Soledad health care district board will feature a husband and wife as directors.

After Michael "Max" Schell was elected to the Soledad Community Health Care District Board of Directors two years ago, he soon became the firebrand of the board. A stickler for rules and government transparency, he pressed the board and SCHCD CEO Ida Chan with questions about finances and procedures. 

The relationship between Schell, Chan and other board members has been icy. During the September board meeting Chan asked Schell to stop "harassing and bullying" her, a contention he denied.

Even before that exchange, Schell was actively looking for candidates to run for the three board seats that were up for grabs on Nov. 5. He found two candidates, one of whom was his own wife, Maria Schell.

There is no prohibition in state law against spouses serving on the same elected board. According to a spokesperson for the state's Fair Political Practices Commission, it would have to be specified by a local jurisdiction who is eligible and who is not to serve in an elected position. SCHCD has no such provision against spouses serving in its bylaws.

On Election Night, Maria Schell was the top vote-getter in a race between five candidates that included SCHCD Board President Graig Stephens and another incumbent, Rosemary Guidotti. Voters were asked to vote for three candidates.

As of Nov. 20, Maria Schell earned 2,559 votes, 30.6 percent. Guidotti had 1,724 votes, 20.6 percent, and Stephens had 1,579 votes, at just under 19 percent.

Another candidate backed by Max Schell, Daniel Vargas came in fourth with 1,337 votes. Ken Klemme, whose day job is heading the Monterey County Mosquito Abatement District, was last with 1,149 votes. 

Schell had been working as a nurse practitioner for the district and was planning to resign her position should she win.