As Natalie Adona assumes the helm of the Marin County Registrar of Voters office, she’s stepping into an civic operation that is well run; powered by a dedicated and professional staff; and in a community that votes.

Marin has one of the highest percentage of registered voters in the state, with more than 170,000 voters — better than 93% of those eligible to cast ballots.

Adona, Nevada County’s elected registrar of voters and clerk-recorder, is succeeding Lynda Roberts, who is retiring at the end of this month.

Roberts led Marin’s office in the modernization of its voting systems, establishment of local voting centers and the growing use of mail-in voting.

Adona got her start in elections in 2008 as a poll worker while attending the University of California at Berkeley. She got involved in training poll workers and, after graduating from Cal, she worked as an intern for several nonprofits involved in promoting voter participation and education.

She holds a law degree and a master’s in public administration from American University and spent five years working as a researcher and grant maker for Democracy Fund in Washington, D.C., a foundation aimed at promoting voter participation and trust across racial challenges.

In 2019, she came back to California to join Nevada County’s registrar’s office. In 2022, when her boss decided to retire he encouraged her to run for the job.

Nevada County has an elected registrar, combining the job with the county clerk and recorder duties. Marin moved to an appointed registrar nearly 30 years ago.

Adona, who has Japanese and Filipino ancestry, faced opposition in her first run for office, drawing challenges from election doubters and Republicans, reflecting the dogma advanced by those who claim elections are rigged and question the results of the 2020 presidential election.

One of the campaign mailers focused on her race, making her complexion look darker than it is and sending a message that she, as Adona puts it, “did not belong.”

Voters disagreed with that message. She won the election with 68% of the vote, an impressive victory, especially in a county where there is more of a political balance between Democrats and Republicans than in Marin, where the GOP has just around 12% of the voter registration.

One of the reasons she applied for the Marin job is because she wants to live closer to her grandmother.

The new job is also a promotion in the size and scope of the office.

Her background on the front lines of public office and her time as a researcher and grantmaker also provides her with experience and insight that will benefit the office.

For candidates, she’s been in their position. For poll workers, she’s done the job. For voters, her career has focused on outreach, participation and trust.

For her staff, she brings an enthusiasm they share in promoting fairness, public transparency and professional experience that she has gained in managing elections and reviewing practices in other cities and counties.

There are dedicated critics of mail-in voting. There also have been critics that Marin’s voting rolls include people who are deceased or have moved out of the county.

Adona appears prepared and ready to face those doubters. She and her staff face the task of addressing these forces that seek to erode public trust in how our elections are conducted.

But just as important, they need to continue to build on the reliability, professionalism and public-friendly reputation of Marin’s elections office.

Marin has been fortunate to have a number of top-notch registrars and Adona has an opportunity to join them.