Some Fresno-area school board members could lose seat if election results hold

Several board seats in Fresno County’s largest school districts and community college district are on the ballot this election, and roughly half of the votes have been counted. Officials said they would update results Friday afternoon.

State Center Community College District

Four State Center Community College District trustees are fighting for their seats this year, and two incumbents were trailing in their races as of Tuesday night.

Area 2 Trustee Eric Payne, who has held his seat since 2012, is coming in third, behind Sevag Tateosian, who holds 32% of the vote, and Nasreen Johnson, who holds 37%. Payne is trailing with 30%. About 58% of the ballots are counted.

Johnson is a communications professional, and Tateosian is a public health analyst. Johnson was endorsed by the State Center Federation of Teachers, which did not back any incumbents this election.

“The SCFT Executive Council believes it is time to take the SCCCD Board of Trustees in a new direction and is confident that the endorsed candidates will serve the district well,” the union said in a statement.

Johnson said Wednesday she was “encouraged by the early numbers. Once every vote is counted, I’m looking forward to getting to work and making an impact in our community.”

Payne on Wednesday morning said while the outcome was not what he had hoped for, he is waiting until the last ballot is counted.

“It was a hard fight, but I left it all on the field,” he said. “While I am trailing behind by 7 (percentage) points, I’ve given it my all the last eight years, and I am thankful to have served and fought doggedly for the residents and students of Trustee Area 2. My prayers are with faculty, staff, students, and leadership as we look to the future.”

“I must say we have accomplished a lot over the last eight years,” he continued, “and our biggest win was the new $87 million community college campus for West Fresno. (It’s) something we can all be proud of and something that will far outlive me for generations to come.”

Area 3 trustee and board president John Leal trailed just slightly behind newcomer Danielle Parra, a bookkeeper, at 38.5% and 37.9%.

Leal’s other challenger, Dary Rezvani, a business owner and accountant, had about 23% of the vote. About 55% of the ballots had been counted.

A small portion of Area 3 extends into Kings County, where Leal captured 70% of the 47 counted votes as of 11:30 p.m. Tuesday.

Area 6 Trustee Deborah Jean Ikeda and Area 7 Trustee Richard Caglia both held comfortable leads in their races.

Ikeda held 43%, ahead of Sally Fowler, a retired school administrator, who had about 38% of the vote, and Chris Milton, a businessman, who held about 18%. About 66% of the votes have been counted.

Caglia was holding onto his seat with about 45% of the vote, while Jon Bath, a Fresno Unified teacher, held 31%. Abena Cruise, a community health representative, had about 22%. About 53% of ballots have been counted.

Fresno Unified

Fresno Unified trustee areas 5 and 6 were on the ballot, with both incumbents running for re-election.

Three people are running against Trustee Carol Mills, area 5, who has been on the board since 2004. This will be the attorney’s fifth time running for another four-year term. About 50% of the ballots have been counted, and Mills is in the lead with about 45%.

David Paredes, a community youth organizer, Alexandria Desiga, an education project manager, and Sharon A. Clinton, a retired job specialist, are running against Mills. Paredes has about 36% of the votes, Desiga has about 12%, and Clinton has about 5%.

Two people are running against Trustee Claudia Cazares, Area 6, who was elected to the board in 2016. Esteban Pacheco, a dispatcher, and Bill Gates, a business owner, are running against Cazares.

Cazares has about 50% of the votes, with about 55% of the ballots counted. Gates has about 24% of votes, and Pacheco has about 24%, also.

Clovis Unified

Four seats in Clovis Unified are up for election.

Area 2 Trustee Ginny L. Hovsepian is not running for re-election. Jacob Trumble, a ramp agent, and David Defrank, an attorney, are running against each other. Defrank has a lead with about 78% of the votes so far. About 65% of ballots have been counted.

Two people are running against Area 4 Trustee Hugh Awtrey, who was appointed to the board last year to fill a retired board member position. Noha Elbaz, an educator, and Jonathon Holt, a financial planner, are running against Awtrey.

With about 65% of the ballots counted, Awtrey has about 39% of the votes. Elbaz has about 35% of the votes, and Holt has about 25%.

Area 5 Trustee Christopher Casado is being challenged by Yolanda Moore, a physician assistant. With about 65% of the ballots counted, Moore is in the lead, with about 53% of the vote.

Central Unified

There are three seats on the ballot for the Central Unified school board, the third-largest school district in the county.

Corbin Gunstream, a chief financial officer, is challenging Area 3 Trustee Phillip Cervantes, who so far has about 51% of the votes, and about 60% of the ballots have been counted.

Long-time Area 6 Trustee Terry Cox is not running for re-election. There are four people on the ballot: Stacy Williams, a community organizer and department manager, Sandra R. Flores, a community outreach manager, Richard Martinez, a businessman, and Jeremy Alam Mehling, a farmer, and businessman.

With almost 51% of the ballots counted so far, Mehling has about 33% of the votes. Flores has about 26% of the votes, Martinez has about 22%, and Williams has about 17%.

Former Area 4 Trustee Richard Atkins resigned from the board in June just days after making comments on social media that critics described as “racist,” “disgusting,” and “xenophobic.” The seat has been vacant since.

Shawn M. Brooks, an account clerk, and Bret Rush, an assistant for a county supervisor, are running against each other for the Area 4 seat. Brooks has nearly 61% of the votes. Almost 50% of the ballots have been counted so far.

Sanger Unified

There are two seats on the ballot for the Sanger Unified school board, the fourth-largest district in Fresno County.

Area 1 Trustee Tammy Wolfe is being challenged by businessman Juan- Antonio “Sebastian” Ardemagni. Wolfe has a lead with about 74% of the votes, and about 61% of the ballots have been counted.

Karate instructor Va Pao Her is running against Area 4 Trustee Rick Duran. Her is in the lead with about 51% of the vote, and about 55% of the ballots have been counted.

This story was originally published November 4, 2020 at 11:07 AM.