Elena Trukhan enters EGUSD Area 5 race, creating three-way contest for open seat

Elena Trukhan has entered the race for the Elk Grove Unified School District Board of Education's open Area 5 seat, creating a three-way contest in which the eventual winner may not need a majority of the vote.

Trukhan joins previously announced candidates Varinder Singh and Rachell Reinwald in seeking the seat held by longtime Trustee Beth Albiani, who is not seeking another term. Albiani's current term expires in December.

Unlike races that use a runoff system, the candidate receiving the most votes wins, meaning a closely divided electorate could send a trustee to the board with considerably less than majority support.

Trukhan, who identifies herself on her campaign website as a mother of seven, including four children she adopted in 2017, is a county employee and has worked for 25 years as a Superior Court qualified interpreter. According to her campaign biography, she volunteers at Pleasant Grove Elementary School, where four of her children attend.

Trukhan said she came to the United States in 1988 at age 17 as a refugee fleeing religious persecution. According to her campaign, she arrived with one suitcase and no money, began working within six months and attended community college at night to learn English while holding several jobs.

She also founded New Hope Prison Ministry, which her campaign describes as an organization serving incarcerated people seeking a second chance.

Trukhan is campaigning on a platform emphasizing academics, school safety, fiscal responsibility and greater communication between the district and families.

"Every family in Elk Grove School Board Area 5 deserves a school district that puts students first and listens to the families it serves," her campaign website says.

Among her stated priorities are maintaining high academic standards, supporting effective teaching and directing additional resources toward students who need help. She also supports music and visual and performing arts programs, career technical education, technology and financial literacy.

On district finances, Trukhan says public education funding should be managed transparently and that trustees should scrutinize spending decisions. Her school safety platform calls for secure campuses, emergency procedures, mental health resources and partnerships among schools, families and public safety agencies.

Trukhan's entry adds another dimension to what had been a two-person contest between Singh and Reinwald.

Singh, an Elk Grove planning commissioner and information technology supervisor for the state Franchise Tax Board, is an EGUSD graduate and the parent of two district students.

Reinwald is a longtime Elk Grove resident and mother of three EGUSD graduates who works as Northern California external affairs officer for the California State Treasurer's Office. Her campaign emphasizes access, educational pathways and accountability.

The three candidates are seeking to succeed one of the district's longest-serving current trustees. Albiani represents Area 5 and is serving as board president. District records show her current term expires in December.

The addition of Trukhan means Area 5 voters will have three distinct choices for an open seat — and raises the possibility that the person succeeding Albiani could do so with support from fewer than half of the voters participating in the race.