How San Diego County Schools Fared At The Polls

San Diego Unified gets passing grade

With all precincts reporting and only mail-in and provisional ballots left to count, San Diego Unified’s $350 million bond proposal had 62 percent of the votes Wednesday.

Board incumbents Kevin Beiser and Michael McQuary also had healthy leads over their competitors, at 70 and 58 percent.

“I think this is really, really a great day for students and kids in San Diego,” Beiser said. “The voters voted overwhelmingly to support the San Diego Unified School District and what we’re doing because we know we’re on the right track.”

Voters also approved Measure H to establish term limits for board members. The election reform measure was softer than some had hoped, and is being challenged in court.

Voters generous with school bonds

Other districts were also feeling the love. All but two of the 11 school bonds put before voters Tuesday appear to have enough votes to pass.

In the South Bay, Sweetwater Union won voter support for its bond despite recent bad press on a budgeting error that resulted in $30 million in cuts mid-year.

“Definitely big thanks to the voters of the south county for believing in schools and believing in students,” said Manny Rubio, a spokesman for the district. “We’ll have a lot of information coming forward as we go forward, but definitely we’ll start seeing some much-needed improvement in our schools.”

Bond money cannot be used for operations, so it won’t restore cuts in the district. The board has asked teachers to take two non-instructional furlough days moving forward and plans to lay off more than 30 teachers in its adult education program.

As of Wednesday, Mountain Empire Unified’s bond was about one point shy of the 55 percent needed to pass. Bonsall Unified was short about 15 points. It had hoped to use its bond to build a high school, but nearby residents have long challenged the planned location for the school and turned down a previous bond because of it.

Newcomers hold tight

Elsewhere in the North County, a mother we first introduced you to in February looked poised to take the dais. Katherine Fitzpatrick, who became frustrated that Del Mar Union doesn’t offer transitional kindergarten, decided to run for school board. As of Wednesday, she was second in a pick-three race.

And in the San Diego Community College District, a veteran politician and political newcomer were in a dead heat. Outgoing City Councilman David Alvarez, who has said he would end his term early if elected to the district’s board to run for county supervisor, had 49.32 percent of the vote. Sean Elo, associate director of nonprofit Mid-City CAN, had 49.02 percent of the vote.

You can follow all of the election results here.