The filing period for candidates wishing to run for election to the governing boards of local school districts will open on July 16, 2012 and close on August 10, 2012. All the school districts in the East Valley Times coverage area will have open seats in the November election, where if the incumbent chooses to run for another term, he or she could face a challenger. In two districts all five seats are up for re-election due to the County’s decision to hold school board elections only in even years along with state and national elections.
In Bella Vista Elementary School District four seats will be up for election—those currently held by Randy Mitchell, Randy Pelletier, Tyler Paloutzian, and by newly appointed board member Joe Zustak.
In Junction Elementary School District three seats will be open, all currently held by recent appointees—Gwen Bunn, Amy Kritzer and Ron Marin.
At Millville Elementary School District the seats held by longtime trustee Marty Dickson and newcomers Jeffrey Earl and Tami Pena will be up for election.
At North Cow Creek Elementary School District only two seats will be open—those currently held by Kerrie Hoppes and Eileen Travis.
At both Oak Run Elementary School District and Whitmore Union Elementary School District all five governing board seats will be up for election. This unfortunate turn of events is occurring because the four year terms of the longer serving incumbents now coincide with the requirement that recent appointees must run for election at the first available election to maintain their seat on the board. In the November election some of these vacancies will be designated as two year terms and others as four, so all will not become vacant at the same time in the future.