Unlike the 2008 election season, which was marked by the historic rise of then-Sen. Barack Obama to the presidency, the upcoming 2009 elections will hit much closer to home as there are no state or national offices slated for the ballots.

However, that doesn’t mean there’s a shortage of opportunities for people to get involved with their local governing bodies as more than a dozen elected positions will be on the ballot.

Those positions range from the six-figure Bremerton mayor’s position to the unpaid, yet vitally important, school board positions in both the Bremerton and Central Kitsap school districts.

Here is a breakdown of the positions with the already announced candidates, who have publicly stated their intent to run for office. The official filing period doesn’t begin until June 1. If there are more than two candidates for a position, the top two vote-getters in the Aug. 18 primary will move on to the Nov. 3 general election.

• Bremerton Mayor

Both current Mayor Cary Bozeman and Bremerton City Councilman Mike Shepherd, who represents District 5, have announced their candidacies for the position, which currently pays $117,672 per year. The filing fee for the position is $1,176.72. Bozeman is seeking his third term in office after besting Lynn Horton in the 2001 election and Shepherd has been on the city council for 12 years.

• Bremerton City Council positions

Five of the nine Bremerton City Council positions will be on this year’s ballot as voters in Districts 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 could infuse a wave of change into the council.

Only Councilman Adam Brockus, who represents the Manette area in District 3, has announced his intention to seek re-election this year after first being elected in 2005.

Councilman Brad Gehring, who represents District 1, and Councilman Nick Wofford, who represents District 9, are expected to announce their intent to run again, but have not yet done so officially.

Because Shepherd is running for mayor, he cannot run for his council seat as well, explained Kitsap County Elections Supervisor Dolores Gilmore, citing a state law that excludes a person’s name from appearing twice on the same ballot unless it is a precinct officer.

Greg Wheeler, who is chairman of the city’s planning commission, has officially announced his intent to seek Shepherd’s vacated seat on the council for District 5.

City Councilwoman Carol Arends, who has represented District 7 since 1997, has yet to give any public indication of what her intentions for possibly seeking a fourth term might be.

The filing fee for council positions is $120.

• Bremerton Municipal Court Judge

Longtime Bremerton Municipal Court Judge James Docter will face at least one challenger in his bid for a fourth term. Bremerton attorney Ed Wolfe announced his campaign in late February for the four-year