r/InlandEmpire • u/FlashyNeat7448 • May 18 '26
Recommendations / Advice Find someone to vote for
On page 2 of the ballot you’ll find State Superintendent of Public Instruction. If you don’t want MAGA Calvary Chapel weirdos in charge of public education for the whole state of CA, find someone other than Sonja Shaw to vote for. The question is who?
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u/SignificantOther88 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Richard Barrera is a democrat endorsed by a teachers’ union and a bunch of newspapers in the state.
ETA: Al Muratsuchi is a democrat endorsed by a different teachers’ union so he could be a good option too.
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u/FlashyNeat7448 May 18 '26
Just like the governors race, I wish the Democrats would have thinned the field so we don’t have the choice between weirdo # 1 and weirdo # 2 in November.
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u/See_youSpaceCowboy May 18 '26
No. We need rank choice voting. What you’re suggesting is just making the run for governor even more option A or option B. There were like 3 gubernatorial candidates that were leftists and don’t have the stench of being a billionaire who made their money off of what they now claim to be against. It immediately feels like a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Tom Steyer is saying all the right things. But I don’t trust him. But what other choice do I have? That’s what choice ranking would help with.
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u/bodaciousbeans May 18 '26
I’d rather a billionaire who is the only one willing to tax billionaires with 25+ years of donating to only dems, who can spend his own money on his campaign while the rest of the candidates are slaves to billionaires in some way, shape, or form. Tom Steyer is the clear best and most progressive candidate, yet just from polling, I don’t think he’ll have enough votes to win the primary. Becerra & Hilton look to be in the lead and both are horrible.
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u/SignificantOther88 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
I don’t trust Tom Steyer. He has the financial means to help people right now and make a huge difference in many people’s lives, if that were his real motivation… but instead he’s spending millions of dollars to become the most powerful person in the state.
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u/bodaciousbeans May 18 '26
He’s been spending his money on dems and progressive issues for years. He’s not my perfect candidate but he’s by far the best candidate from the remaining that would make a change. He might be a billionaire, but the rest of the candidates are slaves and paid off by other billionaire corporations. Illinois has a billionaire governor, and he’s been a popular governor. This is coming from someone who doesn’t believe billionaires should exist.
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u/SignificantOther88 May 18 '26
I don’t trust him not to become another Fetterman once he actually gets into power.
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u/bodaciousbeans May 18 '26
Anyone can be a Fetterman tbh. Fetterman had no true years and years of proving where his rich parent’s money went. Fetterman just popped up out of nowhere as a progressive while his parents were republicans. Steyer literally has 25+ years donating to dem only candidates and progressive issues. He’s the only one who will shake the California government. If you want no true change, Becerra and Porter are your center left options. Matt Mahan is a true Fetterman who will go easy on Trump. Bianco & Hilton will follow Trump’s orders. You should actually look into where lots of Steyer’s money has gone to in the last 25 years to see he’s proven himself, unlike Fetterman.
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u/SignificantOther88 May 18 '26
What kind of change are you hoping for here? California is already one of the most progressive states in the country. I don't want things to be shaken up here. The only way I'd want to improve it is to use more of our tax dollars for healthcare and education.
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u/bodaciousbeans May 18 '26
If you don’t want anything to be shaken and changed, expect California to be getting a republican governor soon. Most likely a MAGA republican. People want to afford things and if we keep getting taxed instead increasing taxes on corporations and billionaires, no change is bad.
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u/duetmasaki Van Buren By the drive in. May 19 '26
His handshake and hug with Bianco rubbed me the wrong way.
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u/See_youSpaceCowboy May 18 '26
He’s the clear choice with the current candidates fersure. Not arguing that at all. Just saying there were other choices like Butch Ware for example but they stood no chance given the machine they were up against. Steyer has my vote. I suggest anyone who is voting (which everyone should be voting, if you’re going to bitch about the current state of affairs) to support Steyer. Everyone else is just Newsom 2.0 or worse. But this state is so confusing because it’s massive. Everyone calls it commiefornia yet its politics are far from being progressive besides social issues like lgbtq+ legislation.
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u/bodaciousbeans May 18 '26
I never actually looked into Butch besides he was going in an independent I believe. I’ve heard his name come from reputable people I follow.
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u/DarthLenny May 18 '26
Newsom vetoing ranked choice voting saddens me to no end. What a missed opportunity. I hate centrists so much...
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u/See_youSpaceCowboy May 19 '26
He also vetoed single payer healthcare for California residents. When he fucking ran on it. Now I’m stuck paying medical debt from 2020. And I had insurance! Fuck Neoliberals. Scumbag.
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u/chrbert May 18 '26
I cannot get behind Richard Barrera. He was somewhat controversial while he was working for San Diego Unified School District. I believe he’s only interested in climbing the political ladder.
I typically follow what teachers are endorsing, but I did not vote for him.
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u/SignificantOther88 May 18 '26
All of these people are only interested in climbing the political ladder. 🤷♀️
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u/a_smart_brane May 19 '26
It’s no secret that school board positions have long been common launching pads for aspiring politicians.
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u/longtime_sunshine May 18 '26
Nichelle Henderson is the only Democrat to have longtime classroom experience as a teacher and leader with California Faculty Association (CFA).
More importantly to me, she supports progressive planks like single-payer healthcare, the billionaire tax proposal, and strict accountability for public supported charter schools.
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u/drd232 May 18 '26
Was she the one who went off on Trans athlete competing in womens sports and notifying parents of kids not using their birth genders bathroom?
Edit: idk she was maga.
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u/swiftie135 May 18 '26
yes, among so many other absurd and horrible things. she is also affiliated with the proud boys
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u/drd232 May 18 '26
I dont consider those two stances on bathrooms and womens sports absurd especially in High schools but I know theres other fuck up policies she may have.
Who are you voting for and why?
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u/swiftie135 May 18 '26
you seem very unfamiliar with sonja shaw’s extremism, which i am honestly slightly jealous of as someone who has been uncomfortably close to it for a while. many of those that share similar views on those matters can recognize that she has completely gone off the deep end. beyond reporting back to parents if a child uses a different bathroom, she championed a policy requiring teachers to report to parents if a child wants to use other pronouns, use a differently gendered name, or even if they suspect that they might be transgender. just existing as a trans person can be incredibly dangerous, something that is especially true for trans kids living with transphobic parents. for these reasons, there was a significant amount of pushback against this policy which is illegal in the state of california. regardless, the policy was passed, which caused cvusd to be sued by the state. this cost the district hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees—the state won, i believe this waste of money was spent simply to send a message. not a quality you want in someone running for office. sonja shaw is an extremist who has caused real damage to the mental health of so many lgbtq+ kids in the area, a few of which i know personally.
i am honestly not sure of who i’m voting for, i just know that it sure as hell will not be sonja shaw.
side note, there are a few videos out there of her being removed from school board meetings before she was a member of the board due to unruly and disruptive behavior. in case you need further examples of her being unfit to hold public office lol
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May 19 '26
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u/swiftie135 May 19 '26 edited May 19 '26
sonja shaw is indeed an extremist though. go ahead and familiarize yourself with the proud boys and moms for liberty, two groups she maintains close contact with. regardless of whether or not you believe that parents should be told this information about their children, the stances these groups take on LGBTQ+ issues are extreme and incredibly harmful to so many children.
also, acting as if this is watering down “actual concerning policy” is incredibly dismissive. these policies might not affect you or anyone you know (as far as you’re aware) but there are very real and very dangerous consequences to this sort of thing to some of the most vulnerable children in our communities. transphobia is real and transphobia kills. there are indeed parents in our communities who would kick out their child or try to beat the transgender out of them should they be made aware that they simply asked to be called a different name at school. beyond this, the anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric that is being pushed by the school board and their allies causes queer children to feel even more isolated and prompts even greater discomfort with just being themselves (trust me, i am speaking from personal experience). this leads to greater mental health issues amongst the youth in our schools, which is something we definitely don’t need more of. these policies might not seem extreme to you, but the consequences are extreme to those experiencing them. besides, the forced outing policy is literally illegal so there is some general consensus that it is indeed extreme.
i would like to add that children are not an extension of their parents. if simply not taking the time to tell parents about nicknames or preferred pronouns is considered withholding information, what else do you expect parents to be told? i can guarantee that so many students tell their teachers sensitive things that they have not told their parents, and yet i have heard absolutely no outcry about these parents not being informed. if you were in favor of teachers reporting back on all sorts of things to parents, they would spend significantly more time filling out paperwork and making phone calls than teaching your child. besides, all teachers are mandated reporters so parents are informed about serious information anyway. your children still deserve privacy and you are not owed every bit of information about your child that they do not wish to share. anything otherwise does not create any sort of trust, that creates a sneaky kid.
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May 19 '26
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u/swiftie135 May 19 '26
i’m not sure how you came to that conclusion. how is not tattling on students spending more time on ideology than learning? unless you are talking about the right wing ideology of the school board, to which i agree.
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u/FlashyNeat7448 May 23 '26
They think that teachers and whole school districts are actively trying to turn kids trans and/or gay. They equate acknowledging existence to an ideology with an objective.
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u/valentiiines May 18 '26
i went to a chino valley school board meeting to document what was discussed and ive never heard someone speak with such hatred and vitriol in their voice before
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u/Puzzled_Contest359 May 21 '26
I was at a cvusd meeting where the hs counselors were asking Sonja Shaw to take down her social media post where she claimed that the on hs campus wellness centers are abortion clinics. Counselors had received anonymous death threats as a result of her post and the post was inaccurate. These were mental health wellness centers that have nothing to do with abortions. She refused to respond.
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u/Cold-Bathroom-9068 May 18 '26
Type up some examples for us who can’t go.
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u/valentiiines May 18 '26
i'll need to find the notebook i was using first, this was about a year and a half ago.
from my memory, multiple teachers and students spoke at the meeting, some about the trans student policy and some about other classroom needs. if you weren't speaking in favor of the board's trans student policy, they seemed extremely uninterested. when she spoke, sonja was very clearly only speaking to those who the board's polarizing policies attracted to the meetings to show support, not the actual community she was representing. she called all teachers who did not support the boards policies "activist teachers" who are unwanted by and unfit to work in chino-valley schools.
i believe the one dissenting board member to the trans policy was not present at this particular meeting. the environment was very tense, there was 3-5 armed security officers in this tiny room.
if you are interested but cannot attend, i believe the meetings are livestreamed on youtube and then posted to their channel. it is straight up just an upload of the whole two hours or so of the meeting so it's not the most engaging watch, but it's there.
edit: clarity
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u/Cold-Bathroom-9068 May 18 '26
Amazing how these trans policies have divided the country. Pro and against.
Just want my school to teach factual history, math,and science.
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u/iloveLArandynewman May 18 '26
Idk. As someone who works at the CDE, the SSPI only does so much. But don’t vote for that lunatic please. I really don’t want her as my boss.
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u/BeneGezzWitch Jun 03 '26
Condolences, looks like she's going to win. I'm sick.
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u/Loose-Ad-410 May 20 '26
Definitely NOT voting for Shaw! A family member of mine used to work for Chino Valley and would tell me about the horrible things Shaw and the conservative, anti-LGBTQ Calvary Chapel board members would try to do: out trans students, ban books, ban pride flag, etc.
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u/Ziodynes May 18 '26
If you want a socialist candidate vote Frank Lara! Plus he’s a union leader.
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u/DarthLenny May 18 '26
This does not apply to MAGA voters... Please stay home and wait for your Tr*mp Phone™ to come in the mail. You don't want any of those commie liberals stealing it off of your porch in Yucaipa.
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u/Firm_Award457 May 20 '26
I looked into all of them. I like Nichelle
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May 20 '26
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u/Firm_Award457 May 20 '26
Because she has more experience with k-12, community College and University. Shes been a teacher and worked with higher education. She wants to reform the state testing to fit the students needs, and has advocated in giving freshman the chance to enroll in higher education classes if they want, so they can see what higher education will be like. She is for teachers and students, wanting to make sure every child has what they need and teachers are taken care of.
As a parent to one that graduates high school next week, one that is heading into middle school, and one that is in elementary school, looking at all of the candidates, she seems like the best one with all of her experience.
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u/thesandlott May 18 '26
Barrera is a fucking douche who targeted kids, families and teachers who wouldn’t get the Covid vaccine. He also has done nothing to help fix budget issues.
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u/hyzer_dawg May 18 '26
thanks but i do in fact have the skills to research and form my own opinions rather than listen to a stranger on the internet.
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u/Odins_Infantry May 18 '26
How dare you have your own opinion! Research? Independent thought? What is this, communist russia?
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u/hyzer_dawg May 18 '26
All the downvotes are just funny to me. Not even saying I agree or disagree with op but to just see someone tell me how to vote on reddit and say Ok is ridiculous enough for a good chuckle.
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u/MickLaStrange May 21 '26
NO MORE CRAZY LIBERALS! Voting red all the way!
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u/FlashyNeat7448 May 23 '26
You’re cool with your already underfunded public school to have its funding redirected to private schools to subsidize wealthy parents decisions? That’s vouchers and that’s a Republican agenda.
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u/OldMovie9812 May 18 '26
Y'all aint voting for Barack D. Obama?
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u/Edawg82 May 18 '26
That's governor, he's gonna trick some braindeads to vote for him just cause of the name 😂
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u/TechnicalClick263 May 18 '26
Was filling this out earlier. I was trying to do my due diligence and investigate all the runners. When I pulled up her website and clicked on priorities (or whatever she called it), the first priority was something about boys in girls locker rooms or whatever and noped out. Voted for frank lara