Handful of school board seats appear to be going to runoff

FILE – Signs point to the entrance on the last day of early voting before the midterm election as a man walks out of a polling site in Cranston, R.I., …

FILE – Signs point to the entrance on the last day of early voting before the midterm election as a man walks out of a polling site in Cranston, R.I., on Nov. 7, 2022. Almost half of all voters in the 2022 midterm elections cast their ballots before Election Day either by mail or through early voting, with Asian and Hispanic voters leading the way, new data from the U.S. Census Bureau released Tuesday, May 2, 2023, shows, even as Republican-led states have tightened rules on voting by mail. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

by: Dave Burge

Posted: May 6, 2023 / 08:14 PM MDT

Updated: May 7, 2023 / 01:46 PM MDT

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Voters in four school districts around the El Paso area decided on school board races on Saturday, May 6.

And after final unofficial results were released overnight, several races appear to be headed to runoffs.

In El Paso ISD, two seats are up for grabs on the Board of Trustees.

In District 2, Alejandro “Alex” Cuellar took the lead late after trailing most of Saturday night. Cuellar has 43.18 percent of the vote (1,247 votes). He holds a narrow lead over Will Veliz (42.45 percent, 1,226 votes). Enrique Herrera, who stopped campaigning, was third (14.37 percent, 415 votes).

Cuellar and Veliz will face off in a runoff.

In District 6, four candidates are running. Here are the unofficial final results.: Valerie Ganelon Beals, 30.05 percent (1,488); Jacqueline Martinez, 26.11 percent (1,293); David Adams, 23.20 percent (1,149); and Josie Castro Garcia, 20.64 percent (1,022).

Ganelon Beals will face off with Martinez in a runoff.

In Ysleta ISD, there are also two seats that are being contested in the election.

In District 4, retired teacher Mike Dwyer defeated incumbent Mike Rosales. Dwyer had 56.09 percent of the vote (1,639) to 43.91 percent for Rosales (1,283).

In District 6, incumbent trustee Sotero G. Ramirez III was denied another term. Debbie Torres leads with 41.43 percent (515), followed by Chris Hernandez at 39.10 percent (486) and Ramirez at 19.47 percent (239).

Torres and Hernandez will face off in a runoff.

Socorro ISD also has two seats being contested. In District 1, Alice Gardea leads with 36.65 percent (1,123), followed by incumbent Eduardo “Eddie” Mena at 32.47 percent (995 votes) and Tony Ayub at 30.87 percent (946 votes).

Seven candidates are running for two at-large seats. Marivel Macias leads with 28.99 percent of the vote (4,289), followed by incumbents Michael Najera at 22.85 percent (3,380) and David Morales at 18.20 percent (2,692). Four other candidates were at 10 percent or less.

Socorro ISD does not have runoffs and the candidates with the most votes are the winner, even if they don’t have a majority, according to El Paso Matters.

So that makes Gardea the unofficial winner in District 1, and Macias and Najera the unofficial at-large winners.

In Anthony, Texas, five candidates are running for seats on the school board. The top three vote getters will be elected to four-year terms and the fourth-place candidate will be elected to complete an unexpired term ending in May 2025.

Here are unofficial final results: Cynthia Ramirez, 22.46 percent (148 votes); Luz Elena Rodriguez, 21.70 percent (143 votes); Chrissy Singh, 19.88 percent (131 votes); ; Sylvia Chavez, 19.42 percent (128); and Valerie Armendariz, 16.54 percent (109).