Florida › Hillsborough County › Hillsborough County School Board District 6
3 candidates are tracked for Hillsborough County School Board District 6, headed to a November 3, 2026 runoff: Kenneth "Ken" Gay, Karen Perez and Sally Harris "Ms Sally" Williamson. Candidate information follows official Hillsborough County election filings; verify with the official election office linked below.
August 18 result: incumbent board chair Karen Perez finished just over 48 percent, short of a majority, and faces Kenneth Gay in a November 3 runoff, per the Tampa Bay Times.
Kenneth "Ken" Gay
Nonpartisan
Kenneth Gay is a retired educator with 39 years in Hillsborough public schools as a teacher, instructional leader, and assistant principal, holding a doctorate in child and youth studies, per his campaign site.
2026 priorities
- Strong student outcomes for every student, per his campaign site
- Supported and respected educators, per his campaign site
- Safe and orderly schools, per his campaign site
Source: candidate campaign site, roster verified 2026-08-19.
Reported fundraising: $30,953 (county campaign-finance filings).
Campaign site →
Karen Perez
Nonpartisan · Incumbent
Karen Perez is a licensed clinical social worker and certified traumatologist who runs a private wellness practice, and the incumbent countywide District 6 board member, first elected in 2018, per her campaign site and Ballotpedia.
2026 priorities
- Funding for mental health services, counselors, and psychologists in schools, per her campaign site
Source: candidate campaign site, roster verified 2026-08-19.
Reported fundraising: $40,382 (county campaign-finance filings).
Campaign site →
Sally Harris "Ms Sally" Williamson
Nonpartisan
Sally Harris "Ms Sally" Williamson is a qualified candidate for Hillsborough County School Board District 6 on Hillsborough County's 2026 ballot, per the Supervisor of Elections' official qualified-candidate list.
