Carrol Titus-Zambre, a candidate for the Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District's board, falsely claimed that its superintendent endorsed her in the Nov. 8 election and then backtracked, saying it was a misunderstanding.

The Los Altos Town Crier reported that Titus-Zambre said that she was endorsed by Superintendent Nellie Meyer, as well as other local officials, including Foothill-De Anza Community College District board member Laura Casas. Both have said that they never made such an endorsement.

In an interview with the Mountain View Voice, Titus-Zambre at first denied ever writing in an email that Meyer endorsed her, before claiming that she had misunderstood the definition of an endorsement when the Town Crier first contacted her.

The Town Crier shared with the Voice a copy of a Sept. 6 email from Titus-Zambre to a Town Crier reporter, where she explicitly includes both Meyer and Casas in a list of endorsements.

Titus-Zambre told the Voice that she had "limited knowledge of endorsements" because this is her first campaign for public office, and that she had a subsequent phone call with a Town Crier reporter where she clarified that Meyer and Casas suggested she run and said that they "support" her campaign, but haven't explicitly endorsed her.

According to Town Crier reporter Jennah Pendleton, Titus-Zambre said in a phone call that Meyer had "tapped" her to run, but that, when asked, Meyer denied that assertion, too.

"We stand by our reporting that she misled us about her endorsements," Pendleton said.

Meyer confirmed to the Voice that she "did not suggest anyone run" and said that she would support whomever is elected.

“I have not endorsed any candidates for this election and make it a policy not to endorse any school board candidates,” Meyer said in the Town Crier article.

Casas told the Voice that she supports all women seeking public office, but never specifically endorsed Titus-Zambre.

Titus-Zambre is one of six candidates running for three seats on the high school district's board this November.

Controversial COVID-19 comments

She has also drawn criticism for statements about the pandemic that she made last year in an article in The Talon, Los Altos High School's student newspaper. At a March 2021 protest in favor of school reopening, the Talon reported that Titus-Zambre said that she doesn't "know of any other industry where you're allowed to not work and still get paid."

Titus-Zambre told the Voice that she was speaking about the education industry broadly and that she wasn't talking about teachers specifically.

"I wasn't implying that teachers weren't working," Titus-Zambre said. "I was implying that the system wasn't working"

However, the Talon quoted Titus-Zambre as saying, “Look in the parking lot, there’s a lot of nice Teslas, new cars and there are no teachers. What the heck! … It’s high time that they’re back in, or get some new teachers.”

Titus-Zambre also told The Talon that the idea of students returning to campus with masks was "completely ridiculous," although she now says that she knows the school district needed to follow U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention rules.