Do Fresno Unified voters want a big change of course for the scandal-ridden school district, to stay the course, or something in between?

Based on returns through Wednesday morning, the answer is leaning toward big changes.

Fresno City Councilmember Miguel Arias held a big lead in the race for the trustee seat in the Edison High region. Former teacher Karen Steed was leading eight-year incumbent Veva Islas in the McLane High region, and 22-year incumbent Valerie Davis was locked in a tight battle for the Sunnyside High region seat.

In a high-profile race that drew five candidates, Arias led for the Edison High region trustee seat with 40.46% of the vote.

Retired educator Darren Miller was second with 18.01%, and Michelle Escobar Longoria, an educator who founded Voz de Futuro, a bilingual education program, was next with 15.56%.

Rancher Ripzah Bellard had 14.70%, and educator and nonprofit founder Deshunna Monay Ricks had 10.21%.

Election officials had tabulated 19.35% of the vote in the race.

Arias Challenges the Status Quo

Arias entered the contest to determine the successor to Keshia Thomas, who is running for the Fresno City Council, and immediately promised to hold Fresno Unified leadership accountable for quickly raising student achievement.

With the district facing ongoing budget challenges, Arias also vowed to trim the district’s leadership team and ensure that funding first went to classrooms and student support. He also criticized the district’s failure to investigate student deaths and pointed to a long line of lawsuits against the district as evidence of incompetence.

Arias touted his knowledge of the district, having previously been Fresno Unified’s chief information officer. In addition, he earlier served as a Mendota Unified trustee.

Bellard’s pitch to voters centered on early childhood literacy and building connections between the district and residents.

Miller, who had the endorsement of the Fresno County Democratic Party, also campaigned on strengthening the district’s early literacy efforts. He also pitched the idea of separating transitional kindergarten through second grade into their own campuses.

Ricks had the backing of the Central Valley Progressive PAC. Ricks said she wanted to increase Career Technical Education offerings and paid internships. She also stressed the importance of improving the district’s early literacy efforts.

Davis vs. Talford for Sunnyside High Region Seat

The Fresno Teachers Association and SEIU went all in on Riley Talford’s bid to unseat 22-year trustee Valerie Davis from her Sunnyside High region seat.

However, with 22.51% of ballots counted, Davis led 50.63% to 48.64%.

Through Oct. 28, Talford’s campaign had received more than $60,000 in contributions. In addition, union canvassers knocked on doors and touted their candidates in the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s election.

Talford is a supervising juvenile correctional officer for Fresno County Probation and president of SEIU 521 Fresno County. He also coaches basketball at Edison High School. He ran on a campaign of improving educational attainment by listening to what teachers had to say. Talford also said he would cut administrative positions before touching classroom funds in the face of budget deficits.

Davis had raised about $42,000 through Oct. 28 in her re-election bid. She ran a low-profile campaign touting her years of experience and her elevation this year to chair of the Council of Great City Schools board of directors. She has served four terms as Fresno Unified School Board president.

Davis, who was born and raised in Fresno, attended Fresno Unified schools and graduated from Bullard High School in 1977.

She is regarded as a strong ally of Fresno Unified Superintendent Misty Her.

Islas Trails Two Challengers in McLane High Region

Veva Islas, who was first elected as a trustee in 2018, pointed to her efforts to expand CTE and renovations made to McLane High School as reasons for voters to reward her with another four years on the board.

With 21.23% of the vote counted through Wednesday morning, Islas was running third behind challengers Karen Steed and Mirna Garcia. The tally showed Steed at 39.55%, Garcia at 30.05%, and Islas at 29.84%.

Islas also said district leaders must involve parents more in their decision-making and that trustees must cast a more critical eye on renewing charter schools. Charter schools, she said, are drawing students away from Fresno Unified.

Her top donor was the Sandra Celedon for Assembly 2026 Committee, with $17,110.09.

Steed finished second to Islas in their close 2022 race. She emphasized bringing transparency to the board’s actions. A former teacher and a clerk with the city of Fresno, she said the School Board would benefit from having a trustee with a teacher’s perspective. She also called for improved security on district campuses.

Garcia is a Realtor and grew up in an immigrant farmworker family. She criticized the district for being top-heavy with administrators and wants to see more funding to support students facing learning and social-emotional challenges.

She had the endorsement of the Young Democrats and received a $5,000 donation from the Perea for Assembly 2026 Committee.