2026 California Superintendent of Public Instruction election

2026 California Superintendent of Public Instruction election

←  2022 June 2, 2026 (first round) November 3, 2026 (runoff) 2030 →

Incumbent Superintendent Tony Thurmond

The 2026 California Superintendent of Public Instruction election will take place on June 2, 2026, to elect the next Superintendent of Public Instruction of California. Unlike most other elections in the state, the office is not elected under the state's nonpartisan blanket primary system. Instead, the officially nonpartisan is elected via a general election, with a runoff scheduled for November 3, 2026 if no candidate receives a majority of the vote.

Incumbent Superintendent Tony Thurmond, who was elected in 2018 and reelected in 2022, is term-limited and running for governor. ^{[1] [2]}

Candidates

• Note: The state Superintendent of Public Instruction election in California is officially nonpartisan. The parties below identify which party label each candidate would have run under if given the option.

Declared

• Richard Barrera (Democratic), San Diego Unified School District Board member ^[3]
• Nichelle Henderson (Democratic), Los Angeles Community College District trustee ^[4]
• Andra Hoffman (Democratic), Los Angeles Community College District trustee ^[5]
• Frank Lara (Peace and Freedom), education union leader ^[6]
• Gus Mattammal (Republican), candidate for California's 15th congressional district in 2022, and candidate for California's 23rd State Assembly district in 2024. ^[7]
• Al Muratsuchi (Democratic), state assemblymember from the 66th district (2012–2014, 2016–present) ^[8]
• Josh Newman (Democratic), former state senator from the 29th district (2016–2018, 2020–2024) ^[9]
• Anthony Rendon (Democratic), former Speaker of the California State Assembly (2016–2023) from the 62nd district (2012–2014) ^[6]
• Sonja Shaw (Republican), president of the Chino Valley Unified School District board ^[10]

References

1. "California education chief Tony Thurmond says he is running for governor in 2026". Associated Press . September 26, 2023. Retrieved November 26, 2024.
2. Jones, Blake (September 26, 2023). "How labor could make or break Tony Thurmond's campaign for California governor". POLITICO . Retrieved November 26, 2024.
3. He, Eric; Jones, Blake; Gardiner, Dustin (May 12, 2025). "The Trump factor in the state budget". Politico . Retrieved May 12, 2025.
4. Tat, Linh (April 15, 2025). "LACCD Trustee Nichelle Henderson wants to be California's top schools chief". Pasadena Star-News . Retrieved April 15, 2025.
5. Lambert, Diana (May 13, 2025). "Longtime educator jumps into race for superintendent of public instruction". EdSource. Retrieved July 28, 2025.
6. Nixon, Nicole (July 28, 2025). "Former California Democratic leader plans a political comeback". Sacramento Bee . Retrieved July 28, 2025.
7. "Gus Mattammal files to run for California Superintendent of Public Instruction". Cal-Access. 2025-09-01. Retrieved 2025-09-30.
8. Mason, Melanie; Jones, Blake; Gardiner, Dustin (February 18, 2025). "Young Kim challenger is steeped in school culture wars". Politico . Retrieved February 18, 2025.
9. Schallhorn, Kaitlyn (April 11, 2025). "Former Sen. Josh Newman is now running for California's schools chief". Los Angeles Daily News . Retrieved April 13, 2025.
10. Horseman, Jeff (March 15, 2025). "Chino Valley school board President Sonja Shaw to run for state superintendent of public instruction". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin . Retrieved March 17, 2025.

External links

Official campaign links

• Richard Barrera for Superintendent
• Nichelle Henderson for Superintendent
• Andra Hoffman for Superintendent
• Frank Lara for Superintendent
• Al Muratsuchi for Superintendent
• Josh Newman for Superintendent
• Anthony Rendon for Superintendent
• Sonja Shaw for Superintendent