San Rafael, CA – Lynda Roberts, who serves as registrar of voters, clerk, recorder, and clerk to the Board of Supervisors in Mono County, CA, is the County of Marin’s choice as its next registrar of voters.
County Administrator Matthew Hymel offered the position to Roberts this week following a national search. Starting on July 7, Roberts, who lives in Mammoth Lakes, will replace the retiring Elaine Ginnold, who has held the Marin position for eight years.
Roberts, a native of Utah, noted that Mono County finished No. 2 statewide behind Marin County in voter turnout for the November 2012 general election. “We were very proud of having our residents participate like that,” Roberts said.
Roberts, who was born in the Seattle area and grew up in Utah, has an undergraduate and master’s degree from the University of Utah. She spent 1981-1990 as chief deputy city recorder in Salt Lake City and spent 1991-2005 at the University of Utah working as journal production manager and an office administrator. After two years at a private school in Hawaii, she was hired by Mono County in her multifaceted role.
“At this point in my career, my professional goal is to focus solely on one area of expertise, and that would be registrar of voters,” she said. “I feel passionate about our right as citizens to select our leaders through the process of voting, and registrars provide a vital link by ensuring the public’s right to vote.”
Roberts said she admires that Marin has a volunteer Election Advisory Committee, something Mono County doesn’t have. She met a few of the committee members on a recent visit to Marin.
“The Advisory Committee is a nice link between the administration of the election process and the community,” she said. “I really think that will help resolve issues before they get too big.”
Hymel said it’s important to have an experienced professional in the independent position of registrar. “We feel fortunate to fulfill this important nonpartisan role with someone of Lynda’s skills and abilities,” he said.
Roberts’ starting salary will be $150,010.
Ginnold was hired as Marin’s registrar in May 2006. Previously she had been assistant registrar in Alameda County for 18 years, including the final year as acting registrar. An East Bay resident for the past 30 years, Ginnold has served as an international elections observer in Albania, Kazakhstan and Mongolia.
Ginnold, a New Jersey native, has a degree in English from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a masters in public administration from the University of San Francisco. She also worked in university administration, health care administration, public relations and teaching. She was a politician, too. Twice she was elected to the Dane County (Wis.) Board of Supervisors in the 1970s.
“It’s quite varied, I must say,” she said of her career.
In retirement, Ginnold said she plans to continue international election observations, study medieval history, travel, hike and write.
“This has been one of the most pleasant jobs I’ve ever had, mainly because of the people I work with,” she said of her time as Marin’s registrar. “I’ve enjoyed working in a county where the voters are enthusiastic about elections, and I’m pleased that Marin regularly has one of the highest voter turnouts in the state. That makes it very rewarding to be an election official.
“It’s been delightful to work with this Board of Supervisors because they are so supportive of the County employees – that doesn’t happen in every county. It’s worthwhile to be part of an organization like Marin County that is supportive and where you feel like everyone is working toward the same goal.”