Incumbent Lisa Sparks took a steep lead over Jason Sams in the race to fill the OC Board of Education District 5 seat when results were released Tuesday night after polls closed at 8 p.m.
Sams currently sits as a board advisor to Roosevelt University’s College of Humanities Education and Social Sciences.
Sparks, a professor in behavioral sciences at Chapman University’s School of Communication, of which she was the founding dean, was first elected to the Orange County Board of Education in 2018 and was reelected in 2022.
The Board of Education approves the Orange County Depart of Education’s annual budget, also hearing appeals for expulsions, charter school applications and inter-district transfers.
The Area 5 seat serves south Orange County: Aliso Viejo, Coto de Caza, Dana Point, Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Laguna Woods, Las Flores, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach, Newport Coast, Rancho Santa Margarita, San Clemente, San Joaquin Hills, San Juan Capistrano and parts of Costa Mesa and Lake Forest.
The county will see incumbent Stefan Bean as superintendent of schools, who has served the position since 2024, and an Area 2 Trustee in Mari Barke, who was elected in 2018. Both ran without challengers.
The registrar of voters will continue to tally votes daily until all are counted. Continue to check back here for updates.
• Also see: June 2 Primary Election Results