Our reporting is free for everyone, but it’s not free to make.
LAist only exists with reader support. If you're in a position to give, your donation powers our reporters and keeps us independent.
Castellanos Concedes LAUSD Board District 7 Race, Dashing Hopes Of Teachers Union Majority
Patricia Castellanos (left) conceded the election for the open District 7 seat on the L.A. Unified school board to opponent Tanya Ortiz Franklin. (Campaign images)
Patricia Castellanos has conceded the race for the District 7 seat on the L.A. Unified school board to opponent Tanya Ortiz Franklin.
Though there are many votes left to count, Castellanos currently trails Franklin by nearly 16 percentage points.
"We could not overcome the amount of money poured into this race," Castellanos wrote in a Facebook post yesterday:
Castellanos had the backing of United Teachers Los Angeles and other organized labor groups. But prominent education reform groups outspent the unions by a more than 3-to-1 margin hoping to swing the race to Franklin.
LAUSD BD7 Spending At A Glance
Infogram
Castellanos' apparent defeat ends any hope from UTLA of electing a majority to the seven-member LAUSD board. Yesterday, I shared some thoughts about what that could mean.
- Results of this race from our Voter Game Plan page
- Results from the other LAUSD race, in Board District 3
Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.