Grand Rapids Public Schools elections (2016)
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Four of the nine seats on the Grand Rapids Public Schools school board were up for general election on November 8, 2016. Incumbents Raynard Ross and Jen Schottke filed for re-election, while fellow board members Monica Randles and Nathaniel Moody opted against seeking new terms. Ross and Schottke were joined on the ballot by challengers Walter Burt, Ryan Davis, Michael Farage, Alex Fernandez, Kristian Grant, Matthew Helak, and Katherine Downes Lewis. Ross, Schottke, Grant, and Lewis won in the general election.[1] Find out how Grand Rapids' school board races stack up with other Michigan school districts here.
Elections
Voter and candidate information
The Grand Rapids Board of Education consists of nine members elected at large to four-year terms. Michigan school board candidates had to file with their county elections department during the candidate filing period, which concluded on July 26, 2016. The deadline to withdraw from the election was July 29, 2016. Candidates needed to submit nominating petitions with signatures from district residents or $100 non-refundable deposits to reach the ballot. The deadline for voters to register for the election was October 11, 2016.[2]
Candidates and results
At-large
Results
| Grand Rapids Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 4-year terms, 2016 |
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Kristian Grant |
16.43% | 25,780 |
| Katherine Downes Lewis |
15.28% | 23,975 |
| Jen Schottke Incumbent |
15.07% | 23,650 |
| Raynard Ross Incumbent |
11.57% | 18,159 |
| Alex Fernandez | 10.42% | 16,344 |
| Walter Burt | 9.81% | 15,397 |
| Ryan Davis | 8.51% | 13,348 |
| Michael Farage | 7.26% | 11,399 |
| Matthew Helak | 5.65% | 8,867 |
| Total Votes | 156,919 | |
| Source: Election Magic, "Kent County Election Returns," accessed December 14, 2016 | ||
Candidates
Raynard Ross 
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Jen Schottke
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Walter Burt | |||
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| Ryan Davis | Michael Farage | Alex Fernandez | |||
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| Kristian Grant
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Matthew Helak | Katherine Downes Lewis
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Additional elections
- See also: Michigan elections, 2016
School board elections in Michigan shared the ballot with races for president of the United States, U.S. House seats, and state legislative seats.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for Michigan school board elections in 2016:[3]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| July 26, 2016 | Candidate filing deadline |
| July 29, 2016 | Deadline for candidates to withdraw from ballot |
| October 11, 2016 | Voter registration deadline for general election |
| October 28, 2016 | Pre-election campaign finance reporting deadline |
| November 8, 2016 | General election |
| December 8, 2016 | Post-election campaign finance reporting deadline |
Endorsements
Do you know of an official or organization that endorsed a candidate in this race? Let Ballotpedia know by email at editor@ballotpedia.org.
Campaign finance
School board candidates in Michigan were required to file pre-election campaign finance reports with their county election offices by October 28, 2016. Post-election reports were due by December 8, 2016.[3]
In Michigan, candidates are prohibited from receiving contributions from corporations or labor organizations. Within 10 days of becoming a candidate, candidates must form a candidate committee. Following the creation of the committee, candidates have an additional 10 days to register the committee with the school district filing official by filing a statement of organization. A candidate committee that does not expect to receive or spend more than $1,000 during the election cycle is eligible to receive a reporting waiver, which allows that committee not to file pre-election, post-election, and annual campaign statements.[4]
October 28 filing
Candidates received a total of $17,155.54 and spent a total of $11,167.36 as of October 30, 2016, according to the Kent County Clerk.[5]
| Candidate | Contributions | Expenditures | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raynard Ross (incumbent) | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Jen Schottke (incumbent) | $11,525.54 | $8,215.37 | $3,310.17 |
| Walter Burt | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Ryan Davis | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Michael Farage | $4,500.00 | $1,968.98 | $2,534.02 |
| Alex Fernandez | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Kristian Grant | $1,130.00 | $983.01 | $146.99 |
| Matthew Helak | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Katherine Downes Lewis | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
Past elections
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What was at stake?
Election trends
Grand Rapids' 2016 school board elections featured more candidates per seat than the district's 2014 elections. Voters saw 2.25 candidates per seat up for election in 2016, while the 2014 ballot featured 1.4 candidates per seat. The district's 2016 elections featured fewer candidates than the 2.3 candidates per seat average for all Michigan school board elections covered by Ballotpedia. Grand Rapids' 1.4 candidates per seat in 2014 fell below the 2.09 candidates per seat for Michigan districts in Ballotpedia's coverage. The following table compares candidates per seat in 2014 and 2016 for school board elections covered by Ballotpedia in Michigan and the United States:
Candidate survey
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About the district
- See also: Grand Rapids Public Schools, Michigan
Grand Rapids Public Schools is located in Kent County in western Michigan. The county seat is Grand Rapids. Kent County was home to 636,369 residents in 2015, according to the United States Census Bureau.[6] The district was the seventh-largest school district in the state in the 2013–2014 school year and served 16,452 students.[7]
Demographics
Kent County outperformed Michigan as a whole in terms of higher education achievement from 2010 to 2014. The United States Census Bureau found that 32.6 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree, compared to 26.4 percent of state residents. The median household income for Kent County was $52,716, compared to $49,087 for the entire state. The percentage of people below poverty level in the county was 15.3 percent, while it was 16.2 percent statewide.[6]
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Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Grand Rapids Public Schools' 'Michigan'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Grand Rapids Public Schools | Michigan | School Boards |
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External links
- Grand Rapids Public Schools
- Kent County, Michigan
- Kent County Clerk
- Michigan Department of Education
- Michigan Association of School Boards
Footnotes
- ↑ Kent County, Michigan, "Official Candidates and Proposals," accessed August 31, 2016
- ↑ Wayne County Clerk, "Elections Division-Voter and Candidate Information," accessed August 1, 2016
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Michigan Bureau of Elections, "2016 and 2017 Campaign Finance Filing Schedule," January 12, 2016
- ↑ Genesee County, "Filing Requirements under Michigan's Campaign Finance Act," February 7, 2014
- ↑ Kent County Clerk, "Campaign Finance Reporting Public Search," accessed October 30, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 United States Census Bureau, "Kent County, Michigan," accessed September 24, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed November 16, 2015
- ↑ Secretary of State - Department of State, "Previous Election Information," accessed August 1, 2014
| 2016 Grand Rapids Public Schools Elections | |
| Macomb County, Michigan | |
| Election date: | November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | At-large: Incumbent, Raynard Ross • Incumbent, Jen Schottke • Walter Burt • Ryan Davis • Michael Farage • Alex Fernandez • Kristian Grant • Matthew Helak • Katherine Downes Lewis |
| Important information: | What was at stake? |
