As incumbents withdraw, 4 of 7 school board seats head to Nov. run-off
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Four of seven Clark County School Board seats were on the line during Tuesday’s primary election in Nevada, and three of those incumbents had already withdrawn from the race.
The only Clark County trustee who ran for reelection Tuesday was the school board president. As of 8 a.m. Wednesday, Evelyn Garcia Morales had received 29 percent of the vote, with Tameka Henry taking 37 percent. Those two are headed to a November face-off for the spot.
“It’s not just about my student, it’s about all our students, it’s about our staff members,” Henry said Tuesday. “We’re ready to stop being at the bottom.”
CCSD School Board Trustee for District E, the position currently held by Lola Brooks, who is not running for reelection, was a tight race Tuesday night between Kamilah Bywaters and Lorena Biassotti, who both held 20 percent of the vote, and Ryan Kissling, who had collected 19 percent of the vote.
“My constituents can be assured that I will fight for their issues and do my best to ensure that we are bringing solutions,” Bywaters said. “I am absolutely going to be tackling the disproportionality of our Black students and our Hispanic students.”
It was a virtual tie in CCSD School Board District A between Emily Stevens, who held a 26 percent share of the vote, and Karl Catarata, with 25 percent Tuesday night. Stevens said she believes more professionalism is needed on the CCSD School District Board.
“We need to see folks who have an acumen in business and finance to understand the CCSD budget,” Stevens said.
Catarata pledged to be an independent voice in the school board.
“It is a non-partisan race, so I truly encourage families all across […] District A who are Republican, Democrat, non-partisan, independent, and whatever they like to identify because we truly all need to work together,” Catarata said.
Finally, voting for the seat currently held by embattled trustee Katie Williams, who is not seeking re-election, saw Lydia Dominguez bring in 30 percent of the vote while Eileen Eady took in 24 percent.
“I definitely want to thank […] all of the moms and parents who came up and showed up for their kids, all the grandparents who showed up for their kids,” Dominguez said.
With no candidate receiving more than 50 percent of the vote, each seat will be decided in a November run-off election. The next members of the Clark County School Board will oversee a district with a new superintendent as Jesus Jara departed the office. However, the new trustees will not choose the new superintendent. Instead, current board members hope to make that decision in the coming weeks.
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