School board elections across the Santa Clarita Valley continue to be close races, with a few decisive leads taking shape. 

Santa Clarita Community College District

Area 1 – Special Election

After the sudden resignation of Chuck Lyon in June, Area 1 was added to the ballot as a special election to finish out his term.

As of Sunday, Nov. 10, Darlene Trevino had taken approximately 57% of the vote, taking a strong lead over Michelle Kampbell, who had around 43% of the vote.

Trevino, an attorney, had 12,095 votes, and Kampbell, a non-profit director, had 9,127, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office. 

Area 2

The battle for the COC Board Area 2 seat remained tight Sunday, with only a handful of votes separating the two candidates.

Incumbent Edel Alonso squeezed her way to the top Sunday by a mere four votes over challenger Scott Schauer in a race that has seen both candidates in the lead at one point or another. 

First elected in 2016, Alonso is running for her third term representing Area 2. First elected in 2016, Alonso is a longtime educator from the Santa Clarita area.

Schauer moved to Santa Clarita in 1976 and is the CEO and founder of Santa Clarita Soccer Center. In 2017, he was named one of the 51 Most Influential Business Leaders in Santa Clarita.

As of Sunday, Alonso had 10,570 votes, while Schauer had 10,566, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office. 

Area 3

With incumbent Sebastian Cazares not running for re-election, the Area 3 seat is up for grabs, and one candidate is pulling far ahead of the other two.

Fred Arnold, a financial advisor, has taken the lead with just over 48% of the vote. Meanwhile,  Andrew Taban, a current field representative for Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo, D-Chatsworth, has nearly 40%, and self-help author Tasha Hoggatt claimed 12%.

As of Sunday, 2,021 votes separated Taban and Arnold.

Area 4

In the race for Area 4, the leading candidate has been slowly pulling further ahead. 

Challenger Sharlene Johnson has acquired 12,021 votes as of Sunday, an over 2,000 vote lead over incumbent Jerry Danielsen, who had 9,985.

Danielsen, a private music teacher and the owner of Busy Signal Studios, was selected by the COC Board of Trustees to complete an unfinished term after the death of longtime trustee Michelle Jenkins in February 2023.

A member of the COC Foundation Board, Johnson held 54.6% of the vote as of Sunday.

William S. Hart Union High School District

Area 1

The race for Area 1 in the William S. Hart Union High School District is fairly clear in terms of who will be the next representative for students and families. 

Dr. Aakash Ahuja was sitting pretty with 39% of the vote on Sunday, more than seven percentage points ahead of the next candidate.

Gloria Mercado-Fortine, a former board member, collected 32.5%, and incumbent board member Linda Storli took 28.5%. 

An educator in the Hart District before moving to public office in 2015, Storli congratulated Ahuja on his apparent win last week. 

“Thank everyone that voted for me and supported me. Time to congratulate the winner, Dr. A,” Storli wrote on social media last Wednesday. 

Area 4

The race for the William S. Hart Union High School District Board Area 4 also appears to be pretty cut and dry.

Incumbent Erin Wilson claimed 64.5% of the vote, while challenger Eric Anderson took only 35.5%.

Wilson was selected to take the Area 4 seat after a sudden opening in late 2023. 

Castaic Union School District – Area A

Incumbent Janene Maxon is not running for re-election in Trustee Area A, allowing two newcomers to vie for the seat.

Erik Richardson leads with 58.9% of the vote and has held a strong heading since election night. 

Steven Sansone follows with 41.1%, according to the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk’s Office. 

Newhall School District – Area 5

Suzan Solomon and Mayra Cuellar face off for the Newhall School District Area 5 Seat, with election night leads holding strong. 

Solomon first assumed office in 1999 and is expected to take on another term as she took 3,880 votes or 64.3%. Cuellar trails with 2,155 votes, standing at 35.7%.

Saugus Union School District – Area 3

Incumbent Kathrine Cooper holds strong in the race for Saugus Union School District Area 3. 

Cooper took 57.6% of the vote as of Sunday, with 1,542 votes ahead of her challenger, Mark White.

White has 4,323 votes, totaling approximately 42.4%.

Local Measures (yes or no)

So far, it appears that Measure N, also titled the Saugus Union School District Earthquake Preparedness, Student Safety Measure, is dead in the water. 

As of Sunday, 52% of voters had declared against passing Measure N. 

The measure would have allowed voters to approve a property tax increase to fund $187 million in renovation and repair projects. At least 55% of voters needed to approve Measure N for it to pass.

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