Max Arias, Executive Director of SEIU Local 99, released the following statement:

“The Custodians, Cafeteria Workers, Teaching Assistants, Special Education Assistants, Bus Drivers and other SEIU Local 99 members who ensure that students learn in safe, clean, and healthy campuses are proud of the work we did in support of candidates who are committed to the future or our students, our schools, and our communities.

We are proud of our efforts to elect Mike Fong, Sydney Kamlager and Scott Svonkin to the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees. We are eager to work with them on efforts to expand class offerings, ensure college remains accessible to all students and to fully restore student services.

We are disappointed that Francesca Vega did not secure a seat on the LACCD Board. We value her commitment to education and will, no doubt, continue to work with her in our shared goals of improving our schools and making college affordable for all.

Our efforts also included support for Charter Amendment 2. The passage of this measure ensures that many more working families will have a voice in decisions that impact our neighborhood schools and the future of our children’s education.

We re-commit to continue strong voter outreach activities in support of Tamar Galatzan, Bennett Kayser and Dr. Richard Vladovic in the run-off election for the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education.  As school workers, we appreciate their understanding of the essential role that school nutrition, classroom assistance, transportation, and campus safety and cleanliness play in a child’s education. We also value their recognition of the role that good jobs play in ensuring student success. They know that it’s difficult for children to learn when their parents are struggling on poverty wage jobs. And as parents of LAUSD students, we support their steadfast commitment to improving our schools and ensuring equal educational opportunities for students in every community.

SEIU Local 99 led strong voter outreach efforts that included thousands of phone calls, mailings to union members throughout Los Angeles County, and a final get-out-the-vote push that saw our union knocking on thousands of voters’ doors in the last four days leading up to election day.”

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SEIU Local 99 is a union of  nearly 45,000 education workers in K-12 schools, early education centers and homes, administrative offices, and community colleges throughout Southern California, including more than 30,000 teacher assistants, custodians, cafeteria workers, bus drivers and others providing essential student services at LAUSD and more than 350 maintenance and operations workers at LACCD. Nearly 50% of SEIU Local 99 members are also parents or guardians of school-aged children.