MOORPARK : Group Ups the Ante on School Vote Issue

A group of Moorpark residents who want the public to decide who will serve the remainder of the term vacated by former school board President Sam K. Nainoa on Monday submitted a petition to the county in an attempt to force a vote.

The remaining four school board members last week chose Gary Cabriales, a commercial airline pilot and former Moorpark High School valedictorian, to occupy Nainoa’s seat until his term expires in November, 1994.

But some residents had urged the board to let the voters decide who would inherit the post, and threatened to gather the signatures necessary to invalidate any board appointment and mandate an election.

Bruce Bradley, assistant county registrar of voters, said four proponents early Monday submitted a petition to the county superintendent of schools office with 235 signatures. It would take just 175 signatures to remove Cabriales from his seat and force an election, Bradley said.

The proponents named on the petition were Eloise Brown, a former city councilwoman, and residents Ron J. Golden, Stacy A. Seeman and Dorothy Ann Ventimiglia, elections officials said. Bradley said his office would probably inform the county superintendent by today whether enough of the signatures were valid to prompt the vote.

If the superintendent certifies the petition as being valid by July 6, Bradley said, the vote would be part of the scheduled county-wide election in November at a cost to the district of $3,400. If that deadline is not met, a special election would have to be held within 120 days at a cost of roughly $30,000.

Cabriales, who beat out four other applicants to win appointment, said Monday he welcomes the chance to run for the spot he was awarded by the board.

“I was prepared for this all along,” he said. “I anticipated it and I’ll face it head-on.”