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Visalia Unified School District elections (2016)
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Three of the seven seats on the Visalia Unified School District Board of Education were up for by-district general election on November 8, 2016. The race for the open Trustee Area 5 seat featured candidates Niessen Foster, Patricia Griswold, and Michael Washam. Griswold won election to the seat. Incumbents Lucia Vazquez and William Fulmer ran unopposed and won the Trustee Area 6 and 7 seats, respectively.[1][2]
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Visalia Unified Board of Education consists of seven members elected to four-year terms. Elections are held by district on a staggered basis every November of even-numbered years. Elections were previously held every odd-numbered year. The elections that would have been held in 2015 were postponed until 2016. Four seats were up for election on November 5, 2013, and three seats were up for election on November 8, 2016. There was no primary election.[3]
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. In order to qualify as candidates, they had to be at least 18 years old, citizens of California, residents of the school district, registered voters, and "not legally disqualified from holding civil office," according to the bylaws of the Visalia Unified Board of Education. Once they took office, school board members could not be employed by the school district.[4][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 5
Results
| Visalia Unified School District, Trustee Area 5 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Patricia Griswold |
54.30% | 3,316 |
| Michael Washam | 24.53% | 1,498 |
| Niessen Foster | 20.60% | 1,258 |
| Write-in votes | 0.57% | 35 |
| Total Votes | 6,107 | |
| Source: Tulare County Registrar of Voters, "November 8, 2016 Summary Report Final Canvass Update," accessed December 5, 2016 | ||
Candidates
| Niessen Foster | Patricia Griswold 
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Michael Washam | |||
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Trustee Area 6
Results
This race was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbent Lucia Vazquez won re-election by default.[1]
Candidates
| Lucia Vazquez
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Trustee Area 7
Results
This race was canceled due to lack of opposition. Incumbent William Fulmer won re-election by default.[1]
Candidates
| William Fulmer
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Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: California elections, 2016
The school district's 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 |
|---|---|
| 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
The Tulare County Republican Party endorsed Trustee Area 5 candidate Michael Washam.[11]
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
At the time of this election, the Tulare County Registrar of Voters did not publish school board candidate campaign finance reports online. Ballotpedia staff directly requested this information, but the county did not provide it.
Past elections
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What was at stake?
Report a story for this election
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About the district
The Visalia Unified School District is located in Tulare County in south-central California. The county seat is Visalia. Tulare County was home to 459,863 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[12] The district was the 41st-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 27,835 students.[13]
Demographics
Tulare County underperformed compared to California as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 13.3 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 Tulare County was $42,863, compared to $61,489 for the entire state. The percentage of people in poverty in the county was 28.1 percent, compared to 16.4 percent statewide.[12]
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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 'Visalia Unified School District' 'California'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Visalia Unified School District | California | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Tulare County Registrar of Voters, "Contest/Candidate Proof List," accessed August 23, 2016
- ↑ Tulare County, "November 8 2016 Summary Report," accessed November 9, 2016
- ↑ Visalia Unified School District, "Board Members," accessed August 12, 2016
- ↑ Visalia Unified School District, "Article 9: Bylaws of the Board," accessed August 12, 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
- ↑ Tulare County Registrar of Voters, "Contest/Candidate Proof List," accessed September 26, 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
- ↑ Tulare County Republican Party, "Tulare County Republican Party Voter Guide," accessed October 17, 2016
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 United States Census Bureau, "Tulare County, California," accessed August 3, 2016
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ Tulare County Registrar of Voters, "Prior Election Summary Reports," accessed August 1, 2014
| 2016 Visalia Unified School District Elections | |
| Tulare County, California | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | Trustee Area 5: • Niessen Foster • Patricia Griswold • Michael Washam Trustee Area 6: • Incumbent, Lucia Vazquez Trustee Area 7: • Incumbent, William Fulmer |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Additional elections on the ballot • Key deadlines |
