ELECTION WATCH: Voters in Favor of Students, Pass Measure O

Voters turned out in strong favor of students of the San Mateo Union High School District, approving by 61 percent.

With 162 out of 162 precincts reporting, unofficial results show that the $186 million bond measure won the support from district voters, which thrilled campaign volunteers. The measure needed 55 percent of the vote to pass.

Heidi Bowman, co-chairwoman of the Yes on O campaign, said she believed the campaign's consulting firm, union backing and push to reach out to parents and Realtors made all the difference in getting the campaign's message out to the public, which ultimately helped lead them to victory.

The measure—which would pay off district debt, fund classroom projects and finance a new continuation school to replace , which is located at the former Crestmoor High School site in San Bruno—turned out to be a win-win for everyone, Bowman said.

Marc Friedman, co-chairman of the Yes on O campaign, said the measure would especially provide a huge opportunity for San Bruno.

Although there has been some opposition to the possibility of selling the former Crestmoor High site, Friedman said, the measure now "gives unbelievable flexibility on what to do with Crestmoor."

Bowman and Friedman were joined at a campaign party in San Mateo by 20 people, who snacked on a large spread of delectable hors d'oeuvres, beer and wine.

Someone kept checking the results on a laptop set up in front of the TV while San Mateo Union High School District Superintendent Scott Laurence gave the crowd ongoing updates from his phone.

"If this passes, we can be economically, financially stable," Laurence said before the final results came in. "In this world, that's a real positive for me."

When the victory seemed clear, Laurence thanked people and gave each person a bottle of his favorite wine.

said they were concerned that the measure would put the district even more in debt, accumulating on top of the debt from the district's two previous bond measures.

Former San Bruno Mayor Larry Franzella, one of several former San Bruno officials to publicly oppose the measure, said its approval is "strictly a move to shift debt to the taxpayers."

He said he wasn't surprised, however, that the measure passed.

"You can get 55 percent when you don't tell voters the truth," Franzella said. "If it was truly going to do something for the students of the district, it would have had my support. But going out for a new high school property when you already have one, rebuilding administrative offices—in this economy, they can do with what they have."

Bowman said it is well known that the district has its financial woes, but the opposition campaign seemed disjointed at times and focused on the wrong issues.

"The underlying issue is that they couldn't separate their personal feelings from what's best for the kids," Bowman said.