CA primary 2026: Shaw, Barrera lead in crowded schools superintendent race
Early returns in California’s primary election showed California Republican Party-endorsed Sonja Shaw and California Teachers Association-endorsed Richard Barrera leading the race to make it onto the November general election ballot for the position of state superintendent of schools.
As of 10:45 p.m., Shaw was the frontrunner with about 24.6% of the counted votes and Barrera trailed behind with about 19.6%. Both had chalked up significant leads over the other major candidates in the crowded race: Wendy Castaneda Leal (10%), Anthony Rendon (8.1%), Al Muratsuchi (8%) and Nichelle Henderson (8%).
The state superintendent of public instruction is a nonpartisan office that oversees the California Department of Education and executes the state Board of Education’s policies. The office does not have budget authority but does shape instructional policies and standards like curricula and testing.
By next January, however, the role of the superintendent may look very different from its current form. Earlier this year, Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed moving the state Department of Education into the executive branch as part of his budget proposal for the next fiscal year.
Under that proposal, the agency would, via statute, move into the governor’s cabinet, where a Department of Education director would be appointed with approval from the state Board of Education. The position of the elected superintendent, meanwhile, would be diminished to that of an advocate of “state education policies from early childhood through college.” Tony Thurmond, outgoing state schools chief and a candidate in the governor race, has come out in opposition to the plan.
The proposal will have to make it into the final budget that the Legislature will pass by June 15 for these changes to be enacted.
Candidates in the race, including Shaw, have criticized Newsom’s proposal.
Shaw is the Chino Valley Unified School District board president and a Republican activist who emerged as a major player in the COVID-era parental rights movement. She also championed a policy requiring Chino Valley schools to inform parents if their child went by a different name or gender pronouns at school. If elected, Shaw said she would bring that same energy to Sacramento, calling herself an “independent advocate” who would “restore high academic standards in reading, writing, and math; protect Title IX, ensuring fairness and safety for girls; give parents a real seat at the table; support excellent teachers; and cut wasteful bureaucracy.”
A San Diego Unified School District trustee since 2008, Barrera portrayed himself in his campaign as a political outsider who would improve wages for teachers, expand transitional kindergarten to cover 3-year-olds, increase oversight of statewide educational funding and track spending outcomes, and help build affordable housing for educators. He served as a policy adviser to Thurmond, focusing on addressing chronic absenteeism and working with immigrant students and families.
