Gadsden Independent Schools elections (2017)
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Two of the five seats on the Gadsden Independent Schools school board were up for by-district general election on February 7, 2017. In her bid for re-election to the board, incumbent Jennifer Viramontes defeated challenger Robert Saavedra. District 5 incumbent Craig Ford did not file to run for re-election, leaving the seat open for a newcomer. Laura Salazar Flores and Ricky Little ran for the seat, and Flores won election to the board.[1][2]
Due to the open seat, the school board was guaranteed to add a new member in 2017. In the district's 2013 and 2015 school board elections, no newcomers were guaranteed a spot on the board as all of the incumbents whose seats were on the ballot ran for re-election. Click here for more election trends in both the district and the state.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Gadsden Independent School Board consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held by district on a staggered basis every February of odd-numbered years. Three seats—from Districts 1, 3, and 4—were up for election on February 3, 2015, and two seats—from Districts 2 and 5—were up for election on February 7, 2017. There was no primary election.[3]
To be eligible to run for office, school board candidates had to live in the boundaries of the school district and be qualified electors of the state. To get on the ballot, they had to file on December 20, 2016. The deadline to withdraw as a candidate was January 3, 2017.[4][5]
To vote in this election, citizens of the school district had to register by January 10, 2017.[5] Photo identification was not required to vote in New Mexico.[6]
Candidates and results
District 2
Results
| Gadsden Independent Schools, District 2 General Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Jennifer Viramontes Incumbent |
55.14% | 59 |
| Robert Saavedra | 44.86% | 48 |
| Total Votes | 107 | |
| Source: Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Janice Giron, Doña Ana County Elections Staff Coordinator," April 10, 2017 | ||
Candidates
Jennifer Viramontes 
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Robert Saavedra | ||
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District 5
Results
| Gadsden Independent Schools, District 5 General Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
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|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Laura Salazar Flores |
62.29% | 147 |
| Ricky Little | 37.71% | 89 |
| Total Votes | 236 | |
| Source: Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Janice Giron, Doña Ana County Elections Staff Coordinator," April 10, 2017 | ||
Candidates
| Laura Salazar Flores
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Ricky Little | ||
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Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: New Mexico elections, 2017
No other elections shared the ballot with the Gadsden Independent School Board election.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for New Mexico school board elections in 2017.[4][5][7]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| December 20, 2016 | Candidate filing deadline |
| January 3, 2017 | Candidate withdrawal deadline |
| January 10, 2017 | Voter registration deadline |
| February 7, 2017 | General election |
| March 1, 2017 | Board members take office |
| April 3, 2017 | Annual campaign finance report due (if applicable) |
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
Candidates received a total of $800.00 and spent a total of $800.00 in the election, according to the New Mexico Secretary of State.[8]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| District 2 | |||
| Jennifer Viramontes | $800.00 | $800.00 | $0.00 |
| Robert Saavedra | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| District 5 | |||
| Laura Salazar Flores | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Ricky Little | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
2017
Election trends
- See also: School board elections, 2015
Unlike its 2013 and 2015 school board elections, Gadsden Independent Schools had no unopposed seats on the ballot in 2017. The 2017 election was also different in that there was an open seat on the ballot. In both 2013 and 2015, every incumbent whose term was up for re-election ran to retain his or her seat.
Because of the open seat, the district was guaranteed to add one new member to the school board in 2017. The one incumbent who ran to retain her seat in 2017 was elected to another term. No new members were elected to the board in 2013, but one was elected in 2015, after defeating an incumbent.
| School board election trends | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Candidates per seat | Unopposed seats | Incumbent success rate | Seats won by newcomers | |
| Gadsden Independent Schools | |||||
| 2017 | 2.00 | 0.00% | 100.00% | 50.00% | |
| 2015 | 1.67 | 33.33% | 66.67% | 33.33% | |
| 2013 | 1.5 | 50.00% | 100.00% | 0.00% | |
| New Mexico | |||||
| 2015 | 2.05 | 30.00% | 64.29% | 50.00% | |
| United States | |||||
| 2015 | 1.72 | 35.95% | 82.66% | 40.81% | |
Candidate survey
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About the district
- See also: Gadsden Independent Schools, New Mexico
The Gadsden Independent school district is located in Doña Ana County in southern New Mexico. The county seat is Las Cruces. Doña Ana County was home to an estimated 214,295 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[9] The district was the fifth-largest school district in the state in the 2014-2015 school year and served 13,581 students.[10]
Demographics
Doña Ana County outperformed New Mexico as a whole in terms of higher education achievement between 2011 and 2015. The United States Census Bureau found that 27.7 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 26.3 percent of state residents. The median household income for Doña Ana County was $38,853, compared to $44,963 for the entire state. The percentage of people below the poverty level for the county was 25.7 percent, while it was 20.4 percent statewide.[9]
| Racial Demographics, 2015[9] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race | Doña Ana County (%) | New Mexico (%) | |
| White | 91.9 | 82.5 | |
| Black or African American | 2.3 | 2.6 | |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 2.4 | 10.5 | |
| Asian | 1.4 | 1.7 | |
| Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander | 0.2 | 0.2 | |
| Two or more races | 1.9 | 2.5 | |
| Hispanic or Latino | 67.1 | 48.0 | |
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 Gadsden Independent Schools New Mexico election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Gadsden Independent Schools | New Mexico | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Las Cruces Bulletin, "Nine file for three Las Cruces school board seats," December 21, 2016
- ↑ Twitter, "Las Cruces Sun post February 7, 2017," accessed February 8, 2017
- ↑ Gadsden Independent Schools, "School Board," accessed December 21, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 New Mexico School Boards Association, "School Board Member Handbook: CHAPTER II – LOCAL SCHOOL BOARDS," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Cuddy & McCarthy LLP, "New Mexico School District Election Calendar: For Regular School District Elections In February 2017," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Secretary of State Voter Services, "Voter Registration Information," accessed February 18, 2017
- ↑ New Mexico Statutes, "Chapter 1. Elections: Article 22A. School District Campaign Reporting," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ New Mexico Campaign Finance Information System, "Public Reports: Search Candidates," accessed April 4, 2017
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 United States Census Bureau, "Doña Ana County, New Mexico," accessed January 5, 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
| Gadsden Independent Schools elections in 2017 | |
| Dona Ana County, New Mexico | |
| Election date: | February 7, 2017 |
| Candidates: | District 2: • Incumbent, Jennifer Viramontes • Robert Saavedra District 5: • Laura Salazar Flores • Ricky Little |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
