Hayward school boardmember Luis Reynoso won re-election to this seat last month. Reynoso was one of the election’s biggest winners after also gaining a seat on the Chabot-Las Positas Community College Board of Directors. Reynoso wants to serve both boards and his electoral riches are leading administrators at the school district and the community college district to question whether he can legally do so.
“It’s just a case of sour grapes here. They just don’t like how the election turned out,” Reynoso said. “This is the will of the people, they have spoken, and they decided I was the most qualified for the job.”
Reynoso said his intent was always to serve both offices when he qualified for the ballot in both races last August. He also received no notification that the offices may be incompatible until last week.
In a letter sent by Hayward Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Matt Wayne and Chabot-Las Positas Community College Chancellor Robert Gerhard, they assert a government code that prohibits the offices from being held concurrently by a single individual since the boundaries of the Hayward Unified School District reside within the boundaries of the Chabot-Las Positas Community College District. Potential competing allegiances also exist for Reynoso, they wrote. In addition, a state education code does not allow an individual to serve on both a community college district board and a high school district board, they further argue.
There appears to be significant gray area for whether the two offices are incompatible. Whether the offices are incompatible would have to be determined by a court, but likely at the urging of the state attorney general’s office. In addition, the process could be lengthy, perhaps, 12-18 months before a determination is made.
Reynoso believes the two offices do not legislatively overlap. While serving on the Hayward school board since 2008, Reynoso said he does not recall voting on matters that impacted the Chabot-Las Positas Community College. He also dismissed the second argument, saying the Hayward Unified School District is not a high school district.
However, Wayne and Gerhard wrote they will not get in the way if Reynoso moves ahead with his plans to occupy both seats. “We have no intention (or authority) to get involved in the election process. As such, we must administer both oaths of office, if you ultimately decide to take both seats,” they wrote. But they also suggested actions could later be taken against Reynoso’s bid for both seats.
“If you nonetheless take both seats, it exposes you to a quo warranto action, which may be brought by a member of the public, the District Attorney, or a board of trustees if it were to conclude that holding both seats violates its internal ethical policies. As the administrative leaders of our respective districts, we would hope to avoid the disruption, potential cost, and loss of confidence in governance that such procedures can create,” they wrote.
The scenario of a single candidate winning two races in a single election is quite rare. But in this case, there was a possibility that a second candidate could have achieved the same result last month as Reynoso did. Hayward school boardmember Robert Carlson, like Reynoso, sought re-election while also running for the Area 1 seat on the Chabot-Las Positas board. Carlson, however, lost both races last month, finishing last in the eight-candidate Hayward school board race, while being trounced by Reynoso in the Chabot-Las Positas race by 13 points.
Reynoso alleges the Hayward Unified School District administration purposely moved the date of its most recent regular school board meeting, which typically occurs on Wednesday nights to last Monday, in order to steer Reynoso toward the Chabot-Las Positas board.
If a candidate who wins multiple offices deemed incompatible, the candidate forfeits the first office in which they are sworn-in. Reynoso was sworn-in by the Hayward school board on Monday night. He is scheduled to take the oath at the community college district on Tuesday evening.
If deemed incompatible, there is a good financial reason from the perspective of the community college district to have Reynoso serve on the Chabot-Las Positas board rather than the Hayward school board. Leaving the Chabot-Las Positas seat open would likely require a costly special election next spring. Conversely, an open Hayward school board seat, because it’s an at-large seat, would likely only require the board to make a two-year appointment. Another at-large school board election would then occur in 2022 and at little additional cost.
Nevertheless, after Tuesday evening’s swearing-in at the Chabot-Las Positas board, Reynoso said he plans to fully participate on both boards and vote on matters before each district.
ebcitizen.com 
Recall April Oquenda. She is just an anti Charter school racist. She will do nothing for our black and brown kids in Hayward.
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You sound insane
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He’s another Trump….
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I love how people are so scared to use their real names and go by anonymous. I know teachers would be writing under anonymous.
Dr. Carlson ran for both positions. Dr. Reynoso check with the election board to see if it was legal to do. Then Reynoso applied. Don’t you think Dr. Reynoso checked it out, if he could be on both boards? He did and he can.
It may cost the school district lots of money to take this to court. The board is trying to pull something illegal. They never liked Reynoso. In any job you might have to work with someone you don’t like. Get over that.
This wouldn’t be mentioned if Carlson had won both elections.
Dr. Reynoso is a Latino with a PhD in Education. How many Latinos in Hayward have a PhD? Especially in Education? Where are they and why aren’t they running for a school board seat? You should be trilled Dr. Reynoso is on the board. He teaches Financing in College and knows more about money than anyone on that board. He is the right choice to be there. The people have voted for him, to represent him.
Seeing what this board has done, it is very wrong. I can see why Hayward school’s stink. The teachers are not good teachers. The performance levels of the children are in the bottom 10 out of the 50 states.
Trying to over throw a public election and not allowing the winner to do the job is outrageous.
Next election, remove those board members, especially Dr. April O. Vote for someone else. Recalls work too.
Private schools or charter schools are much better. If vouchers could be used in Hayward, you could send your child to a better school. These public non performing public schools would close.
Honor the people who voted for Dr. Reynoso. Call for a recall of the administrators, who think they are above the law.
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What were you drinking or smoking when you tried to write your move like a snake poem?
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Periodt.
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Collusion. He is feeding you info. That is against board policy and he knows it.
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Love, you got it all wrong. You are the snake here
Move like a snake, ah
Move like a snake, ah ah
Rock your hips to this
Move like a snake, like a snake
Move like a snake, like a snake
Move like a snake, like a snake
M-move like a snake, like a snake
Put your hand on your face, move like a snake, move like a snake, move like a snake
Put your hand on your waist, move like a snake, move like a snake, m-move like a
Move like a sssssssnake
Move like a sssssssnake
Move like a snake, put it in his face, ay
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CHabot and Las Positas offer Medical insurance. The public should know this.
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Today, the HUSD school board is having a special board meeting to discuss Reynoso, it’s not posted as such, but the HUSD admin office has loose lips. Dr. Matt Wayne, the HUSD Superintendent, is leading the charge to remove Reynoso, to go against the will and vote of the people! Wayne is a snake and ha always hated Reynoso. Perhaps if Wayne was less of a snake, then Reynoso wouldn’t be on his butt all the time. Wake up Hayward! These people at the HUSD are trying to change an election!
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Good for him. He is the only one who wants change.
I don’t see what’s the problem? Robert Carlson also run for both positions as well and lost both. Reynoso won with 18,500 plus legally! Fare and square!
Citizens of Hayward voted for him.
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Typically less than 20% of registered voters vote in Hayward elections because everyone here knows it’s a rigged corrupt fraud (not unlike the federal government). Also politics in Hayward City Hall do not align with most of the people that live here. Less than 20% of voters vote is not “The Will of the People” its vote of no confidence and a spit in the eye of Hayward City Hall. When the east bay was solidly republican, community college was free, Hayward had the best public schools in the USA (Now some the worst) and true progressive values were promoted. Then the leftist siege of Hayward began and all the progress and good things where literally blown away in sea of corruption and greed behind a smoke screen of anti-America leftist jargon.
PS If any Hayward politician is reading this: please stop your false invoicing schemes; you are stealing money from children and homeless people!
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I agree with Keepingit Real. These tactics are vintage Dr. Reynoso. Always blaming someone else for “not telling him”. So tired of it. For 12 years I’ve watched this guy drop divisiveness in everything he does. He refuses to work with his fellow board members-no matter who is in the board. There is a reason he’s never been president of the board. He would only further lead the board into chaos. It’s what he likes. He thrives on it. He’s just like Trump. His current tactics are just more of the same. As a Hayward community member I just would ask his supporters, is this the best we can offer? This is all you can offer as “your guy”? He does nothing for students or for HUSD. The board needs to and MUST abide by the education code of California.
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Congratulations Dr. Reynoso! We the people have voted for You, our votes have been counted and sealed! The results are in. For you people, stop acting like babies, and start acting like Adults! The people have spoken with their votes. Dr. Reynoso is an outstanding citizen with an immense mental library of knowledge. We have seen you in action and appreciate you standing up for the parents and most of all.. Students! We have enjoyed your strong leadership to do the right thing. Let him do his magic on both Boards. Thank You!
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What you say is not factual. Only the CA Attorney General can give the court the authority to remove him from the first office. That process does not happen overnight, and the AG will more than likely not take action anyway. Reynoso won, the people voted, get over it or continue to cry over it.
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Ed code is very clear and this is a just another example of Reynoso using his media puppet to launch an offense.
Once he takes the second oath he forfeits the first office. Plain and simple. To say that he was only noticed a few weeks ago that the offices would be incompatible is the typical “blame them for not telling me” excuse that we have seen on a national level. He’s the one that decided to run for both offices and should’ve done his own due diligence on his own dime…not on that of the taxpayers.
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“the process could be lengthy, perhaps, 12-18 months before a determination is made.”
Does this factor in potential delays due to the pandemic?
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Good for Luis Reynoso! The voters have spoken. The will of the electorate must be followed. For the administrators to oppose this is as bad as the efforts of Trump to invalidate the election. The majority selected him and the people will need to enjoy their selection. This is the essence of America. Get over it. If you do not like his votes, vote him out. If y9ou are really unhappy with him, recall him. He has not been nearly as awful as he used to sound.
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