Five school districts in El Paso County are holding bond and board elections
Five school districts in El Paso County are holding elections and voters will have to decide on board members and bonds.
“I think it’s going to be interesting to see, in light of what’s happened locally in EPISD,” said UTEP’s Political Science Professor Dr. Gregory Rocha. “Does that mood or feeling that people have about the EPISD spill over into the school districts that have nothing to do with it.”
Rocha said board elections have the lowest turnout.
“If we’re lucky, if we see 5-to-6 percent, that’s great,” Rocha said. “But I think it’s fair to say, those are the most important elections.”
They directly affect our kids and roughly 50 percent of our property taxes. Yet still, parents don’t vote. Voters in Canutillo, Fabens, Tornillo, San Elizario and Clint have some serious decisions to make.
In Canutillo, three at-large seats are open. Six candidates are running for election.
– Laure Searls, board trustee
– Stephanie Frietze
– James Tidwell
– Frank Lerma
– Mary Yglesias
Trustees Patricia Mendoza and Sergio Coronado are not running for reelection.
In Tornillo, four seats are up for election. Five candidates are fighting for them
– District four: Hector Lopez, board vice president
– District five: Enrique Vega
– District six: Ofelia Bosquez, board secretary
– District seven: Javier Escalante, a board trustee, and Pedro Molinar.
Trustee Rachel Avila is not seeking reelection.
Fabens has three seats to fill.and voters have sevens candidates to choose from
District one: Marco Martinez and current board member Marcos Salcido III
District two: Benjamin Morales, Gustavo “Tavo” Perez and current board member Adan Escobar
District four: Greg Spence and board vice president Viola Hernandez
But Clint is the district that will be most impacted by it’s elections. In the past residents have complained the at-large representation, as opposed to single-member. They say a majority of board members come from Clint, leaving Horizon City and Montana Vista without proper representation. Right now six out of seven trustees are from Clint.
Four of those Clint-held seats are up for election, and seven candidates, including three Clint incumbents, are fighting for a seat at the table.
– Janice Armstrong, board secretary
– Bonnie Avila
– Jim Pendell, board president
– Patricia Marrufo-Hogue
– Hilda (Mendoza) James
– Roberto (Bobby) Lara, trustee
– Arleen Parada
Fabens ISD is asking voters to approve $7 million for facility upgrades, and another $1.4 million for loan repayments. If approved, this would increase the tax rate to about $0.06 cents per home valuation, or, according to the district, a homeowner with a $40,000 home would see about an $24 increase a year.
San Eli is asking for $28 million to upgrade aging facilities and build new classrooms. If approved, this bond would raise the tax rate from $0.05 cents per $100 of home valuation to $0.12 cents. For a $45,000 home, this would translate into about $32 additional dollars a week.
“In these races, its often the older folks that come out to vote, and the younger parents or others who really have a steak in this, don’t show up all that much,” Rocha said.
