Latina Jasmine Zavala was elected to represent District 1 on the Wake County Board of Education, after obtaining 26,096 votes, equivalent to 48.7% of the votes.
The daughter of a Mexican father and a Salvadoran mother, the former public school teacher won the election on Tuesday, November 3, according to the preliminary results of all reported polling places. Zabala becomes the first Latina to reach the county Board of Education.
Zavala defeated Bonnie Greaves and Sebrina Pierce in an election to fill the seat vacated by Cheryl Caulfield, who did not seek reelection. The results are subject to certification.
His victory was accompanied by the wins of three other Democratic-backed candidates: Christina Gordon in District 2; Maddie Segal in District 7; and board president Tyler Swanson in District 9.
Although school elections are officially nonpartisan, the results will increase the number of seats held by Democrats on the nine-member board from seven to eight. Wing Ng, whose seat was not up for election, will remain the only Republican.
A journey between education and the community
Zavala grew up in Wake Forest, where her family moved when she was five years old. She studied Business Administration and Economics at Meredith College and earned a master's degree in Public Administration from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Her experience includes teaching in schools in eastern North Carolina through AmeriCorps and Teach for America, as well as managing the family restaurant Los Tres Magueyes.
In an interview posted by Enlace Latino NC in 2025When she was running for the Wake Forest Board of Commissioners, she emphasized the importance of representation in positions of power.
“As a Latina and a woman, I know how important it is to have diverse voices at the decision-making tables,” she stated. In that profile, she also recounted how being the daughter of immigrants led her to help her family navigate different languages and systems.
During her 2026 school campaign, Zavala highlighted school funding, student access to resources and opportunities, and support for teachers and staff as priorities.
Latino representation and support for public schools
Zavala said in September Enlace Latino NC She said that, if elected, she would seek to make more Latino families feel included: “I want Latino families to feel heard, informed and included in our schools,” she said.
The former third- and fifth-grade teacher explained that her experience at a Title I school allowed her to understand how budget decisions affect students and educators. She identified three priorities: ensuring sufficient school funding, distributing resources equitably, and supporting and retaining teachers and school staff.
For Latino families, he proposed facilitating communication with schools, strengthening support for English language learners, and opening more opportunities for participation in their children's education.
He also stated that he would evaluate his administration based on the support students receive, the assessment of educators, and the trust families have in the district.
2026 Election Results
Voters also approve funding for schools
In addition to electing four board members, the Wake voters They overwhelmingly approved a $680 million bond for school construction. The county has not rejected a school bond since 1999.
The Democratic-backed candidates stated they would fight to increase education funding and support teachers. Wake NCAE, the Wake County chapter of the North Carolina Educators Association, endorsed all four Democratic candidates.
In addition to heating, ventilation, and air conditioning problems, the board will have to face challenges such as continuing to improve school test scores and determining how much to allocate to computers for students.
The board may also have to make further cuts, a measure it has taken over the past two years to balance the budget.
Wake: the largest school district in the state
Zavala She will join the board that runs the Wake County Public School System, the largest school district in North Carolina, with a projected enrollment of 160,461 students for the 2026-2027 school year.
Latin representation has a significant presence in their classrooms: according to data reported by Enlace Latino NC in 2025The district had 32,879 Latino students, equivalent to 20.4% of its students, approximately one in five.
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