Former Santa Rosa mayor, police chief enters race for Sonoma County supervisor seat

‘I've got the capacity, I've got the energy and the desire to do this,’ Tom Schwedhelm said. ‘I really want to continue to make a difference in Sonoma County.’

Former Santa Rosa Mayor Tom Schwedhelm is running for Sonoma County's 4th District Supervisor seat.

Former Santa Rosa Mayor Tom Schwedhelm enters Sonoma County 4th district supervisor’s race - The Press Democrat

EMMA MURPHY

THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

August 29, 2025, 11:14AM

4 minute read

After a three-year hiatus from politics, former Santa Rosa mayor and police chief Tom Schwedhelm is reentering Sonoma County’s political scene with his sights set on higher office.

Schwedhelm, 65, told The Press Democrat this week he plans to run for Sonoma County’s 4th District Supervisor seat.

“I've got the capacity, I've got the energy and the desire to do this,” Schwedhelm said. “I really want to continue to make a difference in Sonoma County.”

The former Santa Rosa chief retired from the police department in 2013 and went on to serve two terms as a Santa Rosa city council member, which included two years as mayor.

He’s built a political network from his years working in the county’s most populous city. But as he launches his campaign, he is casting himself as “just Tom” – a no-frills candidate who can relate to everyday voters.

A resident of Coffey Park in Santa Rosa, Schwedhelm aided in the rebuilding effort following the Tubbs fire in October 2017. His house was spared, but the fire destroyed 1,400 homes in his neighborhood alone.

As Santa Rosa mayor, he led the city through the Kincade and Glass fires, the nearby Walbridge fire, the pandemic, and the social unrest following the killing of George Floyd.

Since leaving city council at the end of 2022, Schwedhelm has worked as a consultant advising nonprofits through his own business, TZS Consulting. He’a also worked periodically for Regional Government Services, a joint powers authority that offers training and consulting services to local governments.

For now, Schwedhelm’s lone opponent is Cloverdale Mayor Todd Lands, who in July announced his intent to seek the seat in the June 2026 election. The official candidate filing period is still months away, so others could emerge.

Regardless, it would be the first competitive race for the expansive district since sitting Supervisor James Gore won the seat in 2014. Gore is running for the state Senate seat being vacated at the end of next year by Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, who will be termed out of the Legislature.

The 4th District spans northeastern Sonoma County, including Cloverdale, Healdsburg, Windsor and northern Santa Rosa, as well as the grape growing regions of Alexander and Dry Creek valleys.

Schwedhelm has long been registered as a “no party preference” voter, and was known as a moderate voice on the Santa Rosa council. If elected, he would be joining a left-leaning Board of Supervisors where all other members are registered Democrats.

Touting his “strong working relationship” with the current supervisors, Schwedhelm said the board’s political leanings compare to Santa Rosa council on which he served.

“Elected bodies, whether it be a city council or Board of Supervisors, is a team sport, and we can accomplish so much more working together,” Schwedhelm said. “I think I tried to model that behavior my eight years on council, even when I was mayor.”

Lands switched to “no party preference” at the end of 2023. He was previously registered as a Republican but has described himself as a moderate.

The 4th District historically has been the more conservative of Sonoma County’s five districts, said Sonoma State University political science professor David McCuan.

If no one else enters the race, the campaign will likely come down to the degrees that separate Schwedhelm and Lands who share similar experiences, McCuan said. He added that Schwedhlem’s Santa Rosa base offers him an advantage.

“The numbers matter in terms of how you address this,” McCuan said. “If it's just these two and no one else, and the battle is all about the primary, then you weigh the idea of experience and size of that experience.”

North county is home to a rural expanse of small, unincorporated communities, and farm and hospitality-based economies where tourism, workforce housing, water scarcity, wildfire risk and other local infrastructure needs are predominant issues.

Schwedhelm is confident he can navigate the move from representing a city council district to a larger swath of the county.

“I don't think it's going to be that big of change.” Schwedhelm said. “The whole thing is listening to what the people want.”

He said he has heard from vintners and other agricultural businesspeople in the 4th District who are looking for more support.

Schwedhelm shied away from specifics on what problems local winegrowers and farmers are facing, but said they’ve described feeling like “second class citizens” when they go to the county for help.

Whether it’s wine or farming, government services need to get more efficient.

“It's vital to the fabric of Sonoma County, it's what we're known for, it's what attracts visitors,” Schwedhelm said. “So I want, how does the county as an entity support that type of business enterprise.”

Though he said he doesn’t want to set priorities before hearing from 4th District constituents, Schwedhelm said housing, homelessness and PG&E’s plan to shut down the Potter Valley Project are high on his radar.

The Potter Valley Project is the century-old powerhouse and related system of dams that deliver Eel River water supplies into the Russian River, and its planned closure is prompting concerns about regional water shortages. It’s closure will likely dominate the race for 4th District Supervisor.

You can reach Staff Writer Emma Murphy at 707-521-5228 or emma.murphy@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MurphReports.