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San Jacinto Unified School District elections (2016)
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Three of the five seats on the San Jacinto Unified School District board of trustees were up for by-district general election on November 8, 2016. In their bids for re-election to Trustee Areas 1 and 2, incumbents Trica Ojeda and Willie Hamilton, respectively, ran unopposed and won re-election by default. The Trustee Area 3 race featured incumbent John Norman and challenger Jeremy Fontes. Norman won re-election.[1][2]
Norman and Fontes participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. Click here to read their responses.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The San Jacinto Unified board of trustees consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held by district on a staggered basis every November of even-numbered years. Two seats were up for election on November 4, 2014, and three seats were up for election on November 8, 2016. A special election for a one-year term was on the ballot on November 3, 2015.[3][4]
To get on the ballot, school board candidates had to register with the county elections office by August 12, 2016. If incumbents did not file by that deadline, the filing deadline was extended for non-incumbent candidates until August 17, 2016.[5]
To vote in this election, residents of the school district had to register by October 24, 2016.[6] Photo identification was not required to vote in this election.[7]
Candidates and results
Trustee Area 1
Results
This race was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbent Trica Ojeda was re-elected by default.
Candidates
Trica Ojeda 
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Trustee Area 2
Results
This race was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbent Willie Hamilton was re-elected by default.
Candidates
| Willie Hamilton
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Trustee Area 3
Results
| San Jacinto Unified School District, Trustee Area 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 John Norman Incumbent |
53.62% | 1,311 |
| Jeremy Fontes | 46.38% | 1,134 |
| Total Votes | 2,445 | |
| Source: Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Consolidated Presidential Election Official Results," accessed December 2, 2016 | ||
Candidates
| John Norman
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Jeremy Fontes | ||
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Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: California elections, 2016
The district's school board election shared the ballot with a number of statewide ballot measures as well as elections for the following offices:[8]
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Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for California school board elections in 2016:[9][10]
| Deadline | Event |
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| August 1, 2016 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
| August 10, 2016 - November 8, 2016 | 24-hour campaign contribution reporting period |
| August 12, 2016 | Candidate filing deadline |
| August 17, 2016 | Extended filing deadline for non-incumbent candidates for open seats |
| September 29, 2016 | First pre-election campaign finance report due |
| October 24, 2016 | Voter registration deadline |
| October 27, 2016 | Second pre-election campaign finance report due |
| November 8, 2016 | Election Day |
| January 31, 2017 | Semi-annual campaign finance report due |
Endorsements
Trustee Area 3 incumbent John Norman was endorsed by the following organizations and elected or appointed officials:[11][12][13]
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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 in this race were required to file two pre-election reports. The first was due on September 29, 2016, and the second was due on October 27, 2016. If candidates received more than $1,000 from a single source between August 10, 2016, and November 8, 2016, they had to file a campaign finance report within 24 hours of receiving the contribution.[10]
Candidates who did not raise or spend more than $2,000 on their campaigns had to file an exemption form by September 29, 2016. They did not have to file additional campaign finance reports.[10]
Candidates who had a remaining balance from previous campaigns or who had raised or spent money on their campaigns prior to the candidate filing deadline had to file a semi-annual campaign finance report by August 1, 2016. The next semi-annual campaign finance report was due January 31, 2017.[10]
Reports
Candidates received a total of $4,400.00 and spent a total of $0.00 as of November 2, 2016, according to the Riverside County Registrar of Voters.[14]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| John Norman | $4,400.00 | $0.00 | $4,400.00 |
| Jeremy Fontes | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
Information about earlier elections can be found by clicking [show] at the right. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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2015
2014Trustee Area 4No one filed to run for election to this seat.[15] Trustee Area 5
2012This election was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbents Rose Salgado, Willie Hamilton, and John Norman from Trustees Areas 1, 2, and 3, respectively, were re-elected by default.[16][17][18] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
What was at stake?
Report a story for this election
Ballotpedia researches issues in school board elections across the United States, but information availability is a challenge for us in many school districts. Please contact us about the issues that impact your local school district. Note that not all submissions may meet Ballotpedia's coverage requirements for inclusion.
Candidate survey
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Ballotpedia invites school board candidates to participate in its annual survey. |
Survey responses
Two candidates in this race participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display the responses to the survey questions from Trustee Area 3 incumbent John Norman and Trustee Area 3 challenger Jeremy Fontes.
Hope to achieve
When asked what he hoped to achieve if elected to the school board, Norman stated:
| “ | There is no more important time to provide leadership in education for our students. Competition for jobs and opportunities are currently on a global scale. Jobs that are being created now did not even exist 15 years ago. It is imperative that support be given to our students and our schools. I hope to continue to be a catalyst for change and development.[19] | ” |
| —John Norman (September 14, 2016)[20] | ||
Fontes said he hoped to achieve the following if elected to the school board:
| “ | I am an experienced Aircraft Quality Control Inspector willing to bring the San Jacinto School Board a broad perspective which includes a foundation of service before self; an ability to be objective and fair; and an appreciation of the diverse needs of SJUSD including the community. I will bring to SJUSD an open mind and the objectivity essential in performing all of the responsibilities of a school board member. I am eager to devote the time and energy that this community deserves in fulfilling the duties of a board member. I am a strong proponent of class size reduction and accessibility to advanced technological devices for all students.[19] | ” |
| —Jeremy Fontes (September 7, 2016)[21] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays their rankings:
| Issue importance ranking | ||||
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| Issue | Norman's ranking | Fontes' ranking | ||
| Expanding arts education | ||||
| Improving relations with teachers | ||||
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | ||||
| Improving post-secondary readiness | ||||
| Closing the achievement gap | ||||
| Improving education for special needs students | ||||
| Expanding school choice options | ||||
Positions on the issues
The candidates were asked to answer nine multiple choice and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. A link to their responses can be found below.
About the district
The San Jacinto Unified School District is located in Riverside County in southern California. The county seat is Riverside. Riverside County was home to 2,361,026 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[22] The district was the 157th-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 10,301 students.[23]
Demographics
Riverside County underperformed compared to California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement between 2010 and 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 20.8 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 31 percent of state residents. The median household income for Riverside County was $56,592, compared to $61,489 for the entire state. The percentage of people in poverty in the county was 17.1 percent, compared to 16.4 percent statewide.[22]
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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
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'San Jacinto Unified School District' 'California'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| San Jacinto Unified School District | California | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Contest/Candidate Proof List," accessed August 15, 2016
- ↑ Riverside County, "Consolidated Presidential Election," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ San Jacinto Unified School District, "Board Members," accessed August 9, 2016
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Election Results: November 3, 2015," accessed December 1, 2016
- ↑ California Elections Code, “Part 5, Section 10600-10604: School District And Community College District Governing Board Elections,” accessed June 15, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Voter Registration," accessed June 13, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "California Online Voter Registration," accessed June 13, 2016
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Contest/Candidate Proof List: 2016 General Election," accessed September 23, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "November 8, 2016, General Election Calendar," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 California Fair Political Practices Commission, "Filing Schedule for Candidates and Controlled Committees for Local Office Being Voted on November 8, 2016," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Diane Perez," August 31, 2016
- ↑ Abbey Smith, “Email communication with Diane Perez," September 6, 2016
- ↑ Evolve, "Endorsements: November 8, 2016 General Election," accessed October 13, 2016
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "County of Riverside Public Portal for Campaign Finance Disclosure," accessed November 2, 2016
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Contest/Candidate Proof List Consolidated General Election," accessed September 9, 2014
- ↑ Smart Voter, "Trustee; San Jacinto Unified School District; Trustee Area 1 Voter Information," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Smart Voter, "Trustee; San Jacinto Unified School District; Trustee Area 2 Voter Information," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ Smart Voter, "Trustee; San Jacinto Unified School District; Trustee Area 3 Voter Information," accessed August 5, 2014
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey, "John Norman responses," September 14, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia's school board candidate survey, "Jeremy Fontes responses," September 7, 2016
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 22.2 United States Census Bureau, "Riverside County, California," accessed July 6, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ Riverside County Registrar of Voters, "Past Elections," accessed July 3, 2014
| 2016 San Jacinto Unified School District Elections | |
| Riverside County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | Trustee Area 1: • Incumbent, Trica Ojeda Trustee Area 2: • Incumbent, Willie Hamilton Trustee Area 3: • Incumbent, John Norman • Jeremy Fontes |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
