District of West Valley High School to go to the elections of the administrators region – The Mercury News

The Los Gatos-Saratoga Union High School District began to move from elections in the region of the region.

Historically, residents of the district limits elected directors as a whole, which means that all residents vote on all candidates. But in a process that started with the approval of the board of directors in January, by 2026, the district will be divided into five trustee areas, and voters will only make the trustee for the region where they live.

The district must now hold five separate public hearings in the coming months to possibly establish and select cards for each trustee area, a process estimated at cost between $ 20,000 and $ 30,000.

Some have questioned the need for such a change after the long tradition of the district to keep elections as a whole.

“This district worked very well with the open elections we have had,” said Lee Fagot, the resident.

District staff said that change would improve electoral equity because they would guarantee that each trustee lies in another part of the district. The trustee Misty Davies said that the more the district was waiting to make such a change, the more it would open up to the possibility of legal action.

The 2001 California Voting Rights Act prohibits elections to the School Board. According to the district, the move to the elections of the administrators’ region is now the best line of conduct in the light of recent incidents in which other academic districts and public agencies of the State have been targeted for alleged violations of the legislation .

“Although we can wait until we are forced, if we are waiting for so long, it will cost more money,” said Davies.

Some members of the community supported the imminent changes, which occur following the board of directors to appoint a new superintendent after dissatisfaction with a former superintendent led to his sudden departure.

Jen Young, president of the district teachers’ association, said this decision would guarantee that the administrators represent the entire district and would avoid the possibility of a board of directors who all live in a part of the city.

“We have been lucky in recent years to have members of the board of directors of different regions of the district, but this has not always been the case and will not necessarily be in the future. Moving to the elections of the trustee region will guarantee that voters in all regions of our district have a good chance of electing someone who understands their unique needs, “said Young in an email.