"I would not put my name in this race if I didn't feel that I could do a really good job," Eimear O'Brien said.
She is entering the race after an 18-month retirement. She led Clovis Unified from 2017 through 2023. Now, she is campaigning to oversee 32 districts, including California's 3rd-largest, Fresno Unified.
"The superintendent definitely, at the county level, plays a great role of facilitating a lot of support," O'Brien said.
She will face off against incumbent Michele Cantwell-Copher, who has confirmed she will run again in 2026 but says it is too soon to start campaigning.
"We are creating opportunities with integrity and a shared vision for a brighter future for our students and strengthens our communities," Cantwell-Copher wrote in a statement to Action News. "Right now, my focus remains firmly on the work at hand, delivering meaningful progress and making a difference for our students."
"Something has been happening where folks are no longer in agreement with the direction that the county office of Education is going," political consultant Henry Perea said.
Voters elected Cantwell-Copher in 2022 after support from outgoing Superintendent Jim Yovino.
Yovino championed the Kids Cafe, which taught vocational skills to more than 600 students, but it closed under Cantwell-Copher's leadership in May.
Yovino said he was "sad" to see it close. While he did not criticize Cantwell-Copher, he now supports her opponent, telling Action News that O'Brien "has the experience and would make a great superintendent."
"I really believe that we could become the educational capital that's the envy of the state if we work as a team together and hold on to our core values we know are individual to Fresno County," O'Brien said.
Perea estimates O'Brien will need at least $500,000 to win the seat.