Here’s who’s leading in Fresno Unified school board races
Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas, Andy Levine, and Daniel Bordona are leading in the Fresno Unified School board races, according to voter ballots tallied as of 5 p.m. Thursday. The next ballot counting update will be released on Nov. 12.
This year, voters will decide three seats on the seven-member board: Area 2 (Roosevelt High region), Area 5 (Fresno High region) and Area 6 (Hoover High region). All three areas’ incumbents are running for reelection, and each faces one or more challengers.
Jonasson Rosas, 40, deputy general manager for external affairs at Westlands Water District who is seeking her third term to represent the Roosevelt region, leads 19-year-old Fresno State student Joseph Aquino with 67.77% of the vote. Aquino is a Hoover High graduate and former Fresno Unified student trustee who is running for public office for the first time.
“I’m honored that the community entrusts me with something as important as the education of their kids, and I appreciate their support in my reelection,” Jonathan Rosas said on Tuesday night. “I know that there are many things that we need to work on in the years ahead, I look forward to continuing to represent them.”
In Fresno High area race, incumbent Levine, who filled succeed trustee Carol Mills in 2022 after winning a special election, held a comfortable lead over his two two challengers — James Martinez, 38, president of the Fresno County Board of Education, and Emma Villa, an educator and advocate for special-needs children.
The updated results show Levine leading the race with 44.46% of the vote ahead of James Martinez (28.36% of the vote) and Emma Villa (26.87%). Martinez is not seeking reelection to his seat on the county education board after his term ends in December. Villa has not held any public office.
Levine told The Fresno Bee on Tuesday night that it’s too early to celebrate, but he was glad to see the early results.
“Glad to have an early lead, feeling good about that, but it was still very preliminary, so definitely keeping an eye waiting for the next update and we’ll see where we’re at from there,” Levine said. “But I’m happy to be in this spot to begin with.”
The Hoover region features a close race between Bordona, a retired teacher and administrator, and incumbent Claudia Cazares, who is running for her third term on the school board. Bordona led Cezares, 50.98% to 48.78%, in the latest ballot returns.
Fresno Unified is the third-largest school district in the state with more than 68,000 students in 106 schools. It has a yearly budget of over $2.1 billion, making it the “biggest fiscal driver from Bakersfield to Sacramento,” according to former Superintendent Bob Nelson.
The Fresno Unified school board candidates collectively raised more than $250,000 for their races, according to Fresno County Clerk.
Jonasson Rosas raised $10,936, Bordona raised $93,863 and Cazares raised $10,873. Much of the spending happened in the Area 5 race — Levine reported raising $54,106 while Martinez raised $120,362.
Aquino and Villa filed statements promising they would raise and spend less than $2,000.
This story was originally published November 5, 2024 at 9:06 PM.
