Delano Joint Union High School Board: Ortiz Leads Martinez by Seven Votes for Third Seat

DELANO, California — November 5, 2026. A school governing-board contest in the Delano area is separated by seven candidate selections at the boundary between third and fourth place. For the three open seats on the Delano Joint Union High School District board, Kern County’s November 4 unofficial report lists Miguel A. Duran with 2,389 selections, Valerie “Jasso” Gorospe with 1,948, and Alexis Ortiz with 1,572. Immediately behind is Chad Martinez with 1,565.

Why seven votes are significant

The election is vote-for-three. The three currently highest-ranked candidates occupy the reported leading positions for three seats, so Ortiz’s seven-selection margin over Martinez is more consequential to the ranking than the relatively wider gap between first and second. Additional eligible ballots may affect that margin. The county has not provided this newsroom with a verified number of outstanding votes assigned specifically to the district’s trustee electorate.

Other candidates in the high school race

Arthur B. Armendariz has 1,497 selections and Larry Smith has 1,348 in the same initial count. The vote shares reported by the county are the fraction of all valid candidate selections, not percentages of registered residents; each voter in this contest could make up to three choices. The seven names and rankings should therefore be compared within this contest only.

A separate elementary district election

Delano Union School District has its own three-seat election with Albino Duran, Irene Martinez, Marcela Martinez and several other candidates. The elementary and joint union high-school districts are distinct entities, and the overlapping place name does not make their ballots a single election.

Municipal races are separate as well

Delano voters also faced Measures K, L and M concerning mayoral office design and a vote-for-two city council election. Those municipal decisions do not alter the school district board election arithmetic. The county must finish canvassing before reporting a certified set of school trustees.

Source: Kern County Elections Division, unofficial November 4 2:55 a.m. report, Delano Joint Union High School Board Member contest. Final certification pending.

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