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2026 Sonoma County Supervisor Candidates
Nonpartisan Candidate Questionnaire
Candidates were asked to limit their answers to 150 words per question. Candidate answers are published in full, without editing or paraphrasing. This guide is intended to educate voters impartially on a nonpartisan basis. North Bay Organizing Project does not support or oppose any candidate for Sonoma County Supervisor.
Choose a district:
District 2
Question #1: The County is increasingly using surveillance technologies. Discuss what you will do as a Supervisor toaddress the benefits, risks, and controversies surrounding our rapidly evolving governmental surveillancetechnologies landscape.
Candidate Sylvia Lemus:
As surveillance technologies evolve, local governments including our Board of Supervisors in conjunction with the Sheriff’s Office and City Police Departments must retain local control of surveillance footage, including strict limits on the duration of time data is stored, who it is shared with (maintaining prohibitions on data sharing with federal agencies), and other best practices to prevent data from being used for nefarious purposes. If those limits are maintained, I do think that these technologies can help solve violent crimes, property crimes, and abductions – but those activities need to remain the focal point. Equally important, these technologies need to be encrypted to prevent data hacking.
Candidate Joanna Paun:
Having strong policies to protect residents, employees,and limit county liabilities. The existing structures of civilian oversight assist in ensuring appropriate use of technologyas a tool. For example the County is currently involved in a lawsuit (financial liability) due to code enforcement utilizingdrones to fine residents, without prior notice to residents that a drone would be utilized. This raises concerns ofresident privacy and can cost the county in attorney fees, settlements, etc. this is money that could be spent elsewhere
Question #2: 83,100 immigrants reside in Sonoma County (July, 2026) and are an essential part of our social fabric.Discuss your position on the County’s current policy regarding immigration and what you will do to improve thelives of those who have been historically disenfranchised – for example, immigrants, undocumented immigrants,DACA recipients, immigrants released from county jail, families impacted by immigration detention, and familieswith mixed immigration status?
Candidate Sylvia Lemus:
I’m the only candidate for District 2 Supervisor who has taken meaningful action to support immigrant communities. I’m the daughter of an immigrant and my family made its way to Sonoma County given my grandfather was a farmworker. As Mayor, I led the charge to limit cooperation with ICE; was a founding Board Member of Los Cien, Sonoma County’s premier Latinx community advocacy group; and was a member of the Community and Local Law Enforcement (CALLE) Task Force, which led to the formation of IOLERO. My leadership on this issue cannot be matched by my opponent; and while it’s easy to opine and simply note they agree with a particular person on a particular issue, I’ve actually taken action on immigration protections. As a bilingual communications specialist with the County Administrator’s Office and 1st Latina Mayor of Cotati, I have, and will remain, a leading voice for vulnerable immigrant communities.
Candidate Joanna Paun:
The current policy excludes elected officials from maintaining the sanctuary status. I believe that electeds should uphold the policies imposed and protect our residents. Working with ICE creates an environment of fear, negatively impacts our economy, and in a county with rich agricultural and entrepreneurial roots we see the effects of unchecked powers like ICE, which did not previously exist until the early 2000’s
Question #3: In Sonoma County, over 45% of renters experience severe rent burden, spending more than 50% oftheir income on housing. Discuss what renter protections, homelessness prevention, and housing preservationpolicies you will work to implement to ensure housing stability and prevent community member displacement.
Candidate Sylvia Lemus:
I have supported tenant protections in mobile home parks in Cotati, and will support similar renter protections for these vulnerable populations on the Board of Supervisors. As a member of the Sonoma County Homeless Coalition, I’ve also collaborated with Supervisors and City Councilmembers throughout the county for a regionally coordinated approach to homelessness, and unsheltered homeless statistics have shown a decline in homeless populations compared to before I was a Planning Commissioner and City Councilmember, Vice Mayor, and Mayor. As a member of the Board of Supervisors, I will advocate for mobile home park residents, those experiencing homelessness, those living in deed-restricted affordable housing communities, and look for other ways to help vulnerable populations maintain their housing and housing security.
Candidate Joanna Paun:
With the highest growing population of residents experiencing homelessness and housing instability being over the age of 60, we need protections to keep residents safe. Implementing policies like mobile home protections, last market rate affordable option, we lessen the impact of other social and health services needed. When people can afford groceries, rent or mortgages, and access to health care we have a community and economy that thrives. Also allowing us to utilize government funded programs to focus on advancing our residents instead of struggling to catch them at the end of the river. Upstream approach versus battling up hill.
Question #4: In 2024, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors passed a novel disaster-triggered county-wideeviction moratorium during a declared County emergency. What would you do in your position to ensure a justrecovery (in housing, work, language access, and recovery efforts) for communities during disasters or emergenciesin Sonoma County?
Candidate Sylvia Lemus:
As a bilingual communications specialist in the County Administrator’s Office in the aftermath of wildfires and the pandemic, I have been tested, and delivered, in this regard on issues related to housing, workplace displacement, equitable language access, and recovery efforts. It was the culmination of a 30+ career with the County of Sonoma, that gave me an unmatched understanding amongst the candidates in this race on how the levers work inside government, and how to amplify those internal processes to communicate with the public as an elected official and protect residents during future natural disasters. Based on proven experience in this arena, I know I can continue to use my knowledge, my experience, and my record of taking action to address those issues on the Board of Supervisors.
Candidate Joanna Paun:
Ensure the existing system is activated in a timely manner. Coordinate county bodies with community based organizations and COAD, and partner governmental agencies to ensure the most vulnerable in our community are able to receive services in a timely manner. Evaluate for opportunities to expand existing protections to meet the needs of the community.
Question #5: Discuss your views of IOLERO, Measure P implementation, and the dispute over the Sheriff’s refusalto compel deputies to truthfully respond to questions from IOLERO investigators and to discipline them if theyrefuse to do so
Candidate Sylvia Lemus:
My work on the Community and Local Law Enforcement (CALLE) Task Force was the community-driven precursor that led to the formation of IOLERO and concept behind Measure P. I supported Measure P 6 years ago, and will not seek to open Measure P back up on the Board of Supervisors – though I would hope for more collaboration and common ground with our Sheriff’s Office on implementing, and delivering, on the intent behind Measure P and need for civilian oversight of local law enforcement – which is something I supported prior to becoming an elected official, and continue to support to this day. The courts have weighed in and adjudicated this issue, and it’s clear to me that our mission moving forward is to allow Measure P to continue to take effect and ensure accountability where needed.
Candidate Joanna Paun:
IOLERO was created after voters overwhelmingly passed Measure P with over 60% of the votes, following the murder of Andy Lopez by a sheriff’s deputy. Subpoenas and investigations are part of law enforcement curriculum, having a third-party oversight maintains the integrity of investigation and can also protect the sheriff from false accusations. The current practice of refusing to comply is costing tax payers, at minimum, an additional $500,000. This is monies that can be better utilized towards citizen programming, technology upgrades, investment in supporting and protecting our community.
District 4
Question #1: The County is increasingly using surveillance technologies. Discuss what you will do as a Supervisor toaddress the benefits, risks, and controversies surrounding our rapidly evolving governmental surveillancetechnologies landscape.
Candidate Melanie Bagby:
As an IT professional, I know technology can improve public safety and efficiency, but the County should never treat surveillance as a shortcut around civil liberties. I will require clear public policies before new surveillance tools are deployed, including a defined purpose, data-minimization and retention limits, security standards, independent audits, and regular public reporting on use and effectiveness. Technologies such as license-plate readers, drones, and facial recognition should be narrowly tailored, subject to legal process where required, and protected from misuse or mission creep. County data should not be shared for federal immigration enforcement absent a judicial warrant or for purposes inconsistent with California law and our community values. Innovation must come with accountability, transparency, and meaningful community input, especially from communities most likely to be surveilled
Candidate Tom Schwedhelm:
Based on the investigative challenges posed by those who engage in violent or property-related crimes, I do see value in surveillance technologies; but also recognize that we must stay ahead of the curve as the technology evolves, the risk of data hacking by foreign agents and others rises, and as pressures from federal agencies threatens to usurp the current control and authority by local law enforcement agencies, which must be maintained. I do not support federal agencies having the ability to tap into these systems, and believe each local jurisdiction, here being each of the 9 cities and the county as a whole for unincorporated areas, maintaining the discretion to adjust policies if surveillance technologies evolve above and beyond their current capabilities.
Question #2: 83,100 immigrants reside in Sonoma County (July, 2026) and are an essential part of our social fabric.Discuss your position on the County’s current policy regarding immigration and what you will do to improve thelives of those who have been historically disenfranchised – for example, immigrants, undocumented immigrants,DACA recipients, immigrants released from county jail, families impacted by immigration detention, and familieswith mixed immigration status?
Candidate Melanie Bagby:
I support County efforts to limit cooperation with ICE, but they should be strengthened and made transparent. Local law enforcement should not act as federal immigration enforcement. Except in narrow cases involving serious violent felonies, cooperation or transfer should require a signed judicial order. Everyone in Sonoma County, documented or not, should be able to report crimes, go to work, seek care, use County services, and recover from disasters without fear. I will support legal-navigation and know-your-rights partnerships, strong language access, protection against wage theft and retaliation, and County services without unnecessary immigration-status barriers. I will work with unions and trusted community organizations to support DACA recipients, mixed-status families, and people returning from jail. Immigrant workers are essential to our economy and social fabric; County policy should treat them as neighbors and partners, not as enforcement targets
Candidate Tom Schwedhelm:
I’m a strong supporter of immigrant communities and several months ago, ensured immigrant communities knew they had a voice and an ally in me as a candidate for County Supervisor by publishing a section on my website titled ‘Caring for Our Residents’ – a demographic that includes immigrants and those who’ve been historically disenfranchised. My position on immigration detention is clear – I oppose ICE raids and cooperation with ICE, unless we are looking at releasing a detained individual back into society who is a dangerous or violent felon convicted of a crime in that regard. Then, and only then, do I think that local law enforcement should have discretion on whether or not to allow that individual to reenter society. Someone accused of a non-violent or less serious felony or misdemeanor should not live in fear that they will be detained if released from custody.
Question #3: In Sonoma County, over 45% of renters experience severe rent burden, spending more than 50% oftheir income on housing. Discuss what renter protections, homelessness prevention, and housing preservationpolicies you will work to implement to ensure housing stability and prevent community member displacement.
Candidate Melanie Bagby:
Housing stability requires both more affordable housing and stronger tenant protections. I support rent control, repeal of Costa-Hawkins and the Ellis Act, no-fault eviction protections, a fully funded right to counsel, and banning rent-setting algorithms. I would build on Sonoma County’s tenant protections by preserving the disaster eviction moratorium, strengthening anti-displacement rules, and improving eviction and rent data. Prevention is cheaper and more humane than allowing families to become homeless, so we should expand rental assistance, legal aid, and rapid-response prevention. On preservation, I support community land trusts, nonprofit acquisition of at-risk affordable properties, and tenant opportunities to purchase when properties are sold. At the same time, we must produce more deeply affordable and workforce housing through objective standards, streamlined permitting, ADUs, infill near jobs and transit, and partnerships with nonprofit developers. People who work here should be able to live here
Candidate Tom Schwedhelm:
I was a Sonoma County leader on homelessness solutions as a former Santa Rosa Mayor and City Councilmember. I worked closely with Catholic Charities and other nonprofits, have personally participated in Point-in-Time homeless counts several times, and was Chair of the Sonoma County Continuum of Care (now known as the Sonoma County Homeless Coalition), and took strong action on an issue most shied away from. That’s why I’ve earned endorsements from the Santa Rosa City Council Majority, Healdsburg City Council Majority, Sonoma County Board of Supervisors Majority, and every member of the Cloverdale City Council, due to my ability to build consensus and deliver results on one of the most complicated issues in Sonoma County. As a Mayor and Councilmember, I also supported Santa Rosa’s leadership on affordable and middle-income housing production (though as a member of the Board of Supervisors, I’ll encourage city-centered growth to protect our rural character).
Question #4: In 2024, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors passed a novel disaster-triggered county-wideeviction moratorium during a declared County emergency. What would you do in your position to ensure a justrecovery (in housing, work, language access, and recovery efforts) for communities during disasters or emergenciesin Sonoma County?
Candidate Melanie Bagby:
I support the disaster-triggered eviction moratorium because disasters should not become an opportunity for displacement. As Mayor of Cloverdale during the 2019 Kincade Fire and prolonged power and gas shutoffs, I saw how emergencies hit renters, workers, seniors, immigrants, and small businesses differently. A just recovery means keeping people housed, protecting workers, and making assistance accessible regardless of language or immigration status. I would maintain strong emergency eviction protections, deploy rental and cash assistance quickly, enforce anti-price-gouging and worker-safety rules, and require multilingual alerts, applications, and recovery navigation in the languages communities actually use. I also support mutual-aid and resilience hubs and stronger partnerships with trusted community organizations. For agricultural workers, any emergency reentry must meet air-quality standards, provide protective equipment, and protect the right to refuse unsafe work without retaliation. Recovery is successful only when the people who were here before the disaster can remain afterward.
Candidate Tom Schwedhelm:
I served on the Santa Rosa City Council in the aftermath of the Tubbs Fire, and was Mayor of Santa Rosa as Santa Rosa recovered from one of the worst natural disasters in county history. As part of the recovery and rebuilding process, I led efforts at the city, in collaboration with the county, to ensure those impacted could return home. Whether it be Coffey Park or Journey’s End Mobile Home Park, we built pathways for people of all income levels and walks of life to have a means and path to recovery. While I did not serve in public office in 2024, based on my past leadership on this issue, I would work on just and equitable recovery efforts if another natural disaster strikes Sonoma County in the future.
Question #5: Discuss your views of IOLERO, Measure P implementation, and the dispute over the Sheriff’s refusalto compel deputies to truthfully respond to questions from IOLERO investigators and to discipline them if theyrefuse to do so
Candidate Melanie Bagby:
I was a strong supporter of Measure P and IOLERO, and voters were clear that they want meaningful, independent civilian oversight. The March 2026 Court of Appeal decision confirmed IOLERO’s subpoena power in whistleblower investigations. Oversight cannot work if deputies can ignore lawful subpoenas or refuse to answer administrative questions without consequence. At the same time, constitutional and labor rights must be protected through proper procedures, including appropriate Garrity/Lybarger protections and good-faith bargaining where required. The Sheriff should work with IOLERO and the County to establish a lawful process that compels truthful participation in administrative investigations and provides discipline for refusal to comply. I do not accept the premise that respecting employee rights requires weakening voter-approved oversight. We can protect due process and enforce accountability at the same time. Measure P should be implemented as fully and lawfully as possible, consistent with the voters’ mandate.
Candidate Tom Schwedhelm:
I am strong supporter of civilian oversight of local law enforcement. I believe it is important both for public trust, as well as transparency and accountability. Following a 30+ year with the Santa Rosa Police Department, including the aftermath of the Andy Lopez shooting where SRPD handled the response and investigation, I know how important it is to balance the desire for transparency with internal investigative processes. I also have an unmatched understanding of some of the more technical complexities of balancing the intent of Measure P, IOLERO and civilian oversight of local law enforcement. I have spoken at length on this issue, including at Los Cien and other candidate forums, and will continue to reiterate my support for civilian oversight as a member of the Board of Supervisors.