The Governor of California appoints the State Board of Education, which sets policy. The job of implementation goes to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, a nonpartisan officer who’s elected statewide.
Former Democratic Assemblyman Tom Torlakson is the incumbent, running for a second 4-year term. Challenger Marshall Tuck left the financial sector to become head of the Green Dot Charter Schools in Los Angles and then lead Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s Partnership for Education.