Novato, California Public Records

Public safety in Novato is maintained by the dedicated Novato Police Department, which can be found at http://novato.org/government/police-department. Residents can utilize the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Inmate Locator at https://www.cdcr.ca.gov/ciris/ to search for information on incarcerated individuals. The California Department of Justice's Missing Persons and Most Wanted resources at https://oag.ca.gov/missing and https://www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices/losangeles/wanted also serve the Novato community.

Novato voters are served by the Marin County Department of Elections (officially the Registrar of Voters), located at 3501 Civic Center Drive, Room 121, San Rafael, CA 94903 (phone: 415-473-6456, website: https://www.marincounty.org/depts/rv). This office administers all federal, state, county, and municipal elections for Novato residents, including voter registration, ballot processing, vote-by-mail, and election results reporting. Novato residents can register to vote online at https://registertovote.ca.gov, California's statewide voter registration portal, up to 15 days before an election; conditional voter registration is available on Election Day at the county elections office or designated vote centers. California requires voters to provide their driver's license or state ID number, or the last four digits of their Social Security number, when registering. Municipal elections for the City of Novato are held in November of even-numbered years for City Council seats; Novato operates under a council-manager form of government with five council members serving staggered four-year terms, and the council selects a mayor from among its members. The next Novato City Council election is scheduled for November 2026, when two or three council seats will be on the ballot depending on term expirations. Polling place lookup for Novato voters is available at https://www.marincounty.org/depts/rv/voting-information/polling-place-lookup or through the California Secretary of State's voter portal at https://voterstatus.sos.ca.gov. Marin County has transitioned to a vote center model under the California Voter's Choice Act, meaning registered voters can vote at any vote center in the county during the early voting period or on Election Day, rather than being assigned a specific precinct polling place. Election records that are public in California include voter registration lists (name, address, party affiliation, voting history but not vote choices), campaign finance disclosures filed with the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) and local jurisdictions, candidate statements and filings, and precinct-level election results. These are accessible through the Marin County Elections website, the California Secretary of State at https://www.sos.ca.gov, and the FPPC at https://www.fppc.ca.gov. In the November 2024 presidential election, Marin County recorded voter turnout of approximately 82%, one of the highest rates in California, with strong engagement across all precincts including Novato. For the November 3, 2026 general election, Novato and Marin County voters will decide races including California's gubernatorial election (Governor Gavin Newsom's term expires in 2027, so 2026 will feature the gubernatorial race), several statewide offices (Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Insurance Commissioner, etc.), U.S. House of Representatives (Novato is in California's 2nd Congressional District represented by Jared Huffman, up for reelection in 2026), California State Senate and Assembly seats, Marin County Board of Supervisors District 5 (which includes Novato), and Novato City Council seats. California does not have a U.S. Senate seat up in 2026; the next Senate race is in 2028. All registered California voters automatically receive a vote-by-mail ballot under current law; voters can request a replacement ballot, track their ballot status at https://wheresmyballot.sos.ca.gov, or vote in person at a vote center. Vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and received within seven days, or deposited in an official drop box by 8:00 PM on Election Day.