In what could be the last round of non-partisan school board races in Florida, expect Republicans and Democrats to use school board results in the Aug. 20 primaries to say they have momentum heading into the November general election.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has drawn widespread attention during the past two years for endorsing candidates in school board races. On July 19, he pitched an initial list of 23 endorsements for 2024 races.
“I'm happy to endorse this slate of school board candidates who have pledged to serve with a focus on student success, parental rights, and curriculum transparency,” DeSantis said in a statement. “We want the best for our children, and I'm confident all 23 candidates will build upon the success we've had here in Florida.”
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In response, the Florida Democratic Party backed 11 candidates. It introduced its list under the title of “Take Back Local” and said the candidates would receive organizational and fundraising support.
“These six candidates and five incumbents represent the best of Florida’s education system and offer a clear contrast to the culture wars Republicans have been waging in our school systems,” state Democratic Chairwoman Nikki Fried said in a statement.
In four races, DeSantis-backed and Democratic Party-backed candidates will go head to head.
In Duval County, the DeSantis-endorsed Melody Bolduc faces Sarah Mannion, who was endorsed by the Democratic Party.
In Hillsborough County, school board members Nadia Combs and Jessica Vaughn are backed by the Democrats, while DeSantis supports Layla Collins and Myosha Powell.
And in Miami-Dade County, Max Tuchman, who is backed by Democrats, is seeking to unseat DeSantis-endorsed incumbent Mary Blanco.
Susan MacManus, a retired political-science professor at the University of South Florida, said the endorsements have raised some awareness of the races, which voters might think are held in November instead of August.
While some of the school board races will move to November for runoffs, most play out in the primaries because they are non-partisan. But voters in November will cast ballots on a proposed constitutional amendment, Amendment 1, that would do away with a requirement that school board candidates run without party labels.
Florida historically had partisan school board elections, but voters passed a constitutional amendment in 1998 to make the races non-partisan.
In 2022, as he ran for a second term, DeSantis supported 30 school board candidates. Nearly all won.
