St. Helena will elect a new mayor and two councilmembers on Nov. 3. Mayor Paul Dohring is not running again, so the mayor's seat is open.
Who is running
- Mayor (two-year term ending December 2028): Bonnie Schoch and Patrick (Pat) Kenealy
- City Council (two seats, four-year terms ending December 2030): Daniel Hale, John Pedersen, Joshua Parke, Kate Spadarotto and Scott Diaz. Diaz and Spadarotto are incumbents who were appointed to the council; Diaz was appointed in May.
Brown water
About 80 people came to a League of Women Voters of Napa County forum at the library on Sept. 24, the Press Democrat reported. Spadarotto and Pedersen did not attend.
The first big topic was discolored water caused by iron and manganese in the city's supply. None of the candidates said they would drink the tap water without a filter. Diaz called the water his top issue and said the situation was "unacceptable." Hale said the council should get an update on the water at every meeting. The city is also flushing its water mains; see our story on the 40-mile flushing schedule.
Measure S sales tax
Measure S would add a half-cent sales tax, raising St. Helena's rate from 8.25% to 8.75%. Parke, Schoch and Hale oppose it. Kenealy and Diaz support it. Members of the city's finance committee have disputed the size of the deficit the tax is meant to close.
Hotels and wine
St. Helena charges a 13% hotel tax. Kenealy said he would support one or two new hotels. Talking about the wine industry's role in the city's finances, Hale said: "It's too big a piece of the pie here for us to let it go."
How to vote
Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls and vote centers close at 8 p.m., and mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive within seven days. You can check your registration and ballot status at sos.ca.gov/elections. California lets you register and vote the same day at a vote center.