About half of the Board of Education races in the Fresno area will be competitive in November’s election, with two or more candidates in the field.

That doesn’t include the Fresno County Board of Education, where two incumbents and a newcomer are winners already, since they are the only candidates. Incumbents Bryan Burton and Dr. Allen Clyde will retain their seats representing Areas 2 and 5 and be joined on the board by Itzi Robles, an Assemblymember’s district representative. Robles is taking the Area 3 seat vacated by James Martinez, who is running for the Fresno Unified School Board.

Only one of the State Center Community College District seats will be competitive. Incumbent Nasreen Michelle Johnson is facing a challenge from Pablo Villagrana, president of the Iron Workers Local 155, for the Area 2 seat. Incumbents Danielle Parra and Deborah Ikeda are retaining their Areas 3 and 6 seats on the board and will be joined by Austin Ewell, the only candidate to file for the Area 7 seat being vacated by Richard Caglia, who decided not to seek re-election.

Two of the four Clovis Unified School Board seats up for election will be competitive, with three newcomers seeking to win the Area 2 seat held by David DeFrank, who opted not to seek re-election. The candidates are DeFrank’s wife Molly, an author; Wilma Tom Hashimoto, executive director of CASA Fresno/Madera Counties; and Janet Kardashian, a retired teacher.

In Clovis’ Area 4, incumbent Hugh Awtrey will face off against newcomer Gina Vue, a behavioral analyst.

Incumbents Dr. Steven Fogg of Area 5 and Yolanda Moore of Area 7 will reclaim their seats by default as no candidates filed to challenge them.

Lots of Competition for Fresno Unified Trustee Seats

All three of the Fresno Unified School Board seats up for election are competitive. In the Fresno High Area, incumbent Andy Levine is facing challengers Martinez and Emma Villa, an advocate and mother. Roosevelt High incumbent Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas is running against Fresno State student Joseph Aquino, a former FUSD student trustee. And, Hoover High incumbent Claudia Cazares is facing a challenge from retired teacher Dan Bordona.

Two of the three Central Unified School Board seats up for election will be competitive, with incumbent Phillip Cervantes running against Natalie Chavez, an educational consultant, in Area 3, and incumbent Richard Solis running against Jaspreet Sidhu, a registered nurse, in Area 5.

Fresno City College instructor Karla Kirk is the default winner of the 6 seat being vacated by Jeremy Mehling, who decided not to seek reelection after serving one term.

Campaign Finances Vary

Seven of the 18 incumbents and challengers have filed campaign finance reports with the Fair Political Practices Commission, saying they plan to cap their campaign costs at $2,000: Aquino, Awtrey, Bordona, Cervantes, Kardashian, Solis, and Villa.

Six other candidates have filed campaign finance reports showing thousands of dollars in donations thus far: Cazares, Johnson, Jonasson Rosas, Levine, Martinez, and Villagrana.

The remaining five candidates had filed neither the $2,000 limit form nor an itemized campaign form by Thursday, according to the FPPC website: Chavez, DeFrank, Hashimoto, Sidhu, and Vue.