Laguna Beach election 2026 · Nonpartisan voter guide
Laguna Beach School Board Election 2026
Five candidates are running for three at-large seats on the Laguna Beach Unified School District Board of Education in the November 3, 2026 election.
Last reviewed September 29, 2026. Candidate order and designations follow the Orange County Registrar of Voters; incumbent status is checked against LBUSD.
Your priorities · Five candidates · Six choices
Compare your views with the School Board candidates
Answer six questions about school facilities, classroom technology, student voice, academics and Board leadership. See agreements, differences and the qualifications in each candidate’s documented answers.
Anonymous · No login · Your answers stay in this page. Candidates appear in ballot order; this guide gives no overall score or winner.
Start the School Board comparison
How to read your School Board comparison
Each answer is compared with a candidate’s documented position on that specific choice. Clear yes/no responses show agreement or difference. Qualified or related responses retain their explanation; an unknown answer does not count as opposition. Similar views can appear for several candidates.
Your importance settings put the issues you care about first in the results. They do not create a score or rank. All five candidates remain in ballot order. You may select up to three for a detailed comparison, reflecting the three seats on the ballot without making a voting recommendation.
The sources include the October 7 PTA forum and candidate-submitted questionnaires. Recorded incumbent votes and non-incumbents’ hypothetical answers are labeled separately. Summaries are paraphrases; automatic captions can contain errors. Follow the source links to review the full explanation.
Evidence reviewed October 8, 2026. Your answers stay in this page and are not submitted or stored. When enabled, anonymous activity counts record starts, completions, result views and share actions; this guide does not send candidate-match totals. Sharing is optional and opens the guide without restoring your answers. Suggest a source correction.
Public appearances
2026 candidate forums and debates
This School Board schedule includes KXFM’s completed joint forum and the PTA Council’s October 7 school-board-only forum. The PTA Council says all five School Board candidates were invited; a listing does not confirm attendance.
All currently listed forums have concluded. Past forum records remain available below.
Past forums2 completed
Laguna Beach Unified Council of PTAs
6:00–7:30 p.m. · Thurston Middle School Library
2100 Park Avenue, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Forum recordView official flyerWatch recording and compare answersSearch transcriptCandidate timestampsLaguna Beach PTA Council information
KXFM
5:30 p.m. potluck; 6:30 p.m. forum · Neighborhood Congregational Church, Bridge Hall
340 St Ann’s Drive, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Compare KXFM candidate answersKXFM forum page
KXFM has published a 10-question candidate-results summary and an official Facebook reel from the September 8 forum. So Laguna has not verified a complete audio or video replay of the full program.
Open the So Laguna events calendarLaguna Beach PTA Council information
Candidate comparison
Who is running for Laguna Beach School Board?
The order below follows the Orange County Registrar of Voters candidate list, not an editorial ranking. “Why consider” summarizes experience or priorities supporters may cite; it is not a So Laguna endorsement.
| Candidate | Ballot designation | Why voters may consider them | May 2026 Glass separation |
|---|---|---|---|
Dee PerryCurrent LBUSD Board Clerk; first elected in 2014View profile | Incumbent | More than five decades connected to LBUSD as an educator and trustee; K-12, classroom and special-education experience in Laguna Beach schools; Proposes public student-outcome and investment reporting; Emphasizes independent judgment alongside respectful collaboration | Voted yes. Perry seconded the May 12 motion to approve the separation agreement with Superintendent Jason Glass, then joined Board President Sheri Morgan and Trustee Howard Hills in the 3–2 vote. In her candidate response, Perry says superintendent personnel decisions are serious and confidential, that she made the decision she believed was right for the district and students, and that her focus is now stable leadership with Don Austin. |
Shaheen Sheik-SadhalNon-incumbent; attorney, parent and longtime LBUSD volunteerView profile | Attorney/Parent | More than 20 years of governance, complex decision-making and fiduciary experience; Extensive PTA, SchoolPower and parent-volunteer experience; Focus on collaborative decision-making, independent judgment and student growth; Supports transparent oversight with a clear distinction between Board governance and district management | No Board vote. Sheik-Sadhal was not a trustee when the May 12 separation agreement was approved. In her candidate-submitted response, she says she would not have supported the separation agreement with Dr. Glass or the process used to appoint his successor, citing the need for deliberate, transparent decision-making and appropriate community input. |
Kimberly SmithNon-incumbent; technology executive and LBUSD parentView profile | Tech CEO/Parent | Current perspective as the parent of two LBUSD students; Executive experience in strategy, operations, budgets and personnel; Nonprofit board and finance-committee experience; Clear distinction between governance oversight and day-to-day management | No Board vote. Smith was not a trustee when the May 12 separation agreement was approved. In her candidate-submitted response, she says she would not have approved the agreement as presented and raises concerns about the process, the exclusion of two trustees and transparent, lawful superintendent-selection practices. |
Elizabeth BatesNon-incumbent; LBUSD graduate, parent and businesswomanView profile | Fiduciary/Business Woman/Mother | Perspective as an LBHS graduate and parent of four district students; More than two decades of fiduciary and real-estate experience; Facilities Master Plan Committee experience; Emphasizes measurable academic and financial outcomes | No Board vote. Bates was not a trustee when the May 12 separation agreement was approved. In her candidate-submitted response, she says she would have wanted a clear, documented process, a careful performance evaluation and full consideration of the effects on students, staff and taxpayers before the leadership change. She identifies planning, communication within legal limits and a disruption-minimizing transition plan as lessons from the process. |
Joan MalczewskiCurrent LBUSD Board member; first elected in 2022View profile | Professor/Parent | Academic expertise in education history and policy; Former CPA and financial-analysis background; Incumbent experience and stated focus on collaboration with educators; Campaign-stated experience mentoring future educators with New York City public-school teachers | Voted no. Malczewski joined Jim Kelly in opposing the May 12 separation agreement with Superintendent Jason Glass; the motion passed 3–2. |
Why this election matters
Three seats can shape the Board’s direction
The seats presently held by Dee Perry, Jim Kelly and Joan Malczewski are scheduled for election. Perry and Malczewski are running; Kelly is not on the official candidate list. Because voters will fill three seats on a five-member Board, the election can materially affect its governing majority.
Two candidates—Perry and Bates—share the Roots and Results campaign website. Malczewski, Sheik-Sadhal and Smith are jointly promoted in campaign messaging. That alignment is useful context, but every elected trustee has an independent legal duty to the district.
May 2026 superintendent transition
How the incumbents voted on the Jason Glass separation
On May 12, 2026, the Board approved a separation agreement with Superintendent Jason Glass by a 3–2 vote. Perry seconded the motion and voted yes; Malczewski voted no. Bates, Sheik-Sadhal and Smith were not Board members and therefore did not vote.
Campaign finance
School Board disclosures will be public
LBUSD candidates file through Orange County rather than Laguna Beach City Hall. Under the FPPC schedule, candidates file a first pre-election Form 460 or Form 470 by September 24; committees file the second pre-election Form 460 by October 22. Certain contributions of $1,000 or more are subject to accelerated reporting during the election period.
Search Orange County campaign-finance records · View the official FPPC filing schedule
Primary records
Sources and methodology
- Orange County official candidate log
- Orange County candidate-filing and statement portal
- LBUSD Board member roster
- So Laguna superintendent-transition report
- Daily Pilot report on the separation and 3–2 vote
Candidate claims are attributed. Unknown positions are not inferred. The favorable-case summaries identify considerations voters may weigh; they are not endorsements.