Council clears first reading to move Ross municipal elections to November

The Ross Town Council introduced Ordinance 7 30 on July 10 to change the town’s general municipal election date from the statewide primary (which moved unpredictably in recent years) to the statewide general election in November. The council waived further reading and referred the ordinance by title, beginning the ordinance adoption process.

Town staff and the town clerk noted several practical reasons for the change: aligning Ross with most other Marin jurisdictions, easing coordination of regional appointments, and improving training timing for newly seated councilmembers. The staff report traced the recent legal context: Ross previously aligned with primary elections in 2006; subsequent state changes (including SB 970) altered primary timing and created an irregular schedule when the primary moved to June in non‑presidential years.

Councilmember Matt Salter raised procedural questions about how a change would affect the mayoral rotation and committee assignments; staff said those details would be addressed by the governance subcommittee and return to council as updates to the council procedures manual. Staff confirmed the ordinance would extend current terms to align with the new calendar when it takes effect.

The council approved the ordinance’s introduction on a 3–2 roll call: Mayor Mary McMillan, Councilmembers Terri Dowling and Kercher voted yes; Councilmember Salter recorded an abstention and Mayor Pro Tem Robbins voted no. Staff said the ordinance will return for a second reading and subsequent steps needed to implement the calendar change and related adjustments to committee assignments and onboarding schedules.

Provenance: staff presentation and the council’s first-reading action are recorded in the July 10 meeting transcript and the posted ordinance materials.