November may seem like a long way off, but those interested in running for school board in the fall can begin filing paperwork today. The deadline for filing is Aug. 10 unless one of the incumbents does not file, in which case there is a five day extension for all candidates except incumbents, said Deborah Russotti, election services supervisor for the Sonoma County elections office.

In Santa Rosa, Larry Haenel. Laura Gonzalez, Donna Jeye and Tad Wakefield are up for re-election. In Cotati-Rohnert Park, Ed Gilardi and Karyn Pulley are up for re-election. Scores more seats across the county are also up for contest.

For school board contenders, the process is relatively streamlined.

Candidates can choose to submit a statement of qualification, and must choose three words to describe their occupation.

Depending on the district, a candidate might have to pay for their candidate’s statement, Russotti said. Potential candidates should contact their local school district office for that information, as costs vary and whether or not the district will pick up the tab also varies.

There are no other filing fees associated with declaring candidacy, Russotti said.

Candidates can file out a form from the Fair Political Practices Commission form 700 prior to coming into the elections office. That form can be downloaded here:

http://www.fppc.ca.gov/forms/700-11-12/Form700-11-12.pdf

The elections office is located at 435 Fiscal Dr. in Santa Rosa. The phone is 564-6814. The website is http://vote.sonoma-county.org/content.aspx?sid=1009&id=1046