Fresno County · Statewide General Election
County Superintendent of Schools — Fresno County
Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.
This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.
On the ballot
- Michele Cantwell-Copher
- Eimear O'Brien
Nonpartisan head of the county office of education.
Incumbent Michele Cantwell-Copher led the June 2 primary with 42.8% and Eimear O'Brien took 30.0%; neither cleared a majority, so the two meet again on November 3. This is a nonpartisan countywide office.
The county superintendent runs the Fresno County Office of Education. That office does not run your local school district — it oversees district budgets and can intervene when one is in financial trouble, runs county-wide programs including special education and juvenile court schools, and provides services individual districts are too small to run alone. It is one of the most consequential education jobs most voters have never heard of.
This is a contest between a sitting superintendent and a challenger from within the same professional world, so it turns on management of the county office rather than on party or ideology. Ask what you want from the office's two real powers: fiscal oversight of districts, and the county-run programs serving students no single district can serve alone.
Michele Cantwell-Copher
Nonpartisan, and the sitting Fresno County Superintendent of Schools seeking another term. She led the June primary with 42.8%, short of the majority needed to win outright. Neither candidate reported campaign finance to the state database we track, so no funding comparison is available here.
Strengths
A record in the office itself, which is the most direct evidence available for a job of this kind.
Trade-offs
An incumbent held under a majority by a single challenger is a signal worth weighing; and we have no campaign-finance data for either candidate.
Keep in mind
Local coverage of this race exists but is thin — GV Wire, Fresnoland and the Mid Valley Times have profiled the field, and there is little beyond that.
Eimear O'Brien
Nonpartisan, who advanced with 30.0% of the June vote against the sitting superintendent. Neither candidate reported campaign finance to the state database we track. She does not currently hold the office.
Strengths
She held an incumbent below a majority, forcing a November runoff in an office that usually returns its holder without contest.
Trade-offs
No record in this office to judge, and no campaign-finance data available for comparison.
Keep in mind
Local coverage of this race exists but is thin, and it describes the contest more than the candidates' specific plans for the county office.
June 2 primary — how they advanced
Source review: Strong (89/100) · 4 cited sources
Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.
- fresnocountyca.gov (opens in a new tab)Fresno County elections office — certified June 2, 2026 primary results
- gvwire.com (opens in a new tab)GV Wire — Central Valley election coverage, Assembly District 27
- fresnoland.org (opens in a new tab)Fresnoland — Fresno County candidate guides
- midvalleytimes.com (opens in a new tab)Mid Valley Times — Fresno County Superintendent of Schools candidate profiles
Last updated August 10, 2026.