LAUSD School Board District 6 Incumbent Kelly Gonez Unopposed in June Primary as East SFV Voters Head to Ballot | The San Fernando Valley Post
LAUSD School Board District 6 Incumbent Kelly Gonez Unopposed in June Primary as East SFV Voters Head to Ballot
Kelly Gonez, two-term incumbent representing East San Fernando Valley, faces no opposition in June 2 primary for LAUSD Board District 6 seat as voters head to the polls.
Two-Term School Board Member Kelly Gonez Faces No Competition in East San Fernando Valley Seat
** — Kelly Gonez, a two-term incumbent representing the East San Fernando Valley, will face no opposition in the June 2 primary election for her seat on the Los Angeles Unified School Board.
Los Angeles Unified School District Board District 6
The only name on the ballot for District 6 is Gonez, who was first elected in 2017 and is serving her final term. A qualified write-in candidate would have to earn more than 50 percent of the vote to defeat her, making her victory nearly certain.
District 6 encompasses the eastern San Fernando Valley and parts of North Hollywood and North Hills, an area with more than 400,000 students in the nation's second-largest school system.
Board Member Priorities
Gonez has served on the board since 2017, representing a community she knows well. During her tenure, she has focused on several key issues facing the East San Fernando Valley, including:
◆Federal immigration enforcement and its impact on students and families
◆Rising temperatures and climate change
◆Lack of greenspace in residential neighborhoods
Gonez is a former teacher at a charter school and served as an education policy adviser during the Obama administration. She is also the parent of three LAUSD students.
Her past campaigns have garnered support from both charter school advocates and the teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles.
Challenges Facing LAUSD
The board currently faces several pressing challenges as it navigates the future of the district:
◆A nearly $19 billion budget that relies on billions in reserves to close gaps between expenses and revenue
◆Declining enrollment over more than two decades, which reduces state funding
◆The uncertainty surrounding Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who is on paid administrative leave following FBI raids of his San Pedro home and downtown office
◆Continued pressure on school safety and resource allocation
In February, a divided board approved the elimination of more than 650 jobs as part of a plan to cut spending. Decisions about more layoffs and school closures could be on the horizon.
What School Board Members Do
LAUSD board members have significant power over the district's direction:
◆They hire and fire the superintendent
◆They set spending priorities for the nearly $19 billion budget
◆They work with parents and resolve disputes over facilities and budgets
◆They vote on every charter school that hopes to open in Los Angeles and decide which ones get shut down
A board member's salary is $130,000 if they don't have another source of income, as of July 2025. In addition to money for a chief of staff and administrative assistant, the district provides each board office with about $374,000 of discretionary funding.
Election Details
The election for District 6 is one of three board seats on the June 2 primary ballot. Three of the seven seats on the LAUSD school board are up for election this year, including the San Fernando Valley's District 6 — the only seat that is now uncontested.
Voters directly elect members of the school board in Los Angeles, unlike in New York City, Chicago and Washington, D.C., where the mayor appoints education leaders.
School Board Priorities for Next Term
The board has identified several key areas of focus for the upcoming term:
◆Shoring up enrollment, which has declined for more than two decades
◆Continuing academic improvement as students have achieved notable gains on standardized math and reading tests in recent years
◆Addressing school safety, with parents seeking restoration of school police while students want greater investment in community-based safety programs
The board majority consists of candidates elected with the endorsement of the teachers union. This election will not change that balance because five seats are held by union-friendly incumbents, but the outcome will determine whether UTLA can further strengthen its hand or whether other constituencies will gain power at the union's expense.
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Sources:
◆LAist: Los Angeles Unified School Board District 6: Who's running in the June 2 primary and why it matters
◆Los Angeles Times: L.A. school board District 6 election guide: Gonez is unopposed