Category Archives: Elections

Articles, Elections

Prop 50 Voting Starts; Those Casting Ballots By Mail Should Send Them Early, Del Norte County Clerk-Recorder Says

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Thumbnail photo: Under new proposed Congressional District boundaries, Del Norte County would share a representative with Shasta, Siskiyou and Modoc counties, which are currently in District 1. | Photo courtesy of the Senate Election and Constitutional Amendments Committee.

Voters wanting to weigh in on Proposition 50 — California’s attempt to counter a Texas mid-decade redistricting proposal — shouldn’t wait until Election Day to mail in their ballot, County Clerk Recorder Alissia Northrup says.

Since Del Norte is more than 50 miles away from California’s six U.S. Postal Service processing facilities, ballots may not be postmarked until after Nov. 4. Northrup and her staff can’t count ballots that aren’t postmarked on or before Election Day.

“We just want to get the word out to people,” she told Redwood Voice Community News on Monday. “Because they’re not going to be upset at the post office, they’re going to be upset at us.”

Continue reading Prop 50 Voting Starts; Those Casting Ballots By Mail Should Send Them Early, Del Norte County Clerk-Recorder Says →
Articles, CC Harbor, Elections, Local Government

Gitlin Unveils Recall Petitions Against Harbor Commissioners Schmidt, Nehmer; Special Recall Election Could Cost CCHD Up To $130,000, Del Norte Clerk-Recorder Says

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Thumbnail photo: Roger Gitlin, former Del Norte Triplicate editor, speaks at a Crescent City Council meeting in June. | Screenshot

Former Del Norte Triplicate editor Roger Gitlin announced that he has begun the process to recall Crescent City Harbor commissioners Dan Schmidt and Annie Nehmer, though he’s not sure if the recall election will take place next June or November.

Gitlin announced his intentions before Nehmer and her colleagues Rick Shepherd and Gerhard Weber on Wednesday. He accused Nehmer of costing the Harbor District about $55,000 in legal fees and Schmidt of trying to persuade the Board of Commissioners to give his brother an executive role at the port.

“These breaches undermine the district’s ability to protect taxpayer funds in litigation and have collectively eroded public trust in (Schmidt’s) capacity to fulfill his duty,” Gitlin said. “Collectively they warrant recall. I have begun the process and will be seeking the intention to recall both of these commissioners in the foreseeable future.”

Continue reading Gitlin Unveils Recall Petitions Against Harbor Commissioners Schmidt, Nehmer; Special Recall Election Could Cost CCHD Up To $130,000, Del Norte Clerk-Recorder Says →
Elections, In Media Res, Tribal Affairs

‘Voting As One Of The Solutions’; One Yurok Tribal Member’s Take On Candidates Forum

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Thumbnail photo: Candidates for Yurok Tribal Chair from left to right: Edward ‘Horse’ Aubrey, Susan Masten, Jewel Frank, Joseph L. James, Thomas P. O’Rourke Sr., Phillip L. Williams | Courtesy of True North Organizing Network

By Tamara Brooks

Disclaimer: I am a Yurok Tribal member, a Yurok Tribal employee, and a Leader with True North and one of the organizers of this event. All opinions expressed are my own, and not affiliated with any agency, organization, or employment. 

I firmly believe that participation in the process of politics is not just a right that we are afforded but is vital. I have organized a few candidates’ forums, canvassed, volunteered in campaigns, a California poll worker, and am currently a trustee on the Del Norte County Library Board. 

As a family when we got our ballots we would sit around the table and discuss the candidates and the referendums, we would discuss the whys of our vote, and I have continued that tradition with my child: Voting as a family event; voting as an ongoing discussion of what we see to be the challenges and the strengths within the system; and voting as one of the solutions to the ongoing struggles that we see in our community, our tribe, our state, our country. 

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Articles, Community News, Elections, Local Government

Del Norte Board of Supervisors Recap, Aug. 26, 2025

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Thumbnail photo: Members of the Del Norte Sheriff’s Posse raised $10,000 to bring Otis, a 1954 Ford police car, back to the community last month. | Photo courtesy of the Del Norte Sheriff’s Posse

Among the items discussed at Tuesday’s Del Norte County Board of Supervisors meeting:

Supervisors accept “Otis”: Though the vehicle has already been purchased, Del Norte County supervisors officially accepted Otis on Tuesday.

The 1954 Ford police car has been in movies, including the 1996 crime flick “Mulholland Falls,” according to Sheriff Garrett Scott’s staff report. Over the summer, the Del Norte Sheriff’s Posse, the nonprofit organization supporting the sheriff’s office, raised $10,000 to buy the vehicle. 

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Articles, Curry, Elections, Local Government

Recalls Filed Against Hollinger, Trost; Petitioners Claim Curry County Commissioners Created a ‘Culture of Fear’

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Friday’s special Curry County Board of Commissioners meeting

Jay Trost and Patrick Hollinger went on the offensive against the chief petitioners seeking to oust them from the Curry County Board of Commissioners.

After spending about 45 minutes of a special meeting Friday touting their accomplishments, Trost and Hollinger went through each petition, taking issue with both the grievances they raise and the individuals raising them.

Trost said he viewed the petition against him, filed by Curry County jail commander Lt. Jeremy Krohn, as opposition to the Board’s “not adhering to a mentality of status quo.”

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Articles, Elections, Local Government

County Clerk-Recorder Invited Grand Jury To Observe Election Night Proceedings

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Photos by Paul Critz

On its face, the Del Norte County Civil Grand Jury’s report on Alissia Northrup’s office might appear mundane.

Unlike other agencies the citizen-led watchdog group delved into, there were no alleged violations of state law to investigate nor were they acting upon a citizen complaint. Del Norte’ county clerk-recorder said she invited the Civil Grand Jury to observe the counting process for mail-in ballots on Nov. 5, 2024

“I wanted to make sure I had someone completely unbiased, someone there that could report out if they saw anything they thought was wrong or inappropriate,” Northrup told Redwood Voice Community News on Wednesday. “It’s another layer of transparency.”

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Articles, Community News, Elections

What Does the SAVE Act Mean for Del Norte County?

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The California Association of Clerks and Elections Officials (CACEO) has written a letter of concern regarding HR 22, also known as the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (hence referred to as the SAVE Act.) Broadly the letter addresses the fact that the SAVE Act risks disenfranchising thousands of eligible California voters, significantly increases the cost of election administration at the local level, and may impose criminal penalties on officials who are simply doing their jobs. The full letter of concern can be found here. Del Norte County could also be hit hard by this legislation according to County Clerk/Recorder, Registrar of Voters, Public Administrator Alissia Northrup, a member of the CACEO.

“As written it currently requires voters to appear in person at an elections office to present documentary evidence of proof of citizenship when submitting their affidavit of registration, and that could be to register newly or make changes,” Northrup told Redwood Voice Community News. “So, I mean it could be something as simple as they are changing their party.”

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Articles, CC Harbor, Community News, Elections

Del Norte Saw A Surge In Last-Minute Ballot Submissions, County Clerk Says; Dan Schmidt, Annie Nehmer and John Evans Lead In Harbor Race

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Thumbnail photo by Eric (HASH) Hersman, via Wikimedia Commons. Creative Commons License.

Though she’s not sure if the winners in Del Norte’s one contested race will change, County Clerk Recorder Alissia Northrup is certain that the raw data will change.

Northrup said her office and polling places throughout the county saw a surge in last-minute voters on Tuesday. As a result, Northrup estimated that more than 1,000 ballots were submitted and have yet to be counted.

Continue reading Del Norte Saw A Surge In Last-Minute Ballot Submissions, County Clerk Says; Dan Schmidt, Annie Nehmer and John Evans Lead In Harbor Race →
Articles, CC Harbor, Community News, Elections, Local Government

Race For The Harbor: Harry Adams Says His Job’s Not Done

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Harry Adams credits the changing atmosphere and the new harbormaster for his last-minute decision to run for reelection as a Crescent City Harbor commissioner.

Adams, who’s currently president of the Board of Commissioners, says he’s not done doing the job. Yet  until about three weeks ago, he wasn’t even in the running for the three seats that are up for election this year.

“I felt like I was banging my head against the wall for four years,” Adams said, explaining why he hadn’t planned on seeking re-election. “I was frustrated. I wasn’t feeling it. But with the change in harbormaster, I feel like the cadence has changed, and I received  overwhelming support from the community to run again.”

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Articles, CC Harbor, Community News, Elections, Local Government

Race For The Harbor: John Evans Wants To ‘Further His Service To The Public’

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The Crescent City Harbor is in the midst of a cultural shift, John Evans says.

The 40-year-old correctional officer says he sees this shift at play during Harbor District meetings, especially during public comment. Expectations for how the port should operate have changed. People expect a more professional image from the Board of Commissioners, he says.

Speaking with KFUG Community Radio’s Paul Critz and Redwood Voice Community News on Oct 17, Evans opined on the recent changes at the Crescent City Harbor District. This includes the resignation of its harbormaster in September amidst allegations of credit card misuse. Its perceived lack of transparency by the public as well as its financial struggles.

It’s not lost on Evans that the only contested local race on the ballot this election season is the Crescent City Harbor District Board of Commissioners. This, he says, makes him optimistic about its future.

“At the end of the day there’s no money being a harbor commissioner,” Evans said. “Everybody who threw their hat into the ring is passionate about it and they feel they have something to offer the harbor.”

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