Voters in two areas of the Orange Unified School District will be asked whether they want to recall their representatives on the Orange Unified School District (OUSD) Board of Education — Madison Klovstad Miner, who represents Trustee Area 4, and Rick Ledesma, who represents Trustee Area 7.
Official titles on the ballot:
Orange Unified School District Recall - Miner Governing Board Member, Trustee Area 4
Orange Unified School District Recall - Ledesma Governing Board Member, Trustee Area 7
About the district
The district covers the cities of Orange and Villa Park, the Anaheim Hills, and parts of Garden Grove and Santa Ana. It serves about 26,000 students from pre-school through high school at some 36 campuses.
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- A "yes" vote on either ballot item means: The board member would be removed from office. The OUSD school board would then have to decide whether to appoint a replacement, hold a special election, or put the seat on the November general election ballot.
- A "no" vote means: The board member would remain in office for the remainder of their term (until 2026 for both Miner and Ledesma).
The backstory
More OC Voter Guides
How to evaluate judges
- O.C. Superior Court: There are just three seats that are competitive this primary.
Head to LAist's Orange County Voter Game Plan for guides to the rest of your ballot including:
- O.C. County Board of Supervisors: Two of the five seats are on the ballot.
- Huntington Beach measures: Voters will decide on three measures.
- Orange Unified recall: Voters in this district will decide the fate of two conservative board members.
- Prop. 1: Here's a closer look at the proposal at the center of a debate over how to best help people struggling with mental health, drug and alcohol issues.
Ledesma has served on the OUSD board for 24 years. Miner was elected for the first time in 2022.
The school district and the recall have become focal points in the latest battles over what should be taught in public schools. Ledesma and Miner consider themselves part of the self-named parental rights movement, which has taken aim at what they consider divisive and inappropriate teachings in public schools on race, gender and sexuality.
Both are strong supporters of charter schools.
The effort to recall them began shortly after the 2022 election, when the newly sworn-in board abruptly fired the district superintendent and put the assistant superintendent on administrative leave with little public explanation.
Ledesman and Miner have since helped restrict student access to materials that some parents found inappropriate, and they helped pass policies that ban flying the Pride flag at schools and require schools to notify parents if their child asks to use a different name or gender than the one assigned to them at birth.
What the recall targets say
Ledesma and Miner are proud of their achievements, including a "parents bill of rights" that reiterates parents' rights to review curriculum and have their opinions taken into consideration by district leaders. In a recent editorial, they called the recall "a thinly-veiled assault on parental rights."
In his official ballot statement in response to the recall effort, Ledesma said the administrative and other changes he has spearheaded at the district are in furtherance of a "Student First" agenda rather than a "Union First" agenda.
In her statement, Miner said she was being targeted for recall "by a group backed by teachers' unions and radical parents."
Both Miner and Ledesma said they were focused on improving kids' test scores and, by doing so, improving home values in the district.
What recall backers say
Recall backers say Ledesma and Miner have prioritized their own political agendas over student needs, wasted public money, and alienated teachers and school administrators. They say the recall targets attempted "to censor libraries, steal facility repair funds for personal projects, sell out needed school sites to faith-based charters at deep discounts, and discriminate against special needs and LGBTQ students."
More reading
- Web page of recall supporters
- Web page of recall opponents
- The OUSD recall is a thinly-veiled assault on parents’ rights (OC Register Op-Ed)
- Orange Unified Accused Of 'Full Ambush' To Fire Superintendent. Did It Violate State's Open Meeting Law? (EdSource/LAist)
- A Parent Complained About A Digital Book. Then An Orange County School Board Suspended The Whole Library (LAist)
- Orange Unified Approves Policy To Out Trans Students To Parents (LAist)
More Voter Guides
- Orange County Board of Supervisors: The winners of Districts 1 and 3 will join a five-member board that oversees a county of about 3 million residents with an annual budget of about $9 billion.
- Orange County Superior Court judges: There are three competitive races for the bench.
Head to LAist's OC Voter Game Plan for guides to the rest of your ballot including:
- Measure D: Evaluating the initiative that asks Irvine voters to expand the city council and redistribute its powers.
- Huntington Beach Measures A, B and C: A closer look at a trio of measures aiming to reshape Surf City.
- Orange Unified: Two board members face recall
- Orange County Board of Education: Three of five seats are up for grabs
- Orange County State Assembly: Meet the candidates vying for these nine seats
- Orange County State Senate: A look at the key races on the ballot
- Prop. 1: Here's a closer look at the proposal at the center of a debate over how to best help people struggling with mental health, drug and alcohol issues.
- U.S. Congress: A look at the Southern California races
- U.S. Senate: Who will replace the late Dianne Feinstein?
