Seven candidates are on the ballot for four seats on the Southern Marin Fire Protection District board in the Tuesday, Nov. 3, election, as a new fire chief takes charge and the firefighters union backs two challengers.

Election results are pending. This article will be updated as election officials release vote totals.

Incumbents Kurt Chun, Cristine Soto DeBerry, Peter Fleming and Thomas Perazzo are seeking new terms. Challengers Thomas Clark, Eric Steinhofer and Amy Svendberg are trying to unseat them, according to the county’s official candidate list.

The district serves approximately 41,576 people across more than 25 square miles, according to its employment information. Its territory includes Mill Valley, Sausalito, part of Tiburon and nearby unincorporated communities, along with Fort Baker and the Marin Headlands.

New chief, union support

The district announced Heather Marques’s appointment as fire chief Sept. 24. A subsequent district announcement says she began service Oct. 13 after serving as division chief of medical services for the Alameda County Fire Department.

The Marin Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 1775, which includes Southern Marin firefighters, is not endorsing any incumbents. The union is backing Steinhofer and Svendberg instead, the Marin Independent Journal reported Oct. 8.

The challengers

The county candidate list identifies Steinhofer as an energy consultant, Svendberg as a small business owner and Clark as retired.

In its Oct. 27 campaign-finance report, The Ark reported that the Marin Professional Firefighters Political Action Committee contributed $5,900 apiece to Steinhofer and Svendberg. Each also received $1,500 from the Southern Marin Firefighters Association. Separately, the PAC reported spending $1,750 on text messages for each candidate.

The incumbents

Chun is a retired Berkeley fire captain who joined the board in 1991, according to the district’s board biographies.

DeBerry was appointed in 2019, and Fleming has served for about a decade, according to the Marin Independent Journal.

Perazzo, a retired safety and risk management consultant, joined the board in 2012, according to his district biography.

How to vote and track results

Vote centers are open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Pacific time Tuesday, Nov. 3, according to Marin County Elections. Ballot drop boxes also close at 8 p.m.

Mail ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 3 and received by Nov. 10, according to the county voter guide. The county’s election page provides voter information and ballot-tracking links.

Voters can follow returns through the county’s election results page. Election-night totals are unofficial.