Arcadia Unified School District elections (2017)
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Two of the five seats on the Arcadia Unified School District Board of Education were up for at-large general election on April 18, 2017. In his bid for re-election to the board, incumbent Fenton Eng ran against challengers Leigh Chavez, Paul Ricchiazzi, and Kathy Yamane.[1] Eng won re-election, and Chavez won the open seat.[2]
Prior to the board of education election, citizens of the school district approved a parcel tax measure for the district on March 7, 2017. The measure extended and raised the district's 2012 parcel tax.[3][4]
The 2017 election was the first race in four election cycles to see opposition. In the district's 2011, 2013, and 2015 races, every seat on the ballot was unopposed. Click here to read more election trends.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Arcadia Unified Board of Education consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held at large on a staggered basis every odd-numbered year in April. Three seats were up for election on April 21, 2015, and two seats were up for election on April 18, 2017. There was no primary election.[5]
To run in this election, candidates had to be at least 18 years old, citizens of California, residents of the school district, registered voters, and "not legally disqualified from holding civil office," according to the bylaws of the Arcadia Unified Board of Education.[6] To get on the ballot, candidates had to file with the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk between December 27, 2016, and January 20, 2017. Because one incumbent did not file to run for re-election, the candidate filing deadline was extended until January 25, 2017.[7]
To vote in this election, citizens of the school district had to register by April 3, 2017.[7] Photo identification was not required to vote in California.[8]
Candidates and results
At-large
Results
| Arcadia Unified School District, At-large General Election, 4-year terms, 2017 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Fenton Eng Incumbent |
34.33% | 1,831 |
| Leigh Chavez |
29.98% | 1,599 |
| Kathy Yamane | 26.03% | 1,388 |
| Paul Ricchiazzi | 9.66% | 515 |
| Total Votes | 5,333 | |
| Source: Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Arcadia USD Board of Education Election," accessed May 12, 2017 | ||
Candidates
Fenton Eng 
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Leigh Chavez
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| Paul Ricchiazzi | Kathy Yamane | ||
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Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: California elections, 2017
The Arcadia Unified Board of Education election did not share the ballot with any other elections.[7]
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Arcadia Unified Board of Education election.[7][9]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| December 27, 2016 - January 20, 2017 | Candidate nomination period |
| January 25, 2017 | Extended candidate nomination deadline for open seats |
| February 21, 2017 - April 4, 2017 | Write-in candidate nomination period |
| March 9, 2017 | Campaign finance reporting deadline |
| April 3, 2017 | Voter registration deadline |
| April 6, 2017 | Campaign finance reporting deadline |
| April 18, 2017 | Election day |
| July 11, 2017 | Board members take office |
| July 31, 2017 | Campaign finance reporting deadline |
Endorsements
Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Campaign finance
At the time of this election, the Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk did not publish school board candidate campaign finance reports online. Ballotpedia staffers requested this information, but the only free method of viewing the files was at their office.
The Los Angeles Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk targeted the end of 2018 to make school board candidate campaign finance reports available online for free. From that point forward, Ballotpedia began including campaign finance data for Los Angeles County school board candidates.[10][11][12]
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | |
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2015This election was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbents Kay Kinsler, Cung T. Nguyen, and Lori Allison Phillipi were re-elected to their at-large seats by default.[13] 2013This election was canceled due to lack of opposition.[13] Newcomer Fenton Eng and incumbent Janet Chew were elected to the board by default.[14] 2011This election was canceled due to lack of opposition.[13] Incumbents Lori Allison Phillipi and Cung T. Nguyen and newcomer Kay Kinsler were elected to the board by default.[14] | |
What was at stake?
2017
Election trends
- See also: School boards in session: 2015 in brief
The 2017 Arcadia Unified Board of Education race was the first in four election cycles to see opposition. In the district's 2011, 2013, and 2015 races, every seat on the ballot was unopposed. In 2017, four candidates ran for two seats, for an average of two candidates per seat.
One newcomer was guaranteed to join the board in 2017 due to an open seat. The incumbent won re-election to the other seat on the ballot. One newcomer was elected to the board in 2011 and 2013. They both won open seats. No newcomers were elected in 2015.
| School board election trends | ||||||
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| Year | Candidates per seat | Unopposed seats | Incumbents running for re-election | Incumbent success rate | Seats won by newcomers | |
| Arcadia Unified School District | ||||||
| 2017 | 2.00 | 0.00% | 50.00% | 100.00% | 50.00% | |
| 2015 | 1.00 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 0.00% | |
| 2013 | 1.00 | 100.00% | 50.00% | 100.00% | 50.00% | |
| 2011 | 1.00 | 100.00% | 66.67% | 100.00% | 33.33% | |
| California | ||||||
| 2015 | 2.01 | 22.95% | 73.77% | 81.11% | 39.34% | |
| United States | ||||||
| 2015 | 1.72 | 35.95% | 70.37% | 82.66% | 40.81% | |
Issues in the election
Parcel tax measure
Before the Arcadia Unified Board of Education election in April 2017, citizens of the school district voted on Measure A, a parcel tax measure for the district, on March 7, 2017.[3] The measure required a 66.67 percent majority to pass, and it was approved with 67.63 percent of the votes.[15]
With its passing, the measure extended and raised the district's 2012 parcel tax. If the measure had not passed, the district would have had to layoff 28 teachers and three staff members, according to the Pasadena Star-News.[4]
The measure appeared on the ballot as follows:
| “ | ARCADIA TEACHER AND ACADEMIC INSTRUCTION PROTECTION MEASURE. To keep Arcadia schools among the best in California by renewing approximately $4.3 million in annual local funding the state cannot take away, shall Arcadia Unified School District continue attracting/retaining quality teachers; keeping schools safe/clean; protecting quality math, science, technology, reading, writing, art and music programs by extending the expiring school parcel tax at $288 per parcel annually for 18 years, requiring independent oversight/audits, senior exemptions, and all funds used locally to maintain quality education?[16] | ” |
| —Arcadia Unified School District (2017)[3] | ||
Candidate survey
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About the district
Arcadia Unified School District is located in Los Angeles County in southwestern California. The county seat is Los Angeles. Los Angeles County was home to an estimated 10,170,292 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[17] The district was the 175th-largest school district in the state in the 2014-2015 school year and served 9,582 students.[18]
Demographics
Los Angeles County underperformed compared to California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement between 2011 and 2015. The United States Census Bureau found that 30.3 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 31.4 percent of state residents. The median household income for Los Angeles County was $56,196, compared to $61,818 for the entire state. The poverty rate in the county was 16.7 percent, while it was 15.3 percent statewide.[17]
| Racial Demographics, 2015[17] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race | Los Angeles County (%) | California (%) | |
| White | 71.1 | 72.9 | |
| Black or African American | 9.1 | 6.5 | |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 1.5 | 1.7 | |
| Asian | 15.0 | 14.7 | |
| Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | 0.4 | 0.5 | |
| Two or more races | 3.0 | 3.8 | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 48.4 | 38.8 | |
Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Arcadia Unified School District California election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Arcadia Unified School District | California | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Arcadia Usd Board Of Education Election - 4/18/2017," accessed January 23, 2017
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Arcadia USD Board of Education Election," accessed April 19, 2017
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Consolidated Municipal And Special Elections March 7, 2017: Measures Appearing On The Ballot," accessed February 6, 2017
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Pasadena Star-News, "Arcadia Unified’s Measure A remains dozens of votes short with absentee ballots left to count," March 8, 2017
- ↑ Arcadia Unified School District, "Board of Education," accessed January 20, 2017
- ↑ Arcadia Unified School District, "BB 9220 Board Bylaws: Governing Board Elections," accessed January 20, 2017
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Calendar of Events: Arcadia Unified School District Board of Education Election," accessed January 20, 2017
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Where and How to Vote," accessed December 5, 2016
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Candidate Handbook and Resource Guide Arcadia Unified School District Board of Education Election April 18, 2017," accessed January 25, 2017
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Campaign Finance Reports," accessed July 2, 2014
- ↑ Daniel Anderson, “Email communication with Brenda Duran, Los Angeles County Public Information Officer," October 7, 2016
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Brenda Duran, Los Angeles County Public Information Officer," January 2, 2018
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Pasadena Star News, "With no opposition for 3 incumbents, Arcadia Board of Education cancels spring election," March 24, 2015
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 Arcadia Unified School District, "Board of Education," accessed March 27, 2015
- ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Los Angeles County Election Results: Consolidated Municipal and Special Elections March 7, 2017," accessed April 6, 2017
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 United States Census Bureau, "Los Angeles County, California," accessed January 20, 2017
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data, file ccd_lea_052_1414_w_0216161a, 2014-2015," accessed November 16, 2016
| Arcadia Unified School District elections in 2017 | |
| Los Angeles County, California | |
| Election date: | April 18, 2017 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Fenton Eng • Leigh Chavez • Paul Ricchiazzi • Kathy Yamane |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
