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Newark Public Schools elections (2018)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 16
- Early voting: Sept. 22 - Nov. 5
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: No
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: No
- Poll times: 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
2019 →
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The Moving Newark Schools Forward slate won the first Newark school board election since the return of local control.[1] The slate was comprised of Yambeli Gomez, Dawn Haynes, and Asia Norton and was endorsed Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka.[2][3] This marked the eighth consecutive election where a slate endorsed by the mayor won, leaving the board fully-comprised of Baraka-backed candidates.
Haynes received the most votes with 26.91 percent. Norton received 21.36 percent and Gomez received 19.18 percent.[1]
Three of the nine seats on the Newark Public Schools Board of Education were up for at-large general election on April 17, 2018. The election saw no incumbents file for additional terms, and 13 candidates filed in the nonpartisan race to replace them.[4]
Full local control was returned to the district by the New Jersey State Board of Education on September 13, 2017, after 22 years of state oversight. The state originally took over the district in 1995. Click here to learn more.
Candidates
Election results
2018
General election
General election for Newark Public Schools Board of Education (3 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Newark Public Schools Board of Education on April 17, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Dawn Haynes (Nonpartisan) | 26.9 | 5,289 |
| ✔ | Asia Norton (Nonpartisan) | 21.4 | 4,199 | |
| ✔ | Yambeli Gomez (Nonpartisan) | 19.2 | 3,770 | |
 | Jameel Ibrahim (Nonpartisan) | 5.3 | 1,038 | |
 | Che' J.T. Colter (Nonpartisan) | 5.2 | 1,022 | |
 | Denise Cole (Nonpartisan) | 5.1 | 1,010 | |
| Omayra Molina (Nonpartisan) | 4.6 | 895 | ||
 | Yolanda Johnson (Nonpartisan) | 3.8 | 749 | |
| Marcus Allen (Nonpartisan) | 2.7 | 531 | ||
| Khalil Hannah (Nonpartisan) | 2.0 | 393 | ||
| Johnnie Lattner (Nonpartisan) | 1.9 | 380 | ||
| Robert House (Nonpartisan) | 1.1 | 207 | ||
 | Barbara Anne Todish (Nonpartisan) | 0.7 | 142 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.2 | 31 | ||
| Total votes: 19,656 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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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.
| School board candidate endorsements | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Endorsement | Gomez | Haynes | Norton | Lattner |
| State officials | ||||
| State Sen. M. Teresa Ruiz[5] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Local officials | ||||
| Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka[5] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Newark City Council President Mildred C. Crump[5] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Newark City Council member Eddie Osborne[5] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Newark City Council member Anibal Ramos, Jr.[5] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Organizations | ||||
| Network for Public Education Action[6] | ✔ | |||
Campaign finance
No candidate in this election reported any receipts or expenditures to the New Jersey Election Law Commission as of March 14, 2018.[7]
School board candidates in New Jersey had to file reports of their campaign financial activity with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission. Each candidate is required to appoint a treasurer (a candidate may serve as his or her own treasurer) and create a campaign depository (a bank account) and file this information with the commission. Candidates must establish a reporting committee, which has the sole name under which a candidate receives contributions, makes expenditures, labels his or her political identification statements, or otherwise does business. No later than 10 days after establishing a committee, the candidate must file the Single Candidate Committee Certificate of Organization and Designation of Campaign Treasurer and Depository form.[8][9]
A candidate must begin filing reports with the commission on a date that depends upon when the committee's financial activity begins. If a candidate committee is set up within five months or less of the due date of the 29th-day pre-election report, the committee must file a 29th-day pre-election report as the initial election fund report. If the committee is established more than five months prior to the due date of the 29th-day pre-election report, the committee must file a quarterly report as its initial election fund report. Beginning the 13th day before the election day and ending on election day, if a candidate receives more than $1,600 from a single source, the committee must file a report within 48 hours.[10]
There were five campaign finance reporting deadlines in 2018 for this school board election. Each deadline required the candidate to file a cumulative campaign report.
- March 19, 2018 (29th day pre-election report)
- April 4, 2018 (48-hour reporting began)
- April 6, 2018 (11th day pre-election report)
- April 17, 2018 (48-hour reporting ended)
- May 7, 2018 (20th day post-election report)[11]
Voter and candidate information
Newark Public Schools is overseen by a nine-member board, all the members of which are elected at large to three-year terms. Three seats are up for election each year. The district was the largest school district in the state in the 2014–2015 school year and served 34,861 students.[12]
To run for a school board in New Jersey, candidates must be U.S. citizens, registered to vote in the district for which they are running, and have lived in that district for at least one year. Candidates must also submit nominating petitions with the signatures of at least 10 registered voters in the district to get on the ballot.
To vote in New Jersey, you must be a U.S. citizen and a resident of the county for at least 30 days prior to the election. A voter must also be at least 18 years old by the time of the next election in order to register.
Context of the election
Local control returned to district in 2017
Full local control was returned to Newark Public Schools by the New Jersey State Board of Education on September 13, 2017, after 22 years of state oversight. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka remarked on the return: "We now have control over our own children’s lives. It doesn’t mean that we won’t make mistakes or there won’t be any errors or obstacles,” he said. “We have the right to make mistakes. We have the right to correct them ourselves. We think that we know what’s best for the kids in our city."[13]
The state originally took over the district in 1995 after a judge said that “nepotism, cronyism and the like” had caused student performances to plummet, as well as what the judge said was “failure on a very large scale.” Following the state takeover, the Newark Board of Education had little control over finances or operations in the district. Most choices about curriculum and programs were made by a superintendent appointed by the state, and the city could not override personnel decisions made.
Once a school district is taken over by New Jersey, its performance is measured by the Quality Single Accountability Continuum (QSAC), the state's method of monitoring schools. This measures a district's performance in five areas: instruction and program, personnel, fiscal management, operations, and governance. In order to qualify for the return of local control, a school district must score adequately in each of these areas. As a district transitions towards this, it is often the case that it meets adequacy in one measured area at a time and regains that portion of its control.
You can view a timeline of the key events leading up to the district's return to local control below.
Newark mayor-backed candidate slates win seven consecutive races
The 2017 election marked the seventh consecutive race to feature a slate of candidates backed by Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, leaving the board fully comprised of Baraka-backed candidates. The Newark Unity slate of candidates—Reginald Bledsoe, Josephine Garcia, and Flohisha Johnson—swept the race and secured all three seats on the board up for election.
In the 2016 election, Baraka endorsed three candidates who also ran as a slate called Newark Unity: Leah Owens, Tave Padilla, and Deborah Kim Thompson-Gaddy. The slate aimed to reduce the disagreements often seen in local political races and was supported by numerous political actors, including charter school advocates. In 2016, Baraka clashed with education reformers over his desire to halt charter school expansion pending the full funding of state public schools.[14]
In response to questions regarding this unity, Baraka stated, "At this time we need to overcome our differences, to work together, to unite to ensure that all of our children get the very best education. We must move beyond the fighting, ideological wars and turmoil." Each of the three candidates ran on his or her own platform and did not espouse a cohesive view of issues or politics in Newark Public Schools.[14]
In the five election cycles prior to that, the Baraka-endorsed candidates ran as a slate each year that was called the Children First Team (CFT). In 2015, the slate had a seven-member majority out of nine board members when two seats held by CFT members were up for election. While Marques-Aquil Lewis sought re-election on the slate, the other CFT member, DeNiqua Matias, did not run. The other incumbent up for re-election, Rashied McCreary, did not file to run for re-election. He was one of just two non-CFT members on the board prior to the 2015 election.
The team first became a part of the school district's elections in 2011, when Alturrick Kenney and Antoinette Baskerville-Richardson were the first CFT candidates to join the board. Two more seats were secured by the Baraka-backed group in 2012, when Marques-Aquil Lewis and DeNiqua Matia won in that general election. In 2013, the entire CFT slate, Khalil Sabu Rashidi, Ariagna Perello, and Rashon K. Hasan, won election to the board. Antoinette Baskerville-Richardson retained her seat and Philip Seelinger secured another for the CFT team in the 2014 election.
Noteworthy events
Interim superintendent appointed
In December 2017, former Superintendent Christopher Cerf announced he would be stepping down from his post effective February 1, 2018, which was the same day the State of New Jersey officially handed local control back to Newark Public Schools. In his resignation announcement, Cerf cited the desire to ease the transition back to local control. "Now is the time to focus on how we can all work together to ensure an orderly transition proceeds when we return from winter recess," Cerf wrote in an email to employees of the district. "To be clear, the most important action the board will take in the coming months is the search for and selection of a permanent superintendent."[15]
The district appointed interim Superintendent Robert Gregory as it searches for a permanent one. The search was set to be completed by May 31, 2018, with the start date for the new superintendent on July 1, 2018.[16] The new superintendent was the first the district has chosen itself since the state took it over in 1995.
2017
| Newark Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year terms, 2017 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Josephine Garcia |
17.93% | 3,595 |
| Reginald Bledsoe |
17.01% | 3,411 |
| Flohisha Johnson |
13.66% | 2,740 |
| Charles Love | 7.82% | 1,568 |
| Deborah Terrell | 7.45% | 1,494 |
| Patricia Bradford | 7.30% | 1,465 |
| Philip Seelinger Incumbent | 5.88% | 1,180 |
| Denise Cole | 5.25% | 1,053 |
| Sheila Montague | 3.79% | 761 |
| Swapan Basu | 3.65% | 732 |
| Jimmie White | 2.99% | 599 |
| Ryan Talmadge | 2.37% | 475 |
| Sharon Smith | 2.28% | 458 |
| EZDehar Hatab | 1.55% | 311 |
| Jameel Ibrahim | 0.91% | 182 |
| Anthony Diaz | 0.00% | |
| Write-in votes | 0.15% | 31 |
| Total Votes | 20,055 | |
| Source: Essex County Clerk, "2017 School Board Election," accessed May 26, 2017 | ||
2016
| Newark Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year terms, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Deborah Kim Thompson-Gaddy |
21.92% | 5,909 |
| Tave Padilla |
21.86% | 5,892 |
| Leah Owens |
18.62% | 5,018 |
| Sheila Montague | 9.56% | 2,576 |
| Carole Graves | 8.09% | 2,180 |
| Tamara Moore | 6.59% | 1,775 |
| Thomas Ellis | 3.32% | 896 |
| Jody Pittman | 2.95% | 794 |
| Juan Silva | 2.29% | 618 |
| George Tillman | 1.87% | 505 |
| Jimmie White | 1.68% | 452 |
| Jason Dotson | 1.25% | 338 |
| Total Votes | 26,953 | |
| Source: Essex County Clerk, "2016 School Board Election," accessed May 10, 2016 | ||
2015
| Newark Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year term, 2015 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Crystal Fonseca |
21.9% | 3,745 | |
| Nonpartisan | Marques-Aquil Lewis Incumbent |
21.8% | 3,729 | |
| Nonpartisan | Dashay Carter |
19.4% | 3,311 | |
| Nonpartisan | Charles Love III | 11.4% | 1,955 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sheila Montague | 10.1% | 1,729 | |
| Nonpartisan | Veronica Branch | 9.6% | 1,637 | |
| Nonpartisan | Natasha Alvarado | 3.4% | 584 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ronnie Kellam | 2% | 347 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.4% | 63 | |
| Total Votes | 17,100 | |||
| Source: Essex County Clerk, "2015 School Board Election," April 27, 2015 | ||||
2014
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Philip Seelinger Incumbent |
20.1% | 2,894 | |
| Nonpartisan | Antoinette Baskerville-Richardson Incumbent |
19% | 2,734 | |
| Nonpartisan | Donald G. Jackson Jr. |
16.8% | 2,421 | |
| Nonpartisan | Reginald Bledsoe | 16.4% | 2,352 | |
| Nonpartisan | Crystal Fonseca | 12.1% | 1,743 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rachelle Moss | 8.3% | 1,198 | |
| Nonpartisan | Shakima K. Thomas | 4% | 575 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ronnie Kellam | 2.8% | 405 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.3% | 48 | |
| Total Votes | 14,370 | |||
| Source: Essex County, New Jersey, "2014 School Board Election," accessed June 11, 2014 | ||||
2013
| Newark Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year term, 2013 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Khalil Sabu Rashidi |
26.3% | 3,223 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ariagna Perello |
24.7% | 3,020 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rashon K. Hasan |
18.8% | 2,304 | |
| Nonpartisan | Philip C. Seelinger Jr. | 15.5% | 1,893 | |
| Nonpartisan | Sheila Montague | 9.7% | 1,191 | |
| Nonpartisan | Gerrell Elliot | 4.7% | 571 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.3% | 33 | |
| Total Votes | 12,235 | |||
| Source: Essex County, New Jersey, "2013 School Board Election," accessed February 18, 2014 | ||||
2012
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | DeNiqua Matias |
21.3% | 5,721 | |
| Nonpartisan | Marques-Aquil Lewis Incumbent |
15.8% | 4,237 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rashied McCreary |
13.8% | 3,720 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ariagna Perello | 13.5% | 3,628 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tara Williams | 11.7% | 3,151 | |
| Nonpartisan | Masiel Valentin | 10.1% | 2,712 | |
| Nonpartisan | Philip C. Seelinger Jr. | 6.3% | 1,701 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rafael A. Brito | 3.7% | 983 | |
| Nonpartisan | Rashon Kashif Hasan | 2.9% | 788 | |
| Nonpartisan | Swapan Basu | 0.7% | 182 | |
| Nonpartisan | Write-in votes | 0.2% | 45 | |
| Total Votes | 26,868 | |||
| Source: Essex County, New Jersey, "2012 School Board Election," accessed February 18, 2014 | ||||
2011
| Newark Public Schools, At-Large General Election, 3-year term, 2011 |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Nonpartisan | Eliana Pintor Marin Incumbent |
15.4% | 5,111 | |
| Nonpartisan | Alturrick Kenney |
14.4% | 4,806 | |
| Nonpartisan | Antoinette Baskerville-Richardson |
13.7% | 4,550 | |
| Nonpartisan | Tave Padilla | 13.6% | 4,508 | |
| Nonpartisan | DeNiqua Matia | 13.4% | 4,459 | |
| Nonpartisan | Chris T. Pernell | 12.9% | 4,298 | |
| Nonpartisan | Ariagna Perello | 6% | 1,981 | |
| Nonpartisan | Philip C. Seelinger Jr. | 5.3% | 1,774 | |
| Nonpartisan | Donald G. Jackson Jr. | 3.4% | 1,133 | |
| Nonpartisan | Willard Andrews | 1% | 346 | |
| Nonpartisan | Alfred McIntyre | 0.8% | 254 | |
| Total Votes | 33,260 | |||
| Source: Essex County, New Jersey, "2011 School Board Election," accessed March 24, 2014 | ||||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Newark Public Schools New Jersey election. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
| Newark Public Schools | New Jersey | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Essex County, New Jersey, "Unofficial Results," updated April 23, 2018
- ↑ Moving Newark Schools Forward, "Home," accessed March 9, 2018
- ↑ Moving Newark Schools Forward, "Endorsements," accessed March 9, 2018
- ↑ Mandy Gillip, "Email communication with Nancy Deering, director of NPS board relations," March 1, 2018
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Moving Newark Schools Forward, "Endorsements," accessed April 5, 2018
- ↑ Network for Public Education Action, "NPE Action Endorses Johnnie Lattner for the Newark School Board," February 16, 2018
- ↑ New Jersey Election Law Commission, "View a Report," accessed March 14, 2018
- ↑ New Jersey Permanent Statutes, "Title 19:44A-11," accessed January 9, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Permanent Statutes, "Title 19:44A-10," accessed January 9, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission, "Compliance Manual for Candidates," accessed January 9, 2014
- ↑ New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission, "2018 Reporting Dates," accessed March 14, 2018
- ↑ U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data, file ccd_lea_052_1414_w_0216161a, 2014-2015," accessed November 16, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Largest New Jersey city regaining control of its schools," September 13, 2017
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 NJ.com, "Baraka joins forces with rivals to form Newark school board 'unity' slate," January 29, 2016
- ↑ NJ, "Newark to pick own schools chief for first time in 22 years," December 26, 2017
- ↑ Tap into Newark, "Interim superintendent of Newark Public Schools appointed as Cerf announces departure," December 22, 2017
| Newark Public Schools elections in 2018 | |
| Essex County, New Jersey | |
| Election date: | April 17, 2018 |
| Candidates: | At-large: • Marcus Allen • Denise Cole • Che' J.T. Colter • Yambeli Gomez • Khalil Hannah • Dawn Haynes • Robert House • Jameel Ibrahim • Yolanda Johnson • Johnnie Lattner • Omayra Molina • Asia Norton • Barbara Anne Todish |
| Important information: | What was at stake? |
