Letti Bresnahan

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Letti Bresnahan

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

March 3, 2020

Personal

Birthplace

St. Louis, Mo.

Religion

Catholic

Profession

Director

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Letti Bresnahan (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Texas State Board of Education to represent District 5. She lost in the Democratic primary on March 3, 2020.

Bresnahan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Letti Bresnahan was born in St. Louis, Missouri. Bresnahan earned an undergraduate degree from St. Louis University in 1982 and a graduate degree from the University of Texas at San Antonio in 1988. Her career experience includes working as a director with the Office of Continuing Medical Education, UT Health San Antonio. Bresnahan is a certified healthcare professional. She has been affiliated with the Educational Service Center Region 20, the Texas Alliance for Continuing Medical Education, and the Society of Academic Continuing Medical Education.

Elections

2020

See also: Texas State Board of Education election, 2020

General election

General election for Texas State Board of Education District 5

Rebecca Bell-Metereau defeated Lani Popp and Stephanie Berlin in the general election for Texas State Board of Education District 5 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rebecca Bell-Metereau (D)	48.9	493,930
		Lani Popp (R)	47.1	475,824
	Submit photo	Stephanie Berlin (L)	3.9	39,456

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,009,210
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary runoff election

Republican primary runoff for Texas State Board of Education District 5

Lani Popp defeated Robert Morrow in the Republican primary runoff for Texas State Board of Education District 5 on July 14, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Lani Popp	78.0	55,990
	Submit photo	Robert Morrow	22.0	15,827

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 71,817
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Texas State Board of Education District 5

Rebecca Bell-Metereau defeated Letti Bresnahan in the Democratic primary for Texas State Board of Education District 5 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Rebecca Bell-Metereau	68.5	143,351
		Letti Bresnahan	31.5	65,885

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 209,236
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Texas State Board of Education District 5

Robert Morrow and Lani Popp advanced to a runoff. They defeated Inga Cotton in the Republican primary for Texas State Board of Education District 5 on March 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Submit photo	Robert Morrow	40.0	54,460
✔		Lani Popp	34.0	46,276
		Inga Cotton	26.0	35,425

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 136,161
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Libertarian convention

Libertarian convention for Texas State Board of Education District 5

Stephanie Berlin advanced from the Libertarian convention for Texas State Board of Education District 5 on March 21, 2020.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Stephanie Berlin (L)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Letti Bresnahan completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Bresnahan's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I have spent the last 25 years actively volunteering in our public education system from PTA volunteer to Board Trustee of one of the largest and most diverse school districts in the state. My position as Board Vice-President and President enabled me to lead the 7 member board in governance, fiduciary responsibility, oversight and decision making for the benefit of our students, teachers, and staff. I have also served as a Board Member for Educational Service Center Region 20 since 2018, which serves 56 school districts and 32 charters in 10 counties in the State of Texas. I have a proven track record of winning elections and my employment as the Director of Continuing Medical Education at UT Health San Antonio has given me additional experience working in large, complex organizations and dealing with people of varied backgrounds. Public school education is my passion and my mission is to advocate wholeheartedly for our public schools.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Texas is one of the fastest growing states in the country with the largest number of public schools behind California and it is critical that we ensure an exemplary educational system
• There are approximately 5.4 million students in our state and this number is projected to grow. Every student with their vast array of needs, is entitled to a public education system that prepares them for careers and postsecondary education and or public school system must be ready to deliver
• I will stand by my principles to ensure that our public education is positively progressing with the use of state of the art technology and resources to prepare students to compete with the national and the global economy.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Curriculum must be factual, objective, and supported with high quality instructional materials. Learning formats should be engaging, hands on, and enhanced with modern technology. Oversight of the permanent school fund and charter school applications is critical. Lastly, adequate funding for pubic schools is vital.

What qualities does this office possess that makes it a unique and important part of the state government and legal system?

The State Board of Education is an integral part of our state's public education system and it has a decisive role in public education policy. It sets policies and standards for Texas public schools.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to Abraham Lincoln. His integrity, compassion, intelligence, and ability to work with people of varied and divergent opinions is something I would like to follow.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty, courage, conviction, strength, and commitment to the purpose and position are most important.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

The core responsibilities of someone elected to this office are to prepare all students with the knowledge and skills to succeed in our communities. Curriculum must be factual, objective, and supported with high quality instructional materials. Educators must be skilled and trained to meet the needs of all students. Oversight of the permanent school fund and charter school applications is critical.

What legacy would you like to leave?

Being a school board member was a real labor of love for me and I always kept our students, teachers, and staff at the forefront of all decisions.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The first historical event I remember was the Vietnam War. I was 8-9 years old at the time. My second memory was the Watergate trial and I was 12 years old.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My very first job was working on an assembly line assembling digital watches. I was only on the assembly line for a few months until I was promoted to a clerk.

What responsibilities of this office do you personally consider the most important?

This office is responsible for setting curriculum standards, reviewing and adopting instructional materials, establishing graduation requirements, overseeing the Texas Permanent School Fund, providing final review of rules proposed by the State Board for Educator Certification, and reviewing the commissioner's proposed award of new charter schools with authority to veto a recommended applicant.

Are there any little-known powers or responsibilities held by this office that you believe more people should be aware of?

The State Board of Education is often overlooked and holds extreme importance in setting public education policy for 5.4 million students.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for holders of this office to have previous experience in government or politics?

The SBOE consists of 15 single member districts and it operates as one board. Being part of a 15 member board requires commitment, preparations, and dedication to its purpose of setting policies and standards for Texas schools. My prior experience as one of seven school board trustees for a large public district has prepared me to move issues forward and to work with others in doing so.

What kind of skills or expertise do you believe would be the most helpful for the holders of this office to possess?

I believe that the skills ad expertise that are most helpful for this office are preparing, listening, reflecting, and synthesizing the information that is presented to the board. It is also imperative that the office holder is able to come together as a team to render the best decision for the best possible outcome.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

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