← Election Series · Down-ballot coverage · Arizona
No endorsement
The race
Isaac Elementary School District voters elect two members to four-year terms on November 3, 2026. Vote for up to two. Both incumbents are running, and this race sits in the shadow of the district's 2025 financial crisis, which the challenger campaigned on publicly, as reported by The Arizona Republic.
The certified roster is: Patricia Jimenez (incumbent), Harry Garewal (incumbent), and Savannah Galaviz. The district also asks voters to approve the sale or lease of two school parcels, covered in our measure coverage.
The candidates
Patricia Jimenez (incumbent). Jimenez has lived in Maryvale her entire life, has served on this board for over 22 years and currently serves as board president — a position she has held 13 times — as reported by The Arizona Republic. She attended Phoenix College and is also running for Phoenix City Council. On her Facebook page, she says the district passed a successful bond under her leadership and that the district's financial crisis was caused by a system collapse rather than only one person.
Pros: Twenty-two years of service and repeated selection as board president by her colleagues; a successful bond on her record, by her account. Cons: The 2025 financial crisis happened on her watch, under her presidency, and her explanation — system collapse — is a claim voters should weigh against the fact that oversight is the board's job. She is also simultaneously running for City Council.
Harry Garewal (incumbent). Garewal was first elected to this board in 2018, began working as a coach on Isaac sports teams in 1982, and previously served on the Phoenix Union High School District governing board, as reported by The Arizona Republic. He was president and CEO of the Arizona Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the Minority Business Enterprise Center, and later CEO of Trin & Associates. His stated priorities: raising student achievement, protecting classroom dollars and preparing students for life outside of school.
Pros: Executive leadership experience and prior service on a second school board; priorities that protect classroom dollars. Cons: He shares the incumbent board's tenure through the financial crisis; no specific board votes were sourced in this pass.
Savannah Galaviz. Galaviz is the secretary of the Legislative District 26 Democrats, was born and raised in Phoenix, works as a librarian in the Madison Elementary School District, and is a member of the Arizona Library Association, the Arizona Education Association and the National Education Association Hispanic Caucus, as reported by The Arizona Republic. Her stated priority is rebuilding trust with the community, and she posted frequently about the district's 2025 financial crisis.
Pros: She made the financial crisis a public issue before running — accountability pressure from outside is how this race got a challenger at all. Cons: No governing, budget or administrative record was sourced; her affiliations are advocacy organizations, not fiduciary ones.
OUR CALL
Our call: insufficient record — no endorsement. What would earn one here: a sourced account of the 2025 financial crisis that assigns responsibility clearly enough to judge the incumbents' oversight, or a published fiscal platform from Galaviz beyond rebuilding trust. A district that went through a financial crisis deserves an endorsement built on the crisis record — and that record is not yet sourced claim by claim.
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
- Maricopa County School Superintendent — "November 3, 2026 School District Governing Board Certified and Write-In Candidates (as of 8/25/26)" — the certified roster for this race (county grade) — https://schoolsup.org/s/2026-Certified-Write-In-Candidates-082526.pdf
- The Arizona Republic / azcentral, "Who's running for metro Phoenix school boards in the midterm election?" (Oct. 2, 2026) — candidate backgrounds, occupations and stated priorities as reported — https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/elections/2026/10/02/metro-phoenix-school-board-candidates-midterm-2026-election/91830892007/
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.