Jackson County voters have spoken at the ballot box.  

Drop boxes at libraries in Ashland, Phoenix, Rogue River, Eagle Point and Central Point, and at the Jackson County Elections Office on West Main Street in Medford closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday. The final day to receive valid postmarked ballots from the postal service is May 27.

TURNOUT: 12.8%

SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARDS

Ashland

For the Ashland School Board position 1, a pair of newcomers — math curriculum developer and school district budget committee member Ann M. Gaffney and Ashland Deputy City Manager Jordan Rooklyn — ran to replace outgoing incumbent Jill Franko.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 1

Rooklyn: 64.3 %, 2,441 votes

Gaffney: 35.4%, 1,344 votes

Gaffney, according to the voters pamphlet, said her “background as a teacher, administrator, union rep, curriculum developer and parent” gives her “a comprehensive view of what’s possible — and what’s needed — right now.” 

Rooklyn’s pamphlet submission states that, if elected, she has the “proven skills to protect our District’s budget, to protect our teachers and staff, and most importantly, to protect our students.”

For position 3, a trio of candidates vied to replace incumbent Eva Skurtowicz, who is not seeking reelection: Retiree Deltra Ferguson, former director of Resolve Center for Dispute Resolution and Restorative Justice; Noelle Christensen, a business owner, community volunteer and district parent; and property management pro and Rogue Events Collective board president Susanne McGraw.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 3

Ferguson: 55.8 %, 2,078 votes

Christensen: 24.8%, 925 votes

McGraw: 19.1%, 713 votes

For position 4, three of candidates ran against incumbent Rebecca Dyson, including:

Grant Jolliffe, a family nurse practitioner, who said he would “offer a critical lens when reviewing the current status of the district budgetary concerns and bring fresh perspectives for school improvement.”

Elisa Hawksley, a special education teacher in the Medford School District, said, if elected, she would ensure that “student, parent, and teacher concerns are heard and valued in the decision-making process.”

Alex Sol, not listed in the voter pamphlet, is a retired former artistic director for a theatre company and lists unnamed nonprofit experience on his candidate application. Sol has been embroiled in a battle with the district over safety issues in schools.

Dyson, a physician at Mount Shasta Radiology and current Ashland School Board chair, was elected in 2021 and said she had served during a time of extraordinary challenges — including the pandemic, declining enrollment and financial and political strain — and would bring her experience as the only incumbent seeking to stay in office.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 4

Sol: 2.6 %, 100 votes

Dyson: 59.1%, 2,218

Hawksley: 7.8%, 293 votes

Jolliffe: 30.2%, 1,134

Central Point

For the Central Point School District Board, incumbent board members CJ Shipley and Jolee Wallace ran unopposed to retain their seats, while four candidates competed to replace longtime board member Bret Moore, who did not seek reelection.

Candidates for Moore’s seat included: Pacific Retirement Services accountant and district parent Jenny Foster, a past Central Point Elementary PTO member and district bond oversight committee member; grant writer and district parent Micah Hillis; social media marketing manager and fitness coach Kellie Hobbs; and April Deagle, a behavioral health program manager for Jackson Care Connect and adjunct professor of social work for UMass Global/Brandman University.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 2

Foster: 26.1 %, 544 votes

Deagle: 36.8%, 766 votes

Hillis: 8.4%, 175 votes

Hobbs: 28.2%, 587 votes

Medford

In a heavily contested race for the embattled Medford School District board, multiple candidates filed for each of three available seats. 

For position 1, being vacated by retired teacher Jeff Kinsella, three candidates competed.

Angela Zbikowski, senior manager of supplier relations for Direct Travel, ran against district parent and small business owner Cheyla Breedlove and retired CPA Curt Ankerberg, who is a perennial candidate with no elected office experience.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 1

Zbikowski: 65.4 %, 5,840 votes

Breedlove: 15.8%, 1,411 votes

Ankerberg: 18.5%, 1,659 votes

Position 2, for which board member Suzanne Messer is not seeking reelection, is being sought by Donovan Donnally, an architectural draftsman and small business owner; district parent Logan Vaughan, who ran unsuccessfully for Medford mayor; and Jackson Care Connect community engagement specialist Sandra LaNier McHenry.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 2

LaNier McHenry: 66.7 %, 5,920 votes

Vaughan: 15.5%, 1,376 votes

Donnally: 17.5%, 1,556 votes

For position 3, Board Chair Cynthia Wright was the only incumbent on the ballot. Wright, who has served a number of terms on the board since 2003, faced off against auditing and consulting business owner Erik Johnsen, and Taryne Saunders, a private caregiver and district parent who has been a vocal critic of the current school board.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 3

Saunders: 20.6 %, 1,841 votes

Wright: 30.5%, 2,723 votes

Johnsen: 48.5%, 4,332 votes

Other districts in the region boasting, in most cases, a candidate filed for each available seat, include Butte Falls, Eagle Point, Phoenix-Talent, Pinehurst, Prospect and Rogue River.

Available seats for the Rogue Community College Education Board and the Southern Oregon Education Service District Board garnered one candidate per available seat in most instances.

For RCC, three incumbents ran unopposed for reelection: Vanessa Jones, Roger Stokes and Maria Underwood.

Southern Oregon Education Service District Board

The race for the SOESD board included four newcomers — Rhonda Lawrence, Ariel Bloomer, Rebecca Mueller and Mary Barton — all running unopposed. One contested seat, for zone 7, saw a challenge between two candidates, Noel Porter and Richard Owens.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Zone 7

Porter: 36.1%, 1,151 votes

Owens: 62.7%, 1,997 votes

SPECIAL DISTRICTS

Jackson County Library District Board

A race to replace two candidates on the Jackson County Library District Board garnered two candidates per seat. For position 1, incumbent Viki Brown did not seek reelection. Voters chose between retired Medford City Recorder Karent Spoonts, who, per the voters pamphlet, would “work to keep costs down and avoid raising taxes” and education; and communications consultant Patty Jensen, who said she will “support our library staff members and volunteers; promote reading and ensure each library’s future viability and success.”

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 1

Spoonts: 41.2%, 7,766 votes

Jensen: 58.3%, 10,981 votes

For position 2, incumbent Marta Tarantsey, an analyst for the state, sought reelection in a race against Oakdale Middle School math teacher Jenny James. Tarantsey said she was committed to “upholding the priorities outlined in the JCLD Strategic Plan and the Facilities Plan while remaining attentive to community input.” Jensen said she would strive to make libraries “a safe and supportive community hub,” require fiscally conservative principles and “help develop the library’s vast resources to help community members thrive.”

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / Position 2

Tarantsey: 57.9 %, 10,652 votes

James: 41.6%, 7,668 votes

Two available seats on the Rogue Valley Sewer Services Board were uncontested. Of four available seats on the Rogue Valley Transportation District Board, three seats were uncontested, with incumbents Dan Davis and Karl MacNair seeking reelection and newcomer Tyler Jasper seeking to replace outgoing board member Don Stone. Newcomers Katrina Ehrnman-Newton and Sam Bickel ran to replace incumbent Jenna Marmon.

Rogue Valley Transportation District Board

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / (contested)

Ehrnman-Newton: 60.5 %, 8,912 votes

Bickel: 39.1%, 5,756 votes

FIRE DISTRICTS

Note:  RFPD = Rural Fire Protection District

Elections of board members to local fire district boards were largely uncontested around the region.
Districts for which only one candidate filed for each available seat include Applegate Valley RFPD (two available, two filed); Evans Valley RFPD (three available, three filed); Greensprings RFPD (three available, two filed); Jackson County RFPD 3 (two available, two filed); Jackson County RFPD 4 (two available, two filed); Lake Creek RFPD (three available, three filed); and Medford RFPD 2 (two available, two filed).

For Jackson County RFPD 5, which serves Phoenix, Talent and rural parts of Ashland, four seats were available. The board faced a slew of changes over the past year, with Jackson County commissioners stepping in to replace board members who resigned en masse after upheaval between district staff and ousted Fire Chief Charles Hanley.

Three board members appointed last year — Medford airport Fire Chief John Karns, former Phoenix Mayor Chris Luz and board chair and ETHOS Academy owner Greg Costanzo — ran to retain their appointed positions. Karns and Costanzo are unopposed, while Luz will face off against newcomer Alfredo Echaide. District residents Eleanor Ponomareff and Jennifer Hadden will run to replace Sam Pare-Miller, who is not seeking reelection.

Jackson County RFPD 5

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / (contested)

Luz: 33.6 %, 418 votes

Echaide: 66.2%, 823 votes

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / (contested)

Ponomareff: 50.4 %, 635 votes

Hadden: 49.1%, 619 votes

For the Prospect RFPD, four seats were available, and all incumbents are leaving the board. Newcomers Pam Lee, Michael Pearson and Gunner Gibson will run unopposed, while candidates Clay Thomas and Natalie Williams vie for a fourth seat.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / (contested)

Thomas: 34.3 %, 58 votes

Williams: 64.5%, 109 votes

Four candidates contended for three available seats on the Rogue River RFPD board; incumbents Willaim “Randy” Cort and Jim Stearns are running unopposed, while incumbent John Foster ran against newcomer Chuck Nagel.

Unofficial results as of 8 p.m. / (contested)

Foster: 51.4 %, 250 votes

Nagel: 48.3%, votes