Rocío Rivas and Raquel Zamora face off in the L.A. Unified District 2 race. With budgets tight and trustees shaping policy, the primary could shift local education power.
Three seats are on the line in the June 2 primary for the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education, but District 2 is drawing outsized attention for one reason: it could influence how the district manages both classroom priorities and internal power dynamics for years.
The Los Angeles Unified District 2 race pits Rocío Rivas against Raquel Zamora, as L.A.. Unified navigates a complicated mix of financial strain, student needs, and leadership uncertainty.. For voters. the choice comes at a moment when the district’s direction is being shaped not only by policy debates. but by the realities of labor negotiations. enrollment shifts. and heightened anxiety among families.
Campaign context is inseparable from what L.A.. Unified is currently trying to solve.. Earlier this spring. district officials narrowly avoided a strike after reaching agreements involving significant employee raises. reversing roughly 200 layoffs. and expanding hiring for roles such as counselors and school psychologists.. Those changes carry a major price tag—nearly $1.2 billion annually for three district union contracts—at a time when budget pressures remain intense.. That’s where District 2 becomes more than local politics: board members ultimately decide how resources are allocated when both staffing and services face tough trade-offs.
Education results, meanwhile, have improved since the pandemic-era low point.. Standardized test scores have been trending upward. including at a faster pace than the state average. but critics argue the improvement has been steady rather than transformational.. The district has leaned into structured interventions—extra tutoring. repeated diagnostic checks. and phonics training—seeking to lift outcomes with targeted supports.. Absenteeism has also been a focus. along with efforts to reduce chronic student disengagement and modernize campuses through a school bond measure.
A central source of uncertainty sits at the district’s top.. Superintendent Alberto Carvalho is on paid administrative leave following FBI raids of his San Pedro home and downtown office.. Misryoum understands that at least part of the investigation is tied to a failed chatbot project intended to personalize education.. Carvalho has said he has done nothing wrong and wants to return to work. but the stakes remain high: if he does not return and cannot serve out his new four-year contract. the board would choose a superintendent.. In other words, voters in District 2 are casting a ballot in a race where leadership continuity is not guaranteed.
Enrollment is another pressure point that reaches beyond any single classroom.. As student numbers decline, state funding falls and the district faces increased pressure to save money by closing campuses.. The district is also dealing with the ripple effects of heightened federal immigration enforcement. which Misryoum reports has affected attendance and created anxiety that can spill over into school life.. In response, L.A.. Unified has declared itself a sanctuary district for both immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community. a move that has also made it a target for some conservative groups.
The policy direction of the district is further shaped by labor power. and Misryoum sees that dynamic as the most durable force in this election.. The board majority consists of incumbents backed by the powerful teachers union, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA).. The District 2 primary will not change that overall balance—five seats are held by incumbents who are union-friendly—but the winner can still affect how aggressively UTLA pursues its goals and how much influence other constituencies can claim.
UTLA has long been a reliable financial engine for board campaigns, and its spending is not controlled by individual candidates.. Another major player in the local political ecosystem is Local 99 of the Service Employees International Union. which represents about 30. 000 workers including bus drivers. custodians. cafeteria staff. gardeners. and technical support staff.. Local 99 has not endorsed candidates in this cycle. which leaves open the question of whether the union’s leverage could tilt the outcome if it chooses to mobilize later or adjust its strategy for future elections.
Charter school advocates also have a history of injecting money into these contests, sometimes as a counterweight to union-aligned campaigns.. In recent elections. retired businessman Bill Bloomfield—an ally to charter schools—has been a significant spender. making his own calls on whom to support.. Misryoum notes he has not committed to participating this election cycle. but the broader landscape suggests charter influence could still be a factor depending on who steps in.
For voters. the immediate decision may feel procedural—choosing between two candidates for a single district seat—but the consequences are structural.. The board must keep negotiating and funding staff contracts while maintaining momentum on student supports, test outcomes, and attendance efforts.. At the same time. it must prepare for possible superintendent churn and manage the political reality of a board majority where UTLA remains dominant.
In that sense, the District 2 contest is partly about ideology and partly about coalition strength.. If UTLA-aligned forces consolidate their influence further. the district could lean into more of the existing strategy—intensive remediation. diagnostics. and targeted literacy work—while continuing to fund expanded student support roles.. If the race brings more traction from other constituencies. it may test whether the district’s priorities. especially around budgets and staffing. become more contested even within a union-friendly majority.