← Election Series · Down-ballot coverage · Arizona

No endorsement

The race

Higley Unified School District voters fill three seats on November 3, 2026, in two separate races: two four-year seats (vote for up to two) and one two-year seat (vote for one).

The two-year seat exists on this ballot because a court put it there. Board member Scott Glover resigned with two years left in his term on July 20, 2026 — the final day write-in candidates could file. Maricopa County School Superintendent Shelli Boggs moved to fill the vacancy by appointment, arguing the timing gave the few who knew an unfair advantage. Write-in candidate Travis White and three district parents sued, contending state law required the seat to appear on the ballot. Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Julie Mata ruled the vacancy will be decided by Higley voters, and Boggs complied, as reported by The Arizona Republic. The three candidates for that seat are all filed write-ins; no name is printed for it.

The certified roster — four-year seats: Anna Van Hoek (incumbent), Amanda Wade (incumbent), Michelle Morris. Two-year seat (all write-in): Travis White, Kurt Brooks, Kathleen Richards.

The candidates — four-year seats

Anna Van Hoek (incumbent). Van Hoek says she has focused her board service on strengthening oversight, improving transparency and keeping academic achievement at the center of district decisions, as reported by The Arizona Republic. She brings more than 20 years of experience in finance, procurement and corporate operations, and says board service requires financial expertise, professional oversight and willingness to ask thoughtful questions on decisions affecting students and taxpayers.

Pros: A published oversight-and-transparency focus backed by two decades of finance and procurement work — the board's fiduciary core. Cons: Her record is stated more than documented in this pass; no specific board votes were sourced.

Amanda Wade (incumbent). Wade is the board president. She began teaching in 2011, taught six years in this district and four more at Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda, Maryland, and is pursuing graduate programs in education policy, as reported by The Arizona Republic. Her children attend the district's Gateway Pointe Elementary, where she volunteers.

Pros: Board president and a classroom teacher in this district — leadership and instruction in one record. Cons: No specific board votes or published re-election platform were sourced in this pass.

Michelle Morris. Morris has more than 30 years of accounting experience with clients including nonprofits, banks and employee benefit plans, as reported by The Arizona Republic. As the parent of a child on the autism spectrum, she says she is committed to ensuring every student feels seen, supported and included, and to supporting teachers.

Pros: Thirty years of accounting, including nonprofit work, aimed at a district with real financial decisions ahead. Cons: Unproven in elected office, with no published platform beyond her background and commitments in this pass.

The candidates — two-year seat (write-in only)

Travis White (write-in). White holds a degree in computer information systems from Arizona State University and works as an information security executive with experience in risk, budgets, compliance and data-driven decisions, as reported by The Arizona Republic. He says he will work to keep Higley schools the best choice for families while supporting teachers and academic programs including elementary specials and dual language immersion, with transparent, accountable governance. He is also the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit that forced this seat onto the ballot.

Pros: He sued — successfully — to give Higley voters this choice instead of an appointment. That is a documented act for voter control of the board, plus an executive risk-and-budget background. Cons: Unproven in elected office; the same litigation that restored the election also means he filed within the narrow window the Superintendent called unfair — voters can weigh both facts, because both are facts.

Kurt Brooks (write-in). Brooks is a native Arizonan, a 15-year district resident and father of six — five of his children have attended Higley schools — with Fortune 500 executive experience managing large budgets, as reported by The Arizona Republic. His stated priorities: fiscal discipline, parental respect, rigorous core academics, strong teachers, low property taxes, fair Title IX sports and release time for religious studies, through transparent governance and accountability.

Pros: The most detailed published platform in this race, and it is written in our values — fiscal discipline, parents respected, core academics, fair girls' sports. Cons: Unproven in elected office; a platform, however detailed, is still a promise rather than a record.

Kathleen Richards (write-in). Richards has been a district parent since 2016 and works as an active substitute teacher, participating in district surveys and focus groups, as reported by The Arizona Republic. She says a vocal minority has attempted to undermine public education from the inside out, and that she wants to keep the district moving forward through student and teacher retention and the highest quality education in the East Valley.

Pros: A decade as a district parent and a working substitute teacher — daily, ground-level knowledge of the schools. Cons: Her framing positions her against unnamed critics rather than for a checkable program; no governing record was sourced.

OUR CALL

Our call (four-year seats): Vote for up to two — we endorse Anna Van Hoek; on the remaining seat, no endorsement. The basis is her published board focus — oversight, transparency, academic achievement — backed by 20 years of finance and procurement experience. Wade's presidency and Morris's accounting depth are both credible, and we will not manufacture a distinction our sources do not support.

Our call (two-year seat): We endorse Travis White. The basis is a documented act, not a slogan: when the Superintendent moved to fill this seat by appointment, White went to court and put the choice back in voters' hands — and won. A candidate who has already spent his own effort making this an election has earned the seat the election is for. Brooks's published platform is the strongest paper platform in the race and he is the clear second choice for voters who weigh platforms over acts.

For the complete Election 2026 breakdown — every race, claim by claim — see the full coverage on our website.

Vote early. Research your candidates. Choose the best moderates, whatever their party — no extremism from either side. And encourage your friends and family to do the same.

Sources

Election result — November 4, 2026

Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.

AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.

← Full down-ballot enumeration