening Oct. 26.

Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 5. Remember that if you are already in line to vote when the polls close, you can still vote — so don't leave! Click here to find your polling location.

Nov. 5 is also the last day to get your ballot in the mail if you are going that route to cast your votes. Sign and seal your ballot in the blue envelope and place it in either a mailbox or an approved drop box. In Napa County, drop boxes are available 24/7 until 8 p.m. Nov. 5. Find your nearest drop box here.

Napa County is offering drive-thru ballot drop-off service at these four county vote centers until 5 p.m. Monday and from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday:

• American Canyon Holiday Inn Express and Suites, 5001 Main St., American Canyon
• Los Flores Community Center, 4300 Linda Vista Ave., Napa
• Napa County Election Division, 2nd Street Garage alley between 1127 1st St. and 2nd Street Garage, Napa
• Napa Valley College, Upper Valley Campus 1088 College Ave., St. Helena

Once you've sent your ballot, you can track it here.

Californians can still register in person on Election Day for a conditional ballot at their nearest polling place. Not sure if you’re registered to vote or need to change your address? You can find out here.

Still have questions about the Election Day protocol? Reach Napa County elections staff at 707-253-4321.

Races To Watch In Napa County

While the hottest race on the ballot is the presidential election — pitting Vice President Kamala Harris against former President Donald J. Trump — there are plenty of races to watch in Napa County.

Incumbent City of Napa Mayor Scott Sedgely was elected to the office in 2020 and is seeking another four years. Tuesday Allison, an area businesswoman, is also vying for the mayoral seat.

In the race for Napa City Council, District 2 Incumbent Beth Painter and District 4 incumbent Bernardo Narvaez are both seeking their second four-year terms representing their respective districts. They are running uncontested.

Incumbent and longtime St. Helena Mayor Paul Dohring seeks re-election. His lone challenger for the mayoral seat is Billy Summers, a business owner and current Council member.

Two at-large, nonpartisan St. Helena City Council seats are up for election with a field of three candidates: Aaron Barak, Michelle Deas and Hector R. Marroquin.

Two American Canyon City Council members, Pierre Washington and David Oro, are running for mayor of American Canyon.

Four candidates are vying for two at-large seats in the American Canyon City Council race. They include planning commissioners Brando Cruz and Davet Mohammed. Melissa Lamattina, a social worker, and Elmer Manaid, a business owner, round out the contest.

In the Calistoga mayoral race, Donald Williams is uncontested in the quest for his second two-year term.

There are three candidates in the Calistoga City Council race. Incumbent Lisa Gift is seeking her second four-year term. Irais Lopez-Ortega — currently vice mayor — is seeking her fourth as a council member. Marion Villalba, a member of the Napa County Behaovrial Health Board, seeks her first term.

Four candidates are vying for two seats on the Yountville Town Council. Incumbent Eric Knight seeks re-election to a second four-year term. Pam Reeves, also an incumbent, was appointed in 2023 to fill a vacant seat and is now seeking election to a four-year term. She was previously elected to the Council in 1990.

Retiree Joe Tagliaboschi previously worked as the town's public works director and was appointed to a Council vacancy in 2021. Robert Moore is a nonprofit director who wants to open the Lincoln Theater.

Napa County Board of Education

• Trustee Area 5— Rory Moran, Gerald Parrott

Napa Valley Unified School District School Board

• Trustee Area 2 — Lisa Chu, Kevin West
• Trustee Area 4 —Devin Jones against Eve Ryser
• Trustee Area 5— David Gracia against John Henry Martin
• Trustee Area 7— Marie Dennett, Juliann Hart

Napa Valley Community College District Governing Board

• Trustee Area 6 —Ines De Luna against Scott Owens

Local & Countywide Ballot Measures

Napa County Measure U

A "yes" vote supports implementing an updated Napa Valley Transportation Authority Expenditure Plan and renewing a 0.5 percent sales tax—for 30 years—with revenue dedicated to road repairs.

A "no" vote opposes implementing an updated Napa Valley Transportation Authority Expenditure Plan and renewing a 0.5 percent sales tax with revenue dedicated to road repairs.

Napa Valley Unified Unified School District Measure B

A "yes" vote supports authorizing Napa Valley Unified School District to issue $230,000,000 in bonds with the revenue to fund school facility improvements and requiring an estimated property tax levy of $22 per $100,000 in assessed value.

A "no" vote opposes authorizing Napa Valley Unified School District to issue $230,000,000 in bonds, with bond revenue going to fund school facility improvements and requiring an estimated property tax levy of $22 per $100,000 in assessed value.

City of Napa Measure G

A "yes" vote supports authorizing an additional sales tax of 1 percent — generating $22 million annually —with revenue dedicated to public services until the tax is ended by voters.

A "no" vote opposes authorizing an additional sales tax of 1 percent with revenue dedicated to public services until the tax is ended by voters.

St. Helena Measure A1, Adoption of City Charter Measure

To enhance local control over funding essential City services and generative funds that must stay local, shall the City of St. Helena Charter be adopted to establish St. Helena as a charter city with the ability to adopt local funding measures subject to voter approval, such as an increased real property transfer tax that could fund needed infrastructure improvements and public safety services throughout the City?

A "yes" vote supports the establishment of St. Helena as a charter city with the ability to adopt local funding measures subject to voter approval.

A "no" vote opposes the establishment of St. Helena as a charter city with the ability to adopt local funding measures subject to voter approval.

St. Helena Measure A2, Supplemental Real Property Transfer Tax Measure

To fund essential City services including repairing local streets/potholes, downtown sidewalks/infrastructure, maintaining emergency/fire response/ evacuation routes, for general government use, shall St. Helena adopt a measure establishing a graduated real property transfer tax ranging from 1.5%-3% of purchase price on sales over $1,000,000 to be paid only by property buyers/sellers/ generating approximately $5,300,000 annually until ended by voters, all funds staying in St. Helena/ cannot be taken by the state, be adopted?

A "yes" vote supports authorizing a graduated real property transfer tax ranging from 1.5%-3% of purchase price on sales over $1,000,000 to be paid only by property buyers/ sellers.

A "no" vote opposes authorizing a graduated real property transfer tax ranging from 1.5%-3% of purchase price on sales over $1,000,000 to be paid only by property buyers/ sellers.

St. Helena Measure B, General Plan and Zoning Code Amendment Initiative

The ballot questions asks: Shall a measure to amend the St. Helena General Plan 2040, the St. Helena Zoning Map, and the St. Helena Municipal Code to create a Winery and Planned Agritrourism Overlay to allow resort hotel development on certain large winery property within the City, be adopted?

A "yes" vote supports amending the General Plan and Zoning Code to permit development of a hotel resort.

A "no" vote opposes amending the General Plan and Zoning Code to permit development of a hotel resort.

California State Senate,3rd District

Democratic candidate and former longtime West Sacarmento Mayor Christopher Gabaldon has taught government classes at Sacarmento State University. Now, he wants to bring his experience to public office. See more on this campaign website: Cabaldonforsenate.com.

Napa County Supervisor Alfredo Pedroza withdrew from this race before the March primary, leaving a field of five candidates.

Republican candidate Thom Bogue came in second in the primary, securing his spot on the November ballot. Bogue serves on the Dixon City Council to which he was first elected in 2010. See more on his campaign website, Thombogue4statesenate.com.

California State Assembly, 4th District

Incumbent Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, a Democrat, seeks to retain her seat representing California's 4th state Assembly District. Read more on her campaign website: Ceciliaforassembly.com.

Republican candidate Darren Ellis advanced as a write-in from the March primary. Read more on his campaign website: Ellisforcalifornia.com.

U.S. Congress, 4th Congressional District

The incumbent, Democrat U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson, is a Napa County native who seeks to keep representing the 4th Congressional District in Washington, D.C. He is a U.S. Army veteran who was first elected to Congress in 1998. See more on his campaign website: Mikethompsonforcongress.com.

His challenger, Republican John Munn, is a longtime Davis resident and a former elected member of the Davis School Board. See more on his campaign website: Munnforcongress.com.

Statewide Races

In California, there are several statewide races to watch and 10 propositions to vote on.

U.S. Senate

A consequential contest will be the race for the U.S. Senate seat long held by the late Dianne Feinstein. In fact, voters will cast their ballot twice in this race, Nov. 5. They’ll choose a candidate to finish out Feinstein’s current term and again for the next term, which begins in 2025.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey are vying for the seat. Schiff, a progressive favorite in the Golden State, has served as a Democratic congressman here since 2000, representing the state’s 30th Congressional District in Los Angeles County.

Garvey, formerly an All-Star for the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Diego Padres, advanced in March to the November ballot as a first-time political candidate. Republicans have failed to advance a candidate in two of the last three U.S. Senate races, making Garvey’s defeat of Democratic Reps. Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, a rare feat for the GOP in blue California.

According to the latest poll from the Public Policy Institute of California, Schiff holds a 28 point-lead (63 percent to 35 percent) over Garvey. Schiff gained widespread name recognition for his role in Donald Trump’s impeachment trial. Read more about that race here.

U.S. House

As for congressional races, the state’s most competitive contests for the U.S. House seats in California are primarily in three regions — the Central Valley, Orange County and the Inland Empire, according to the Public Policy Institute of California’s most recent election report. The competitive races include districts 3, 9, 13, 22, 27, 40, 41, 45, 47 and 49.

Currently, the GOP holds seven of these seats. Here’s a brief breakdown of the candidates in each competitive area:

• District 3, which hugs the Nevada border from Death Valley to the Sacramento suburbs, will see another contest between Republican Incumbent Kevin Kiley and returning Democratic candidate Jessica Morse. Kiley previously attempted to run for Gov. Gavin Newsom’s seat in a failed recall attempt.
• District 9 centered in Stockton pits Democratic incumbent against Republican challenger Kevin Lincoln II.
• In District 13 covering the San Joaquin Valley, Republican incumbent John Duarte — who flipped the seat red in 2022 for the first time since 1974 — will go up against Democrat Adam Gray. Since Redistricting in 2022, the district is considered a left-leaning swing district whose voters went for Biden in 2020 but chose a Republican representative in 2022.
• District 22 in the San Joaquin Valley will have Republican incumbent David G. Valadao challenge Democrat Rudy Salas. Both candidates were neck-and-neck during the March primary, with Valadao receiving 32.7 votes to Salas’ 31.3. Redistricting has shifted the 22nd to the left since 2020, making Valadao one of the most vulnerable Republican incumbents in the House.
• In District 27, which covers northeast Los Angeles County, GOP incumbent Mike Garcia is pitted against George Whitesides, a former chief of staff of NASA during Barack Obama’s presidency and a formidable challenger for Garcia, who has held the seat since 2020.
• In District 40, covering northeast Riverside County, Democrat Joe Kerr will challenge Republican incumbent Young Kim.
• District 41 will have Republican incumbent Ken Calvert face off against a much younger Democratic contender, Will Rollins. Calvert is the longest-serving GOP member in California Congress. Rollins, who is gay, has clashed with Calvert over LGBTQ+ issues, which may prove to be a challenge for him in a district that encompasses Palm Springs.
• Orange County’s District 45, covering inland north county communities, is diverse both politically and by ethnicity, since the area hosts the largest population of Vietnamese people in the nation. There, Republican incumbent Michelle Steel will face off against Derek Tran, a Democrat known for his advocacy for workers’ rights.
• District 47, another Orange County stronghold, is currently represented by Rep. Katie Porter, who did poorly in the March primary and is not seeking reelection. Former GOP state legislator Scott Baugh, who lost to Porter previously, will challenge Sen. Dave Min.
• District 49 will see Democratic incumbent Mike Levin go up against Republican challenger Matt Gunderson.

State Measures

In California, it wouldn’t be a major election without a slew of proposed propositions.

Ten statewide propositions are on the ballot this November, including two $10 billion bond measures for school construction and to address climate change. Two amendments to the state constitution are also on the ballot: one that would repeal the unenforceable ban on same-sex marriage and another that would make it easier for bond measures to pass by lowering the voter threshold from the current supermajority needed to approve bond measures.

However, the most hot-button measure is Proposition 36, which seeks to reverse some criminal justice reforms passed when voters approved Proposition 47 a decade ago. If Prop 36 passes, it could significantly increase prison time for some drug and theft offenses that are currently misdemeanors.

Click here for Patch’s in-depth reporting on all 10 propositions.