Sheena Harvey leads Brooke Westlake by more than 2,500 votes in the race for an open seat on the Washoe County School District (WCSD) Board of Trustees, according to updated unofficial results.
As of 9:25 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 5, Harvey had received 34,690 votes, or 51.89%, compared with Westlake's 32,163 votes, or 48.11%, according to the Tahoe Daily Tribune's election results tracker. The results show 66,853 votes counted in the District F contest.
The race has not been called, and thousands of ballots remain to be processed.
District F is an at-large seat on the seven-member board. It includes Sparks, parts of central Reno and south Reno east of Interstate 580, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.
Thousands of ballots still outstanding
As of 9 a.m. Thursday, the Washoe County Registrar of Voters estimated approximately 14,000 mail ballots remained to be processed and added to election results.
About 200 mail ballots were undergoing signature verification, while another 13,800 were being sorted, extracted and scanned, according to the county.
An additional 2,300 provisional ballots remained under review. Voters who need to provide additional documentation have until 5 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, to do so. The county expects eligible provisional ballots to be added to results early next week.
Including outstanding mail and provisional ballots, the county estimates approximately 92% of ballots have been counted in the 2026 general election. Results will remain unofficial until the canvass is completed Friday, Nov. 13.
The county says updated unofficial results will be posted once daily by 6 p.m. on the Washoe County Election Results Dashboard.
Who holds the seat now
Adam Mayberry currently holds the District F seat. He was elected to the Sparks City Council in the June primary, creating the vacancy, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.
Where the candidates differ
The candidates presented contrasting visions for the district during the campaign, the Reno Gazette Journal reported. Harvey, 42, emphasized communication and equitable distribution of resources. Westlake, 45, focused on age-appropriate instructional materials, academic standards and a return to educational fundamentals. They also differed on how to address declining enrollment and student achievement.
Asked why Washoe County students perform below national averages on some measures, Harvey told the Reno Gazette Journal that leadership plays an important role.
"If leaders are working well together, communicating effectively and providing support, that can have a positive impact throughout the system, including for students," Harvey said.
Westlake said teacher retention is a significant challenge. She also expressed concern about how much time students spend in front of computers and said academic standards have been lowered over time. When expectations decline, Westlake said, student achievement can suffer.
Two other school board seats were on the ballot. Incumbents Colleen Westlake in District B and James Phoenix in District C ran unopposed.
