Redwood City Elementary School District elections (2015)
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Three seats on the Redwood City Elementary School District Board of Trustees were up for general election on November 3, 2015.[1][2] The seats held by incumbents Dennis McBride, Alisa MacAvoy and Shelly Masur were on the ballot.[3]
Masur did not file to run for re-election, which left a seat open to a newcomer. McBride and MacAvoy won re-election, and Janet Lawson won the open seat. They defeated challenger Yolanda Padilla.[4][5]
See how this race compared to past school board elections in both the district and the state in the "Election trends" section.
About the district
Redwood City Elementary School District is located in San Mateo County in west-central California. The county seat is Redwood City. San Mateo County was home to 758,581 residents in 2014, according to the United States Census Bureau.[6] During the 2012-2013 school year, Redwood City Elementary School District was the 184th-largest school district by enrollment in California and served 9,210 students.[7]
Demographics
San Mateo County outperformed the rest of California in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 44.4 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 30.7 percent for California as a whole. The median household income for San Mateo County was $88,202, compared to $61,094 for the state of California. The percentage of people below poverty level was 7.6 percent, compared to 15.9 percent for the entire state.[6]
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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.
Voter and candidate information
The Redwood City Elementary Board of Trustees consists of seven members elected at-large to four-year terms. Board members are elected on a staggered basis every November of odd-numbered years. There are no primary elections. Two seats were up for election on November 5, 2013, and three seats were on the ballot on November 3, 2015.[1][3]
School board candidates had to be at least 18 years old, residents of the school district and qualified voters. They could not be employees of the school district while in office.[9] To get on the ballot, candidates had to file their declaration of candidacy with the San Mateo County Elections by August 7, 2015.[2]
To vote in this election, residents of the district had to register by October 19, 2015. Voters could cast vote-by-mail ballots from October 24, 2015, through Election Day.[10] Photo identification was not required to vote in California.
Elections
2015
Candidates
At-large
Alisa MacAvoy 
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Dennis McBride
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| Janet Lawson
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Yolanda Padilla | ||
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Election results
| Redwood City Elementary School District, At-large, General Election, 2015 | ||
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Dennis McBride Incumbent |
29.5% | 7,551 |
| Alisa MacAvoy Incumbent |
27.9% | 7,150 |
| Janet Lawson |
22.6% | 5,788 |
| Yolanda Padilla | 20.0% | 5,137 |
| Total Votes | 25,626 | |
| Source: San Mateo County, "November 3, 2015 Consolidated Municipal, School and Special District All-Mailed Ballot Election: Redwood City School District Members, Governing Board," accessed December 1, 2015 | ||
Endorsements
The following is a list of endorsements made in the 2015 Redwood City Elementary School District elections:
Campaign finance
Campaign finance reporting requirements in California vary depending on how much money candidates spend or raise. For candidates planning to raise or spend less than $1,000, an Officeholder and Candidate Campaign Statement Short Form (Form 470) must be filed with their county or city elections office. If candidates plan to spend up to $1,000, including their own funds, they must also file a Candidate Intention Statement (Form 501). "If a candidate does not raise any money and personal funds are used only to pay filing or ballot statement fees, the candidate is not required to file the Form 501," according to the Fair Political Practices Commission. If candidates raise money outside of their own funds, a separate campaign bank account must be established.[16]
Candidates raising or spending more than $1,000, including their personal funds, must file a Candidate Intention Statement (Form 501), file a Statement of Organization (Form 410) and establish a separate bank account for campaign funds. They must then file Recipient Committee Campaign Statements (Form 460) to disclose their contributions and expenditures throughout their campaigns. If they receive more than $1,000 from a single source within 90 days of the election, they must file a 24-hour Contribution Report (Form 497).[16]
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2013This election was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbents Maria Diaz-Slocum and Hilary Paulson were re-elected by default. 2011
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What was at stake?
2015
Election trends
- See also: 2013 school board elections
With three seats on the ballot on November 3, 2015, nearly half of the Redwood City Elementary Board of Trustees had the potential to change hands. Two of the three incumbents ran to retain their seats, guaranteeing at least one newcomer would join the board. The incumbents faced two challengers, creating an average of 1.33 candidates per seat. Both incumbents won, and a newcomer was elected to the open seat.
Redwood City Elementary's 2013 school board election had two seats on the ballot. The two incumbents ran unopposed for re-election and automatically won additional terms.
Both the 2013 and 2015 school board elections in the Redwood City Elementary School District had fewer candidates run per seat than the 2014 state average of 1.91 candidates per seat up for election in California's largest school districts. That year, just over 25 percent of board seats in those districts were unopposed, and 37.65 percent of seats went to newcomers.
Issues in the election
Measure T
In addition to voting on their next school board members, voters in the Redwood City Elementary School District were asked to pass a $193 million measure on November 3, 2015. They approved the measure, which allowed the district to increase its debt by up to $193 million through general obligation bonds. The district planned to use the bond revenue for capital improvements.[17]
District officials estimated that an average property tax rate of $30 per $100,000 of assessed property value would be required to repay the bonds within 40 years.[17] The measure question appeared on the ballot as follows:
| “ | To upgrade and repair neighborhood schools with funding that cannot be taken by the State, shall Redwood City Elementary School District: renovate aging classrooms and science labs for 21st century learning; fix or replace deteriorating roofs; update classroom and instructional technology; improve school fire and earthquake safety; and repair, construct, acquire, or equip classrooms, sites, and facilities; by issuing $193 million in bonds at legal rates with independent oversight, no money for administrators, and all funds staying local?[18][19] | ” |
A 55 percent supermajority vote was required to approve Measure T.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the Redwood City Elementary School District election in 2015:[1][2][20][21]
| Deadline | Event |
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| June 8, 2015 - August 7, 2015 | Candidate filing period |
| July 31, 2015 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
| August 5, 2015 - November 2, 2015 | 24-hour campaign contribution reporting period |
| September 7, 2015 - October 20, 2015 | Write-in candidate filing period |
| September 24, 2015 | Pre-election campaign finance report due |
| October 19, 2015 | Voter registration deadline |
| October 22, 2015 | Pre-election campaign finance report due |
| October 24, 2015 | First day voters can cast vote-by-mail ballots |
| November 3, 2015 | Election Day |
| February 1, 2016 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: California elections, 2015
The Redwood City Elementary School District election shared the ballot with municipal elections in Redwood City.[22] It also shared the ballot with Measure T.[17]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Redwood City Elementary School District California. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Redwood City Elementary School District | California | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Redwood City Elementary School District, Education Code: Part 4 Elections, Chapter 1 Election of School District Board Members, Article 1 Elections,” accessed January 29, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2013 California Code, “CA Elec Code § 8403 (2013),” accessed January 29, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Redwood City Elementary School District, "Board of Trustees," accessed January 29, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County Elections, "Consolidated Municipal, School & Special District Election Tuesday, November 3, 2015: Roster Of Candidates," accessed August 11, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County, "November 3, 2015 Consolidated Municipal, School and Special District All-Mailed Ballot Election: Redwood City School District Members, Governing Board," December 1, 2015
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 United States Census Bureau, "San Mateo County, California," accessed September 25, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 29, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County Elections, "Election Results Archive," accessed August 6, 2014
- ↑ Redwood City Elementary School District, "BB 9220 Board Bylaws: Governing Board Elections," accessed August 7, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County Elections, “Election Calendar November 3, 2015 Consolidated Municipal, School and Special District Election,” accessed August 7, 2015
- ↑ 11.00 11.01 11.02 11.03 11.04 11.05 11.06 11.07 11.08 11.09 11.10 11.11 Dennis McBride, "Endorsements," accessed October 29, 2015
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 12.5 12.6 12.7 Janet Lawson Redwood City School Board 2015, "Endorsements," accessed October 29, 2015
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 Yolanda Padilla, "Endorsements," accessed October 29, 2015
- ↑ Evolve, "2015 Endorsements: November 03, 2015 Election," accessed October 27, 2015
- ↑ The Daily Journal, "Editorial:MacAvoy, McBride, Padilla for Redwood City schools," October 21, 2015
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Fair Political Practices Commission, "Local Candidates, Superior Court Judges, Their Controlled Committees, and Primarily Formed Committees for Local Candidates: Campaign Disclosure Manual 2," accessed August 5, 2015
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 San Mateo Elections Office, "Impartial analysis of Measure T," accessed October 1, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County Elections Office, “Measures appearing on the ballot on November 3, 2015,” accessed September 29, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ California Election Code, "Section 8600-8606," accessed February 20, 2015
- ↑ Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 3, 2015," accessed August 5, 2015
- ↑ San Mateo County Elections, "Regularly Scheduled Elections," accessed August 5, 2015
| 2015 Redwood City Elementary School District Elections | |
| San Mateo County, California | |
| Election date: | November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Incumbent, Alisa MacAvoy • Incumbent, Dennis McBride • Janet Lawson • Yolanda Padilla |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
