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Guerra, Woodcraft, Smith, Rodriguez win SISD school board seats [1]

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Date: 2025-05-03

A Socorro Independent School District incumbent trustee and three political newcomers have won their respective races in the May 3 school board elections, final voting results show.

As the only incumbent to be reelected, Guerra said he expects it to be difficult to work with the fresh faces on the board.

“If we have a focus on what the district needs and not have an agenda, I think we’ll be a great board,” Guerra told El Paso Matters. “I’ve been 15 years with the district, and I’m glad voters came out and still supported me.”

Ryan Woodcraft took 56% of the vote in the District 2 seat now held by Cynthia Najera, who did not seek reelection.

While Woodcraft said he is celebrating his victory now, he plans to get to work even before taking office.

“We have to get right financially, and we have to have the right leadership to manage the day-to-day operations of the district,” Woodcraft told El Paso Matters. “There’s a lot of work to be done, but knowing the members that were elected tonight, some that were on the board, everybody’s willing to roll up their sleeves, and we’re gonna make this better.”

Charles Smith took 54% of the final vote in District 3.

Smith said once he takes office, he wants to ensure parents feel comfortable sending their children to SISD.

“I’m ready to make change, ready to bring the district back to what it once was. Yeah, I’m just really excited,” Smith told El Paso Matters. “I feel like parents are nervous right now. I feel like parents don’t know what direction the school district is going in, and I want to put their mind at ease.”

Manny Rodriguez took 50% of the vote in District 5.

Rodriguez said he plans to coordinate with the rest of the board to get the district’s finances back on track.

“I’m incredibly grateful to the residents of SISD District 5 for giving me the opportunity to be able to serve them,” Rodriguez told El Paso Matters. “I know that a lot of us have different philosophies, different ideals, but nevertheless, I’m excited to work with them to exchange those ideas so that we can reach agreement, so that we can make progress moving forward.”

Rodriguez and Smith will replace Ricardo Castellano and Pablo Barrera, respectively. Neither trustee has attended an SISD school board meeting since last June, after they were indicted on charges related to their trustee roles.

SISD school board elections don’t have runoffs, as the election is based on plurality not a majority, meaning the candidates with the most votes win outright.

The election comes as SISD attempts to rebuild its depleted savings and claw its way back to financial stability after years of overspending and operating under a budget deficit. The district has already started laying off an estimated 300 employees, cutting programs and increasing class sizes in an effort to reduce its budget by $38 million.

SISD is operating under the oversight of two state conservators and has been without a permanent superintendent for over a year.

The newly elected trustees will take office as the SISD school board prepares to adopt its budget for the coming school year and restart its search for a new superintendent.

They will also have a say in whether the district will call for a voter approval tax rate election in November, which will raise a portion of its tax rate above the state-mandated limit. If approved by voters, it would allow the district to raise its maintenance and operation tax rate and generate up to $28 million in revenue.

In early voting:

District 2 (Roughly north of Vista del Sol and east of Loop 375 and Zaragoza Drive)

Ryan Reid Woodcraft, 41, network integration planner for JANUS Research Group: 56%

Phillip Shawn Ollis, 47, self-employed consultant: 44%

District 3 (Roughly north of Pebble Hills Drive east of George Dieter Drive)

Jose Alonzo Jr, 62, patient care technician at Las Palmas Medical Center: 13%

Joshua Carter Guerra, 39, paralegal: 26%

Charles William Smith, 34, owner of MVS Body Shop: 54%

Pablo Caldera is no longer running, but did not file in time to remove his name from the ballot.

District 4 (Roughly east of Loop 375 south of Vista del Sol Drive down to the Lower Valley and Socorro)

Caryn Gonzalez, 46, policy coordinator for the El Paso Independent School District: 33%

Paul Guerra, 57, territory manager for Insco Distributing Inc.: 45%

Raul Villalobos, 42, orthopedic physician assistant, poultry farmer and business owner: 22%

District 5 (Roughly east of George Dieter Drive to Loop 375; and south of Montwood Drive to I-10 and south of I-10 to Nevarez Road between Loop 375 and Horizon Boulevard)

Cindy Hernandez, 39, director of strategy and analytics for Emergence Health Network: 31%

Manny Rodriguez, 25, government affairs manager for the El Paso Chamber of Commerce: 50%

Gary Gandara, 47: 19%

Newly elected trustees will take office during a board meeting on May 12. Trustees are unpaid and serve four-year terms. The seats are nonpartisan.

The seven-member board governs the 47,300-student district, sets its vision, oversees the superintendent, adopts the annual operating budget and sets the tax rate. The current board adopted a budget of $479.6 million with a $22 million million deficit for this school year.

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[1] Url: https://elpasomatters.org/2025/05/03/el-paso-election-results-sisd-school-board-may-3-2025/

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