Voters in the San Fernando Valley and on the Eastside of Los Angeles are casting ballots today, Tuesday, Nov. 8, for two seats on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education.
The polls close at 8 p.m. The initial round of results, composed entirely of vote-by-mail ballots that arrived before Election Day, is expected shortly after. The Los Angeles County registrar’s office will update the results with more ballots — first those cast at Vote Centers before Tuesday, followed by those cast on Election Day — throughout the night.
Check back here for updates on the results of both LAUSD races.
Board District 2
Voters in District 2 will choose a candidate to replace departing District 2 board member Monica Garcia. District 2 includes Downtown Los Angeles, East L.A., Boyle Heights, Lincoln Heights and El Sereno.
Rocío Rivas dominated in the June primary, getting 44.17% to María Brenes’ 30.45%.
Brenes is executive director of the nonprofit organization InnerCity Struggles and has two children in LAUSD. She is endorsed by SEIU Local 99, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti and District 2 representative Garcia. Her priorities include improving LAUSD’s special education programs by providing more resources and reducing class sizes.
Rivas, who was LAUSD board member Jackie Goldberg’s policy deputy, is endorsed by Goldberg, District 1 representative George McKenna, L.A. City Councilwoman Nithya Raman and United Teachers Los Angeles. LAUSD alumna Rivas looks to ensure that state tax policies don’t affect LAUSD funding, seeks to reduce class sizes, and touts more oversight of charter schools.
Board District 6
LAUSD Board President Kelly Gonez faces Marvin Rodríguez, an LAUSD high school Spanish teacher with 17 years of experience. The district includes North Hollywood, Van Nuys, Pacoima, Sylmar and other Valley communities.
Gonez got 47.64% in the June primary — shy of the 50% needed to avoid a runoff. Rodríguez got 31.2%.
Gonez, elected to the board in 2017, was an education policy advisor in President Obama’s administration. Gonez backs universal pre-school accessible for all, better funding for students and schools with higher needs, and improved efforts to ensure LAUSD graduates are equipped for college.
She is endorsed by the L.A. County Federation of Labor, UTLA, California School Employees Local 500 and Service Employment International Union Local 99.
Rodríguez is a U.S. Marine vet who attended public schools after immigrating to the U.S., and has two children in LAUSD. Rodríguez advocates against privatization of public schools, for better support for teachers, and for an accessible quality education, especially for special need students.
Rodríguez ran a grassroots campaign including events at parks in District 6, pledging to represent the community. He is endorsed by Knock L.A.