The latest numbers from the Merced County Registrar of Voters have confirmed Richard Lopez will face Ana Boyenga in the race to become the county’s top schools chief.
Boyenga, assistant superintendent of Atwater Elementary School District, had been competing for second place against Paula Heupel, superintendent of El Nido Elementary School District.
Thursday’s count showed Boyenga’s lead over Heupel had grown by nearly 800 votes. With only 417 primary votes left to count, it’s clear Boyenga has secured her spot to compete against frontrunner Lopez in the November runoff.
Boyenga’s campaign consultant Lee Neves told The FOCUS that Boyenga is ready to move forward to the general election. “She is very excited that she is moving on and we are very excited to run a great, positive campaign,” Neves said.
“We are very positive about the general and we are going to work twice as hard as we did during the primary.”
Reached by phone Thursday, Heupel said she has accepted the results.
“I think the voters have spoken and I am very proud of the race that we ran,” Heupel said. “I appreciated meeting the larger community, getting to know some of their issues … I want to be sure that people stay engaged and involved in our schools and what is happening because our children are our future.”
Heupel said she’s not prepared to make an endorsement for superintendent of schools at this time.
Although she’s not heading to the November election, Heupel said campaigning was a rewarding experience in many ways, particularly “meeting so many people I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to meet.”
According to the Registrar of Voters, 46,342 ballots were cast, which accounts for nearly 34% of Merced County’s electorate (136,490 voters).
In comparison, the March 2024 primary ended with just under 38,000 ballots cast, while the June 2022 primary ended with just over 31,000 ballots cast.