Coronado Mayor John Duncan is publicly backing his wife, Peggy Duncan, in her bid for a seat on the Coronado Unified School District (CUSD) Board of Trustees ahead of the Nov. 3 election.

Duncan published a paid endorsement letter in the Coronado Times on Oct. 20, calling it "my personal, 100% strong individual endorsement of Peggy Duncan for Coronado School Board Trustee." He added that the endorsement "does not represent an official position of the City of Coronado."

The letter is the third paid endorsement Duncan has published this election cycle. He previously endorsed Kelly Purvis and Ricky Hoyt for Coronado City Council in separate letters published Oct. 9 and Oct. 12, according to The Coronado News and the Coronado Times.

In the school board letter, Duncan acknowledged the family tie directly. "I recognize that as her husband, I am hardly a disinterested observer," he wrote. He argued that CUSD operates independently of the city, with the San Diego County Office of Education and County Board of Education serving as an intermediate layer between the local district and the state.

He signed the letter "Peggy's husband/Mayor, City of Coronado."

Rival candidate raises conflict question

The endorsement lands in a race where the family connection has already drawn scrutiny. Board Vice President Malachy Sandie, who is seeking re-election, raised the issue at the Oct. 15 candidates forum published in the Coronado News CA. Sandie said Peggy Duncan's candidacy "introduces potential conflicts of interest between the city and the school district." He also noted that her four children attended Francis Parker School, a private academy, rather than Coronado public schools.

Sandie cited campaign finance figures as of Sept. 24, stating Duncan had accepted $23,682 in donations. He said his own campaign was self-funded at $1,236.

Three seats, four candidates

Three seats on the five-member CUSD board are on the Nov. 3 ballot. Board member Scot Youngblood is not seeking another term. Sandie and Alexia Palacios-Peters are running for re-election. Peggy Duncan and Kaye McCormick Schneider round out the four-candidate field, according to a Coronado News editor's note published Sept. 22.

Peggy Duncan, an attorney and 20-year Coronado resident, has listed student safety, teacher recruitment, school air conditioning and the district's transition to Basic Aid funding among her priorities, according to a campaign letter published Sept. 30 in The Coronado News. She has also served as president of Friends of Children United Society (FOCUS), a Coronado-based nonprofit, and said she co-founded an internship program for Coronado High School students through that organization.

Her campaign website states she completed a three-year term on the Board of Trustees at Francis Parker School and previously worked as an attorney at Foley & Lardner LLP and as a judge pro tempore in San Diego County Superior Court.

Duncan's endorsements from other officials include Coronado City Councilmember Mark Fleming and current CUSD board member Fitzhugh Lee, according to her campaign website.

Coronado's vote center opens Oct. 31 at the Coronado Public Library. Election day is Tuesday, Nov. 3.