Voting rights group sues Atascadero Unified School District over at-large voting process
ATASCADERO, Calif. (KEYT) – A non-partisan Latino voting rights group filed a civil suit against the Atascadero Unified School District alleging the at-large elections used to fill the District's Board dilutes the votes of Latino voters, a violation of the California Voting Rights Act of 2001.
The civil suit, filed in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court on behalf of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, alleges that, "AUSD's [Atascadero Unified School District] at-large method of election for electing members to its Board of Trustees prevents Latino residents from electing candidates of their choice or influencing the outcome of AUSD's elections."
According to the attorney representing the voting rights organization, in the 23 years since the passage of the California Voting Rights Act of 2001, hundreds of school districts statewide have moved away from the at-large voting system to avoid violating the state law without the need for litigation.
The Atascadero Unified School District's Board of Trustees noted that change caused by the state election law's passage and the potential for "expensive and divisive litigation" when it adopted Resolution No. 09-21-22 in November of 2021 that would have initiated a change in its election process to an area-based version.
"[P]ublic entities have had their at-large election systems challenged under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) which resulted in expensive and divisive litigation," stated the Atascadero Unified School District in November of 2021. "On November 16, 2021, the Board of Trustees adopted Resolution No. 09-21-22 to initiate a transition to a By-Trustee Area Election System commencing with the 2022 Election. This coincides with the release of the 2020 Census data with will enable the creation of Trustee areas with the appropriate population balance."
Despite the decision, the changes were never implemented and Trustees are still elected on an at-large basis.
"The effects of AUSD's at-large method of election are apparent and compelling," argued the civil suit filed this month in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court. "Despite a Latino population of approximately 27.4%, the candidates preferred by Latino voters, particularly those candidates who are Latino themselves, consistently lose in elections within AUSD, and no Latinos have been elected to AUSD’s governing board in recent elections."
According to the civil suit, the local school district was notified of the potential lawsuit regarding its election process via certified mail in October of last year as required by state election laws.
"In response, AUSD provided no response at all – content to continue violating the law and the voting rights of the residents it is supposed to serve," noted the civil suit. "SVREP [Southwest Voter Registration Education Project] has found that a significant obstacle to those projects in AUSD and throughout San Luis Obispo County has been a sense of futility among Latinos residing in political subdivisions that still employ at-large elections. Specifically, due to their lack of representation on AUSD and other
governing boards, and their inability to obtain such representation under the current at-large
election system, Latinos in AUSD have less reason to vote or register to vote."
Plaintiffs in the suit request that the school district decree the current system violates state election law and that the courts stop future elections using the same process.
The General Election filing deadline for the November 2026 election are due this in mid-July to early August notes the San Luis Obispo County Clerk-Recorder's Office in its Candidate Filing Guidelines.
Your News Channel has reached out to the Atascadero Unified School District and the District's Board of Trustees for more information and their respective responses will be added to this article when they are received.
