Bobby Garcia and Louie Gonzales recall, Sunnyside Unified School District, Arizona (2014)
| Sunnyside Unified School District Governing Board recall |
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| Officeholders |
Louie Gonzales |
| Recall status |
| Recall election date |
| May 20, 2014 |
| See also |
| Recall overview Political recall efforts, 2014 Recalls in Arizona Arizona recall laws School board recalls Recall reports |
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| Historical recalls | |
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| Recall news | |
| Recall laws | |
| Recall Portal | |
An effort to recall Bobby Garcia and Louie Gonzales from their at-large positions on the Sunnyside Unified School District Governing Board in Arizona was launched in July 2013.[1] Garcia and Gonzales were recalled during a mail-in ballot election that concluded on May 20, 2014.[2] They were replaced by Rebecca Quintero and Eric Griffin, respectively. Quintero and Griffin were sworn into office during a board meeting on June 3, 2014.[3]
Garcia and Gonzales were targeted for recall due to their support for former superintendent Manuel Isquierdo. Isquierdo attracted criticism from community members for questionable uses of district resources, erratic personal behavior and poor financial management. He was bought out of his contract in June 2014 and replaced by Eugenia Favela.[1][4] For more information on why community members pursued a recall election, check out the section titled Recall supporter arguments.
The recall effort against Garcia and Gonzales followed a 2013 effort to recall fellow board members Buck Crouch and Daniel Hernandez Jr. District resident Marcos A. Castro organized the recall effort because Crouch and Hernandez were critical of Isquierdo. Supporters of this recall effort did not submit recall petitions, claiming that they did not want the district to pay for multiple recall elections. Both recall efforts began in the summer of 2013 with Castro's effort halted in December 2013.[5]
Election results
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan |  Rebecca Quintero |
59.3% | 2,548 | |
| Nonpartisan | Bobby Garcia Incumbent | 21.8% | 938 | |
| Nonpartisan | Mike Polak | 18.8% | 808 | |
| Total Votes | 4,294 | |||
| Source: Information submitted to Ballotpedia through e-mail from Ricky D. Hernandez on June 25, 2014. These results are official and certified by the Pima County Elections Department | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Eric Griffin |
75.1% | 3,108 | |
| Nonpartisan | Louie Gonzales Incumbent | 24.9% | 1,029 | |
| Total Votes | 4,137 | |||
| Source: Information submitted to Ballotpedia through e-mail from Ricky D. Hernandez on June 25, 2014. These results are official and certified by the Pima County Elections Department | ||||
Candidates at a glimpse
Note: To jump ahead to a particular candidate statement, click on the candidate name from the following list:
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| List legend | |
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| Symbol | Meaning |
| ☑ | Candidate won the election |
| ☐ | Candidate lost the election |
Candidate statements
The Office of the Pima County School Superintendent published candidate statements prior to the recall election. Here are excerpts of these candidate statements:
Bobby Garcia
| “ |
I currently serve on the Sunnyside Unified School District Governing Board after being elected to my first term in November 2012. I would like to continue serving the District and working to improve education for our families. My goal is simple-to continue to understand what the District's organizational and operational strengths are and how I can provide leadership to make it better. There are never simple answers to running a school district and I don't have simple answers to propose. I promise to carefully think about the district's vision and mission, listen to our community, and have a voice in decisions that benefit of the education of our students and community. My time on the board has made me aware of the challenges of our district faces and the importance of having strong leadership on the Governing Board. Our Board has a duty to the community that voted us into the office and to the employees who serve our students. As a Board member I am responsible to fulfill the obligations and leadership you have entrusted me with, and make fiscally and educationally sound decisions-not politically based ones. |
” |
| —Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, (2014) | ||
Rebecca Quintero
| “ |
My interest in serving on the Sunnyside Unified School District School Board is to promote positive change that will benefit our children. I believe in our children and the importance of their development into responsible citizens. I want to build a strong and cohesive school board, to rebuild community trust, to restore transparency and communication and to return our ratings to A+ and Blue Ribbon Schools. I have been a strong advocate and steadfast community leaders for the past forty years working tirelessly to enact programs that engage and education the youth of this District so that they may actively pursue opportunities that will benefit others on a larger, more global scale. |
” |
| —Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, (2014) | ||
Mike Polak
| “ |
Mike will be:
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” |
| —Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, (2014) | ||
Louie Gonzales
| “ |
I am a proud member of the Sunnyside Unified School District community, which is why I desire to continue to serve on the SUSD board. I want to continue to help our District, community and students fulfill their education goals. I am committed to every child in Sunnyside, making hard decisions that produce a benefit for the children and the community as a whole without allowing political pressures to influence my decisions. I support the investments the District has made an early childhood education such as the Pre-K programs at the award winning Ocotillo Early Learning Center. At Ocotillo, we have laid the foundation for a love of learning which is the basis for academic and lifelong success for our kids. I will also continue my support of the professional growth of our teachers by ensuring the District provides a respectful and collaborative work environment |
” |
| —Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, (2014) | ||
Eric Griffin
| “ |
He is a candidate for the Sunnyside Unified School District No. 12 Governing Board. His 12 years of experience as a Governing Board Member make him uniquely qualified to help restore our district to one that puts our kids first, restores fiscal responsibility and once again a staff valued placed to work. Where are all students, all residents and all district employees can again, be proud members of the Sunnyside Family. A vote for Eric Griffin is an investment in our children's future. |
” |
| —Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, (2014) | ||
Recall supporter arguments
The recall effort was led by a group called Sunnyside Recall 2013. The group was made up of local residents who opposed Superintendent Manuel Isquierdo. Garcia and Gonzales were supporters of the superintendent along with board member Eva Carrillo Dong. Isquierdo received criticism for various personal actions, including using bankruptcy to avoid foreclosure on his home, owing $150,000 in back taxes, having his driver's license suspended for failing to pay fines, using his district credit card for questionable purchases and using athletes in the district's effort to promote the passage of school bonds measures. Board members Buck Crouch and Daniel Hernandez, Jr. opposed Isquierdo. A recall effort against Crouch and Hernandez began in August 2013, but did not move forward after supporters declined to turn in signatures.[1]
Buyout of superintendent
Isquierdo requested a buyout from the school board following the results of the May 20, 2014 recall election. The board approved a buyout by a 3-2 vote during a meeting in early June 2014. Isquierdo will receive $499,500 between June 2014 and December 2015 in exchange for leaving the district with two years remaining on his contract. Recalled board members Bobby Garcia and Louie Gonzales voted to approve the buyout prior to the swearing-in of their replacements.[4]
Petition language
Recall supporters submitted petitions against Garcia and Gonzales prior to gathering signatures for a recall election. The following language was used to justify the recall effort prior to the collection of signatures and did not appear on the ballot. The petition against Garcia read:
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To increase respect for our children's educational needs, insure better academic outcomes, to eliminate the current culture of fear and intimidation among teachers and classified staff, to effectively represent the taxpayers and families of this community, and to insure financially sound board decisions, we the qualified electors of the Sunnyside Unified School District demand the recall of Bobby Garcia, Sunnyside Governing Board Member. The grounds of this demand for recall are:
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” |
| —Arizona Public Media, (2013) | ||
The petition against Gonzales read:
| “ |
To increase respect for our children's educational needs, insure better academic outcomes, to eliminate the current culture of fear and intimidation among teachers and classified staff, to effectively represent the taxpayers and families of this community, and to insure financially sound board decisions, we the qualified electors of the Sunnyside Unified School District demand the recall of Louie C. Gonzales, Sunnyside Governing Board Member. The grounds of this demand for recall are:
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” |
| —Arizona Public Media, (2013) | ||
Path to the ballot
- See also: Laws governing recall in Arizona
Recall supporters had to collect 1,345 signatures from registered voters in the district for both Garcia and Gonzales by November 14, 2013 to trigger a recall election.[1] The group collected about 1,455 signatures to recall Gonzales and more than 1,417 for Garcia, totaling nearly 2,900 signatures. The Pima County School Superintendent’s Office processed the signatures and sent the names to the Pima County Recorder’s Office. County elections officials certified signatures on January 3, 2014 and the school superintendent scheduled the election on January 10, 2014. Linda Arzoumanian, the county school superintendent, estimated that the mail-in election would cost $98,000 based on 30 percent turnout.[13][14][15]
About the district
Sunnyside Unified School District is located in Tucson, the county seat of Pima County, Arizona. Tucson is home to 524,295 residents, according to the United States Census Bureau.[16] Sunnyside Unified School District was the 13th-largest school district in Arizona, serving 17,615 students during the 2010-2011 school year.[17]
Demographics
Tucson underperformed in comparison to the rest of Arizona in terms of higher education achievement in 2010. The United States Census Bureau found that 24.2 percent of Tucson residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 26.6 percent for Arizona as a whole. The median household income in Tucson was $36,939 compared to $50,256 for the state of Arizona. The poverty rate in Tucson was 24.4 percent compared to 17.2 percent for the entire state.[16]
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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
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Sunnyside + School + Board + recall + Arizona"
See also
- Sunnyside Unified School District, Arizona
- Recall campaigns in Arizona
- Political recall efforts, 2014
- School board recalls
- Buck Crouch and Daniel Hernandez Jr recall, Sunnyside Unified School District, Arizona (2013)
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Arizona Daily Star, "Second Sunnyside recall launched," August 20, 2013
- ↑ Arizona Public Media, "Two Sunnyside Board Members Recalled," May 20, 2014
- ↑ Tucson News Now, "New Sunnyside board sworn in, appoints interim Superintendent," June 4, 2014
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Arizona Public Media, "Sunnyside Supt Gets $500K Buyout, Calls It 'Best for Everyone'," June 5, 2014
- ↑ Arizona Daily Star, "Recall effort against two Sunnyside board members called off," December 14, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 6.5 6.6 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, "Bobby Garcia," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, "Rebecca "Beki" Quintero," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, "Mike Polak," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, "Louie Gonzales," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Office of the Pima County School Superintendent, "Eric Griffin," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Arizona Public Media, "Application for petition to recall," accessed August 28, 2013
- ↑ Arizona Daily Star, "Sunnyside school board recall petitions filed," Jamar Younger, November 15, 2013
- ↑ Arizona Daily Star, "Sunnyside recall certified for the ballot," January 4, 2014
- ↑ Arizona Daily Star, "Details for Sunnyside recall election set," January 11, 2014
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 United States Census Bureau, "Tucson, Arizona" accessed April 22, 2014
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 22, 2014
- ↑ Pima County, "Past Election Results," accessed April 22, 2014
