The Sacramento (CA) Bee (5/19) reports that although the California superintendent of public instruction position has traditionally been “safely Democratic,” and thus a positive indication for incumbent Tom Torlakson, ex-charter schools executive Marshall Tuck is gaining from considerable support “from advocates of educational change, the private sector and newspaper editorial boards.” Consequently, says the piece, this “has given a jolt to the race in the midst of a relatively quiet 2014 election season.” The Bee points out that the race has emerged as a “potential proxy” of the direction of education as a whole, in which “has pitted school unions against wealthy education advocates pushing for changes opposed by teachers.”

The Los Angeles Times (5/20, Blume) offers a similar report, also noting that the race “has become a window into differing, and influential, visions for public schools.”