State Board of Education — Texas

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Election: November 3, 2026. Research checked: October 8, 2026.

Every office deserves an explanation, and every candidate deserves the same questions. This page expands the certified Texas State Board of Education directory into a district-by-district first research pass with candidate backgrounds, public priorities, pictures, campaign links, and a limited commitments score.

Printed-ballot candidate names and party labels come from the Texas Secretary of State's August 28 final ballot certification. Declared write-in names come from the separate August 28 write-in certification; that certificate does not list party labels.

Texas Secretary of State election hub · Final ballot certification · Statewide sample ballot · Certified write-in list

WHAT THIS OFFICE DOES

The State Board of Education sets Texas public-school curriculum standards, adopts instructional materials, establishes graduation requirements, oversees the Permanent School Fund, reviews certain educator-certification rules, and can veto recommended charter-school applicants.

Coverage in this report: 9 contests and 19 candidate entries. Your residence determines which district appears on your ballot. The 2026 ballot includes eight regular-cycle seats and the District 4 unexpired-term contest.

Official State Board of Education source ›

CERTIFIED CANDIDATES BY DISTRICT

DISTRICT 2

Thomas Ray Garcia

Democratic. Garcia describes himself as an educator, author, and entrepreneur with 13 years in K–12 and higher education. He teaches English at South Texas College and previously founded a college-readiness nonprofit. His published platform calls for research-based reading and math standards, digital and financial literacy, career-and-technical pathways, health as a graduation requirement, family-engagement programs, and rejecting vouchers and the state-developed Bluebonnet curriculum.

Campaign and platform · Photo source

Question for the candidate: Which two TEKS or graduation-requirement changes would you introduce first, and what measurable student result and deadline would you attach to each?

Victoria Hinojosa

Republican. Hinojosa is a U.S. Coast Guard veteran, mother of four, and public-school parent. Her campaign emphasizes results-based education, full parental access to curriculum, trade-school and college-credit pathways, textbook review, and oversight of the Permanent School Fund and charter applications through conservative educational priorities.

Campaign · Photo source

Question for the candidate: What result-based measure would you use beyond STAAR, and what specific textbook-review standard would you propose?

DISTRICT 4 — UNEXPIRED TERM

Coretta Mallet-Fontenot

Democratic. Mallet-Fontenot describes herself as a 27-year career educator, wife, mother, and community leader. Her campaign presents her as a public-school supporter and lists educator and community backing, but the reviewed page did not provide enough specific current policy commitments for a complete first-pass score.

Campaign and image source ›

Question for the candidate: What are the first two board actions you would take on curriculum, instructional materials, or the Permanent School Fund, and how would voters measure progress?

Tammie Nielsen

Republican. Governor Greg Abbott appointed Nielsen to the District 4 seat in 2026. Her campaign biography describes experience in state and local government, nonprofit leadership, and community initiatives, and states commitments to educational excellence and support for parents and teachers. The reviewed site did not yet provide detailed implementation promises.

Campaign and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: Which vote or action from your appointed service best shows what you would do in a full term, and what commitment would you make for 2027?

DISTRICT 5

Allison Bush

Democratic. Bush describes more than 25 years as a teacher, counselor, nonprofit leader, and advocate. Her priorities include reducing teacher paperwork and burnout, applying common academic and fiscal accountability to schools receiving public funds, limiting unchecked charter expansion, and keeping TEKS and instructional-material decisions focused on educator and subject-matter expertise.

Campaign and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: What exact accountability rules should apply equally to district, charter, and voucher-funded schools, and which of those rules can the SBOE enact directly?

Mica Arellano

Republican. Arellano's campaign describes her as a 30-year educator. Her “Five-Star Education Standard” emphasizes school safety, measurable academic standards, teacher support, parental voice, and directing spending toward students and classrooms instead of bureaucracy.

Campaign ›

Question for the candidate: What measurable academic standards, spending disclosure, and teacher-retention goal would turn the five-star framework into board policy?

Picture note: The campaign page reviewed for this report did not publish a clearly attributable candidate portrait that could be reproduced here. That omission is not an evaluation of the candidate.

DISTRICT 6

Michelle Palmer

Democratic. Palmer has taught mathematics, English language arts, social studies, history, and government since 2009. Her 2026 responses emphasize fact-based science, history, and health standards; educator participation in curriculum workgroups; more P-TECH and career-and-technical programs; public livestreams for committee, charter, and instructional-material proceedings; and continued elected-board review of educator-certification rules.

Campaign biography · 2026 candidate survey · Photo source

Question for the candidate: Which science or history standard would you revise first, and what transparent workgroup process and deadline would you use?

Tiffany Nelson

Republican. Nelson is a former Conroe ISD trustee, nonprofit consultant, author, and mother of six. Her campaign calls for alternatives to one-size-fits-all testing, college/trade/military/workforce pathways, full curriculum and spending transparency for parents, removing material she identifies as political indoctrination, and directing more education dollars to classrooms.

Campaign priorities · Photo source

Question for the candidate: What review standard would distinguish political advocacy from accurate instruction, and what public appeal process should teachers and parents have?

Margo Jordan — certified write-in

Write-in candidate; the state write-in certificate does not list a party. Jordan is an entrepreneur and mother of five whose campaign emphasizes self-esteem and emotional-intelligence curriculum, transparent oversight of the Permanent School Fund, family participation, and community engagement. Voters choosing a write-in candidate must follow the instructions on their ballot.

Campaign priorities · Photo source

Question for the candidate: What evidence and age-specific standards would you require before adding a self-esteem curriculum, and what financial dashboard would you publish for the Permanent School Fund?

DISTRICT 7

Julie Pickren

Republican, incumbent. Pickren's campaign highlights prior local and state education leadership and says she supports parental authority, conservative values, multiple public/private/charter/home-school options, school safety, and instructional materials grounded in classical education and her view of Texas history and values.

Campaign and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: Which specific board votes from your current term best demonstrate improved student outcomes, and what outcome would you target next?

Tiffany Perkinz

Democratic. Perkinz describes herself as a classroom teacher, education leader, and Texas parent. Her platform calls for rigorous standards, local control, teacher freedom from political retaliation, political and religious neutrality in TEKS, and instructional materials that include evidence-based science, honest history, and inclusive literature.

Campaign · Photo source

Question for the candidate: What exact TEKS language would you move to amend on day one, and how would you define and enforce political and religious neutrality?

DISTRICT 8

Audrey G. Young

Republican, incumbent. Young is a longtime public educator, former local trustee, and current chair of the SBOE Committee on Instruction. Her campaign emphasizes local control and recruiting qualified educators and community members for TEKS and textbook workgroups. Her official biography also describes experience in speech therapy, reading, administration, special education, and district leadership.

Campaign and photo source · Official biography

Question for the candidate: What public selection criteria and conflict-of-interest disclosures should apply to TEKS and textbook workgroups?

Dana Van De Walker

Democratic. Van De Walker is an educator and higher-education administrator with nearly 20 years of service, including teaching English as a second language and elementary English education in Korea and working at Sam Houston State University and Lone Star College. Her campaign emphasizes affordable and accessible education, opposition to book bans and vouchers, teacher retention, and college, career, military, and dual-credit pathways.

Campaign biography and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: Which SBOE action would most directly expand college, career, military, or dual-credit readiness, and what result would you publish?

DISTRICT 9

Ericka Ledferd

Democratic. Ledferd describes 20 years in education and youth-empowerment work, including teaching and ESL leadership, plus more than 15 years of community-board experience. Her priorities are protecting public schools from privatization, preparing students and teachers for artificial intelligence, and keeping curriculum focused on opportunity instead of political theater.

Campaign and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: What statewide AI standard would protect students while building useful skills, and how would you measure whether it works?

Kason Huddleston

Republican. Huddleston is a pastor whose campaign emphasizes faith, family, parental rights, higher academic standards, support for teachers, and opposition to government overreach and political activism in schools.

Campaign priorities and photo source ›

Question for the candidate: Which academic standard would you raise, how would you measure the improvement, and what due-process protection would govern claims of political activism?

DISTRICT 13

Carlos (Charlie) Garza

Republican. Garza is a retired educator and Navy veteran who previously represented District 1 on the State Board of Education. Available biographical sources describe work as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and education administrator. Earlier published education positions call for a viable curriculum that prepares problem solvers and innovators, collaboration with regional service centers and school communities, and reducing teacher paperwork unrelated to achievement. A current campaign website was not verified, so no current-platform score is assigned.

2026 candidate profile · Archived biography and photo source

Question for the candidate: Which of your earlier education commitments remain your 2026 priorities, and what current written plan and deadline should voters evaluate?

Tiffany Clark

Democratic, incumbent. Clark is an educator and former DeSoto ISD trustee. Her published positions include improving state testing so it aligns with Texas standards, supporting student and staff mental health, expanding community-based college and career preparation, recognizing cultural diversity, and drawing on her prior work adding African American and Mexican American studies in DeSoto ISD.

Campaign · Official-record comparison · Photo source

Question for the candidate: What specific state-testing change would you propose, and what evidence from your current term shows progress on mental health or career readiness?

DISTRICT 14

Amy Taylor

Democratic. Taylor is a Texas public-school English teacher with roughly 17 years in the classroom. Her priorities include rigorous and nonreligious instructional materials, curriculum written by educators, fewer high-stakes tests, public accountability for any school receiving public funds, stronger teacher pay and benefits advocacy, and reduced reliance on uncertified teachers.

Campaign and photo source · Candidate questions and answers

Question for the candidate: Which high-stakes testing rule or certification policy can the SBOE change directly, and what timetable would you follow?

Mindy Bumgarner

Republican. Bumgarner has a background in psychology and operations and says she has worked on student 504 plans. Her platform emphasizes parental access to curriculum, school choice and public charter schools, less reliance on STAAR, foundational reading and math, real-life skills, and curriculum centered on faith, family, freedom, and core knowledge.

Campaign priorities and image source ›

Question for the candidate: What accountability rule should apply to charter and voucher-funded schools, and what assessment would replace or reduce reliance on STAAR?

PROVISIONAL SCORECARD

Why many candidates receive the same limited score: Most reviewed campaigns identify actions and connect them to the board's duties, but do not publish quantified targets or implementation deadlines. Garcia's unusually detailed platform supplies more delivery mechanisms and partial outcome definitions. Huddleston's reviewed material states broad priorities with fewer policy details. Mallet-Fontenot, Nielsen, and Garza remain unscored because the current published material reviewed here was not detailed enough or, for Garza, current enough for the same test.

HOW TO READ THE SCORE

Provisional AI research assessment — not Omar's final score or endorsement. This first pass rates only the clear, measurable commitments category using the candidates' published material. It does not rate personal character, policy desirability, party, endorsements, appearance, or likelihood of winning.

The 10-point rule gives up to two points each for: a stated action; an identifiable delivery mechanism; a connection to this office's responsibilities; a quantified success target; and an implementation deadline. Two means explicit, one means partial, and zero means absent from the reviewed material. Here, zero describes a missing element in a specific source, not the candidate's ability or complete platform. A candidate without enough current published detail remains unscored.

The other eight categories require broader evidence: relevant experience; accountability; education; affordability; economic opportunity; civil rights and religious freedom for everyone; environment; and practical use of office powers. They remain unscored in this first pass. No total out of 90 is assigned. A fuller record or candidate response may change any provisional score.

THREE VOICES — ONE OPEN RECORD

AI research: the sourced snapshot and limited assessment above. Voter response: Omar and other readers can give their own assessments. Candidate response: candidates can provide evidence, corrections, current portraits, and their own scores. No candidate responses or endorsements are claimed here.

Who will win? No election forecast is assigned. This report contains no reviewed district polling; a commitments score is not a probability of winning.

Campaign websites are candidate-controlled sources and are provided for inspection, not as independent verification. Portraits identify candidates; appearance is not evaluated. When a current portrait was unavailable, the page labels the substitute or omission. No missing portrait or unverified website is a judgment about a candidate.

We wish every candidate the best of luck and hope the result serves the students, families, and educators of Texas. The research remains open. The human decides.

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