Cesar Fernandez is ditching his Seat 5 on the Chula Vista Elementary School District board for a City Council one. And Francisco Tamayo is swapping seats on the same board.
Their new posts officially commence in the coming weeks before their current terms end in 2026.
That means the school board, which oversees the fourth-largest district in San Diego County, will have to weigh its options in December to fill those two vacancies via appointments or a special election.
“Whatever route we go with, it must be transparent,” said board member Delia Dominguez-Cervantes.
Officials said there could be an inclination toward appointing members over holding a special election because it could cost taxpayers up to $2.5 million. That expense would come as the district faces an estimated $15 million deficit for the 2024-25 school year.
“Everybody in the board understands that spending that kind of money with a deficit is not the right course of action,” said Tamayo. “It’s preferable to do an appointment but there’s a lot of discussion yet to be had.”
Tamayo and Dominguez-Cervantes, along with board President Lucy Ugarte, will be the three trustees who decide how to fill the vacancies.
Board candidates run for one of five area seats but are each elected at large by Chula Vista voters to serve four-year terms. This year, seats 2 and 4 were up for grabs.
Voters re-elected Ugarte for a second term for Seat 2. She earned more than 69% of the vote in the two-person contest.
Tamayo secured Seat 4 with more than 29% of the vote, which will leave his Seat 1 empty. He won against incumbent Kate Bishop and three other hopefuls. His bid for Bishop’s seat made for a rare circumstance where two colleagues ran against each other for the same area seat.
He announced his campaign during a July board meeting. Sitting next to Bishop on the dais, he left his seat to address the trustees during the public comment segment.
Tamayo accused Bishop of pushing inappropriate curriculum around sexuality and making racist remarks against Latinos, adding that her actions were for self-gain and self-promotion. He also said that she had attacked colleagues behind closed doors. Later that meeting, Ugarte said that Bishop had bullied her when motions did not go in Bishop’s favor.
Bishop has repeatedly rejected those claims and has argued that she worked to create a space that was safe for LGBTQ students and against racism.
Tamayo said Wednesday that Chula Vista voters “resonated with my message about re-centering to teaching and learning, not just the aspects of adults.”
“Moving forward, I will ensure voters get quality board members and save money from a potential special election,” he added.
The district board’s next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 16.
