In March, voters will decide whether to recall two Orange Unified School District board members. But what happens if one or even both trustees are removed from their posts?
If a majority of voters in the OUSD boundary lines — which encompasses the cities of Orange and Villa Park and the Anaheim Hills community and portions of neighboring cities — decide that Board President Rick Ledesma and Trustee Madison Miner are not fit for a position on the board, it is up to OUSD to decide the next steps.
Simply, there are three options that OUSD could pursue, per the district’s bylaws: call a special election right after the March primary results are announced, wait until the regular election in November to fill the vacancies or task the board with immediately appointing new trustees.
Recalled individuals can run in future elections as long as they have not exceeded the OUSD term limits and are deemed qualified by the Registrar of Voters. OUSD’s term limit allows for an individual to have three four-year terms on the board.
In this case, Miner could potentially run in future elections because she has not exceeded her term limit, but Ledesma could not run again because he has already been on the board for three terms.
Any newly appointed trustees, if by special election or by appointment, would have to run in the November 2024 general election — and win — if they desire to continue being on the OUSD board. These candidates’ terms would be until November 2026.
Should Ledesma and/or Miner be recalled, the board could not immediately appoint them back to their seats, said Hanna Brake, the OUSD spokesperson.
“In this case, the original election was for a term from November 2022 to November 2026, so the recall is for the remainder of the person’s term. We interpret this as preventing a provisional appointment of a board member who was just recalled,” Brake said.
Ledesma and Miner both started their current stints on the board in 2022 and, if they are not recalled, will end their terms in 2026.
Neither Ledesma nor Miner responded to requests for comment.
“A recall shouldn’t be an election of who a voter might think is a better candidate. Recalls are, and should be, a democratic process to remedy a situation if an elected official isn’t doing their job or acting in the best interest of constituents,” said Darshan Smaaladen, a parent in the OUSD district and leader of the group spearheading the trustees’ recall.
“Recalls should be used in extreme circumstances with specific and egregious reasons, which is what we believe happened in Orange Unified,” said Smaaladen.
The OUSD Recall group launched the effort after the school board called a special meeting in January to fire Superintendent Gunn Marie Hansen and place an assistant superintendent on paid leave without explanation and over the objections of many in the school community. The group says there has been an exodus of OUSD staff because of the board members’ actions and spending practices.
In an interview after the impromptu firing, Ledesma defended the board’s actions, saying, “It wasn’t a political move.”
“We are concerned about educational programs and services to the students of OUSD,” Ledesma said. “We think we have drifted away from academics and educating students. We have been focusing too much on the social politics of education.”
More recently, the OUSD board enacted a parental notification policy, which requires a certificated staff member or principal to inform parents if their child — who is under the age of 12 — requests to use different names or pronouns or asks to change sex-segregated programs like athletic teams or changing facilities that differ from the student’s “assigned biological sex at birth.” If the student is over 12 years old, it is up to the discretion of a school counselor or psychologist to determine if it is appropriate to inform parents.
While several California districts have adopted similar mandates in recent months, OUSD was the first district in Orange County to implement the controversial policy.
The notice of intent to recall Miner was filed with the Orange County Registrar of Voters on May 3, and a week later, one targeting Ledesma was filed. Both petitions were approved for circulation on June 5 by the Registrar.
There were 15,016 and 14,736 valid petition signatures submitted to recall Ledesma and Miner, respectively, to the Registrar.
Voters who live in the OUSD boundary lines — which includes the cities of Orange, Villa Park, Anaheim Hills, portions of Santa Ana, Garden Grove, Yorba Linda and areas of unincorporated Orange County such as Silverado — will be able to participate in the election, even if they do not have a student attending an OUSD school.
