MOORPARK : Schools to Consider New Election Dates

In response to a consistently low voter turnout for school board elections, the Moorpark Unified School District board will consider tonight whether to begin holding its elections during the same years as general elections.

The school board will consider changing its election dates, as proposed by board member Sam Nainoa, at a meeting that begins at 7 p.m. at the school district office.

“There’s absolutely no reason for us to continue to hold off-year elections,” Nainoa said Monday. Elections for the five school board members are now held in odd-numbered years, general elections in even-numbered years.

Voter turnout at school board elections in Moorpark has hovered between about 16% and 18% over the past five years, Nainoa said. That could be expected to rise to the 50% to 60% levels common in Moorpark general elections for City Council and state and federal offices if school board members were elected on the same date, he said.

In addition, putting school board candidates on the same ballot as other candidates would save the district an estimated $4,500 in ballot-printing costs for each election, Nainoa said.