Live updates: Nasreen Johnson leads Pablo Villagrana in State Center CCD Area 2 race, early results show

Early results Tuesday show Nasreen Michelle Johnson leading in the race to represent Area 2 of the State Center Community College District.

Tallies reported by the Fresno County County Clerk/Registrar of Voters as of 8:07 p.m. show Johnson with 55.7% of the vote, ahead of challenger Villagrana at 44.15%.

Johnson, incumbent trustee for State Center Community College Area 2, is being challenged by Villagrana, a workforce development director and union leader.

"I'm hoping that the numbers hold, but I try not to get too excited before all the votes get counted," Johnson told The Bee Tuesday night.

Johnson said she hopes to focus on workforce development such as first responders and nursing program as well as support for students who wish to transfer to four-year universities.

SCCCD is the parent district to several Central Valley community colleges including: Fresno City College, Clovis Community College, Reedley College and Madera Community College.

The district is governed by a seven-member board of trustees who represent seven trustee areas. Area 2 encompasses a large portion of central Fresno including Fresno City College's Radcliffe Stadium, Fresno State and Fresno Yosemite International Airport.

"The first release of votes is where we predicted they would be," Villagrana said in a statement to The Bee. "We're patiently waiting the second batch of results and we're confident we will come out on top."

Born and raised in Fresno, Villagrana attended Fresno City College and has experience as a construction and iron worker and has risen through the ranks to become president of the Iron Worker's organization .

He currently serves on the Fresno Unified School District Bond Oversight Committee and has also served on the City of Fresno's Capital Projects Oversight Board.

Villagrana is endorsed by Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer; Fresno City Councilmembers Annalisa Perea, Mike Karbassi, Tyler Maxwell, Luis Chavez and Nelson Esparza; the Fresno Teachers Association; the Central Labor Council, and others.

Johnson is a longtime Fresno resident and first generation college student who graduated from Fresno City College graduate with an Associate's Degree in Liberal Arts before continuing her studies at Fresno Pacific University.