Frank Lara (California)
Frank Lara is running for election for California Superintendent of Public Instruction. Lara is on the ballot in the primary on June 2, 2026.
Lara completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Frank Lara earned a bachelor's degree from the California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo. Lara's career experience includes working as an educator.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: California Superintendent of Public Instruction election, 2026
General election
The primary will occur on June 2, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for California Superintendent of Public Instruction
The following candidates are running in the primary for California Superintendent of Public Instruction on June 2, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Richard Barrera (Nonpartisan) | |
| Wendy Castaneda Leal (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Nichelle Henderson (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Frank Lara (Nonpartisan)  | |
 | Ainye Long (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Gus Mattammal (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Al Muratsuchi (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Josh Newman (Nonpartisan) | |
 | Anthony Rendon (Nonpartisan) | |
| Sonja Shaw (Nonpartisan) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Andra Hoffman (Nonpartisan)
- Jeff Maffly (Nonpartisan)
Campaign finance
Endorsements
To view Lara's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. To send us an endorsement, click here.
2014
Lara ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent California's 12th District. Lara was defeated in the blanket primary on June 3, 2014.[2]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |
 Nancy Pelosi Incumbent |
73.6% | 79,816 | |
| Republican | John Dennis |
11.9% | 12,922 | |
| Green | Barry Hermanson | 5.7% | 6,156 | |
| Democratic | David Peterson | 3.5% | 3,774 | |
| Peace and Freedom | Frank Lara | 1.9% | 2,107 | |
| Democratic | Michael Steger | 1.4% | 1,514 | |
| Independent | Desmond Thorsson | 1.2% | 1,270 | |
| Independent | Jim Welles | 0.8% | 879 | |
| Total Votes | 108,438 | |||
| Source: California Secretary of State |
||||
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Frank Lara completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Lara's responses.
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- California has the 4th largest economy in the world, but billionaire rule has devastated our public school system. A $4 trillion economy, the largest sub-national economy globally, should be able to provide a world-class education for all its students. And yet, our public schools face so many challenges: understaffing, high turnover, ballooning class sizes, poor infrastructures, limited arts and music programs, and many others. These challenges are even more severe for low-income, Latino, and Black students, and exacerbated in our state’s urban and rural environments. A better California education is not only possible, but necessary. Frank is a father, educator, and union leader running to fully fund our schools!
- California is the state with the most billionaires, yet we have the second worst student-to-teacher ratio in the country. We’ve known the positive impact of reducing class sizes for decades: Holding class size to 18 or fewer students in grades k–3 produces significant benefits in both reading and math, with the greatest impacts on Black, Latino, and students from low-income backgrounds. And yet, because small class sizes would require funding and investment in our public schools, this solution often seems idealistic rather than a pragmatic, reasonable, research-based strategy to improve outcomes for students. District and state funds should go towards supporting our students in the researched, proven ways we know work.
- For over 50 years, the federal government has promised to fully fund the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, and that promise has never been kept. Federal funding, which is now threatened due to the dismantling of the Department of Education, has only ever covered less than 13 percent of the cost of educating students with disabilities. Fully funding special education and making it a priority of the California Department of Education would mean access to qualified educators (who would receive specialized training through state-funded educational and career pathways), early identification of special needs, and early interventions that ensure students can reach their full potential, regardless of their identification.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Campaign finance information for this candidate is not yet available from OpenSecrets. That information will be published here once it is available.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on March 14, 2026
- ↑ The New York Times, "California Primary Results," June 3, 2014
