How's that for a headline?

According to Greater Orange News Service blog posted this weekend that Florice Hoffman pulled papers to seeking to represent Area 3 on the Orange Unified School District Board of Education.

Great. I live in Area 3.

Actually, it's not really a surprise, since Hoffman has been shooting off bright flares about her intent to run for sometime now, starting with the abortive Steve Rocco recall. That plan hit a snag not only because the recall fizzled, but because she didn't live in Rocco's trustee area. Details, details.

But she's been running and fundraising ever since. For example, the Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties Community Action Fund PAC gave her $2,500 in January 2008 (although the filing lists her as a candidate in Trustee Area 6).


She also had a low-dollar fund-raiser at her new home in the new Riverbend development, disconcertingly close to my neighborhood.

She moved into Trustee Area 3, and the Area 3 incumbent Wes Poutsma has recently announced he won't run for re-election. I heard rumblings the district were going to desert Poutsma for Hoffman, which may have factored into Hoffman's decision-making.

Compliicating Hoffman's scenario is the fact that Melissa Smith, the OUSD Trustee for Area 1, is also running in Area 3.

Confused?

The OUSD Board recently re-drew the district lines. The new trustee area boundaries delivered Steve Rocco into oblivion (and a run against Santa Ana Councilman Carlos Bustamante), and shifted Smith's residence out of Area 1 and into Area 3.

Smith's current Area 1 term doesn't end until 2010. What if Smith loses? Does she represent for the next two years a trustee area in which she no longer lives?

Since Smith is running to represent the trustee area she lives in, while still representing the trustee area in which she no longer lives, the kosher thing would have been to resign so the Board could schedule a special election for Area 1 -- one that could be consolidated with the November election to save money for a district that's always complaining it doesn't have enough.

Conveniently, the OUSD Board went dark after it's July 24 meeting, and won't convene again until Agust 21 -- too late to do the kosher thing.

There's a third candidate in the mix: a career public school teacher/administrator named Jerry Winant. Winant just ran against OC Board of Education Trustee Ken Williams and was trounced. Judging from his candidate statement, he seems to be of the "educators know best for your child" school of thought, and he's a Mater Dei graduate to boot.

Looks like slim pickings in OUSD Area 3 thus far.