Pleasanton school board prepares for change after election

One incumbent is returning and two new trustees will join the Board of Trustees in the weeks ahead, ushering in new leadership at Pleasanton Unified School District at the end of a year marked by historic events.

Board President Steve Maher is serving a second term, earning 30.18% of the vote — 25,975 votes, so far — and remaining firmly in first as he has since Election Night, according to the latest results from the Alameda County Registrar of Voters’ Office on Tuesday afternoon.

The election results are considered unofficial until certified, but reported totals by county officials at this point represent the vast majority of ballots cast and the margins appear too significant for any trailing candidates to overcome. The county estimated having 9,453 eligible ballots left to process as of Tuesday.

“I’m a little shocked at how many votes are still coming in for everybody,” Maher told the Weekly on Tuesday, noting how many more were cast than in 2016.

“It’s not over until it’s over, of course, but I feel confident that I’m going to end up landing one of the seats,” Maher said, adding he was “certainly honored and humbled to be elected.”

As for what happens post-election, “We have a daunting task ahead of us; we made a commitment to open Jan. 4” for in-person learning at PUSD elementary school sites.

“We hope that the community will adhere to wearing masks, distancing, stay out of large groups so that we can open,” Maher said, including the Pleasanton community at-large.

“My top priority now is to make sure that those that come back do so safely,” he added, as well as offering a “robust” remote learning experience for students and families that opt to remain at home for the remainder of the school year.

Retired PUSD teacher Mary Jo Carreon, who won the second most votes in the five-person race — 17,354 (20.16%) to date — told the Weekly she was “very grateful and humbled by the outpouring of support from our community.”

“I really appreciate how so many people stepped up to help, and that is reflective of what a great community we live in,” Carreon said. “I look forward to working with fellow board members to serve the needs of all students.”

E-education professional Kelly Mokashi was narrowly ahead of incumbent Jamie Yee for the third and final seat on the board, receiving to-date 16,039 votes (18.64%) to Yee’s 14,613 (16.98%).

Though Carreon and Mokashi were both uncertain about when they would be sworn in, Mokashi said her top priorities as a new trustee are “consistent with my campaign.”

“We certainly want to keep our children and school community safe, but I want to look at options for the hybrid model,” Mokashi said. “Remote learning certainly has its challenges; I want to leverage my expertise in that field.”

Mokashi is also focused on “assuring that we’re being fiscally responsible” amid economic upheaval during the pandemic and assuring students “get that quality education that they deserve.”

Yee, who was seeking a fourth consecutive term as trustee since first being elected in 2008, said in a statement, “For the respect of the election process, I have nothing to say until the election is certified.”

First-time candidate Chong Wang received 11,878 votes, or 13.80% of total ballots cast in last week’s general election. Another 204 voters opted for write-in candidates, making up less than a quarter-percent of total votes.

The five candidates were competing for three at-large seats on the board, at least one of which was guaranteed to change hands because Trustee Valerie Arkin ran for City Council instead — an election she won.

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