Teachers union wades into superintendent fight

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The California Federation of Teachers, the state’s second-largest teachers union, has reported spending $132,000 on a slate mailer promoting Assemblyman Tom Torlakson (D-Antioch) to be the state’s next superintendent of public instruction.

The race for the statewide education post is widely expected to become a political arms race between three well-heeled education groups in the state. Torlakson is expected to receive the strong backing of teachers unions, including the 300,000-strong California Teachers Assn.

The candidacy of state Sen. Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles) is expected to be pumped up by EdVoice, a Sacramento-based lobbying group that supports charter schools and is funded by wealthy businessmen, including Eli Broad and Reed Hastings, founder of Netflix. EdVoice has yet to report any spending in the race.

The third candidate, Larry Aceves, a former president of the Assn. of California School Administrators, has the strong backing of the group he once ran. ACSA has already spent $90,000, mostly on campaign mailers promoting Aceves.

Incumbent Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell is leaving office after eight years because of term limits.

-- Shane Goldmacher in Sacramento