San Felipe Del Rio CISD certifies election, welcomes new board members

San Felipe Del Rio CISD closed the books on its May 2 school board election and welcomed four trustees into the boardroom, including newcomer Bryan Weston in Place 4, while three incumbents kept their seats.

The official canvass confirmed Jesus Emilio Galindo won Place 1 over Priscilla Aguilar with 1,727 votes to 1,152, Linda Guanajuato-Webb won Place 3 with 1,546 votes to Edward Guerrero’s 1,377, Weston took Place 4 with 2,436 votes after running unopposed, and Rebekah Becky Luna-Chavez won Place 5 with 1,555 votes to Leonel “Leo” Cavazos’ 1,329. The certified totals were slightly different from election-night unofficial counts because provisional and mail ballots still had to be verified and counted under Texas election law.

The district said the oath of office was administered by Val Verde County Court-at-Law Judge Sergio Gonzalez, turning the election from campaign season into a new governance cycle. Outgoing board president Raymond P. Meza was present for the transition, underscoring the mix of continuity and change as the new term begins.

That matters far beyond the ceremony. SFDR-CISD’s board is a seven-member body elected at-large to four-year terms, and trustees adopt the district budget, levy taxes to support it and can put bond issues on the ballot for construction projects. For parents, teachers and taxpayers, the makeup of this board will shape decisions on staffing, pay, campus safety, student performance and facilities across a district that enrolled 9,907 students in 14 schools in the 2023-2024 school year.

The election calendar that led to the final count started with filing from Jan. 14 to Feb. 13, 2026, followed by early voting from April 20-28 and Election Day on Saturday, May 2. The four seats on the ballot were Place 1, Place 3, Place 4 and Place 5, and all seven candidates had a chance to present their case at a candidate forum hosted before the election by Southwest Texas College and The 830 Times.

The board’s next work will now move from voter outreach to oversight. At 315 Griner St. in Del Rio, the district enters the new term with Dr. Carlos Rios as superintendent and a board that appears likely to favor continuity, but with one new voice now at the table as decisions on money, staffing and long-range planning come into focus.