Newcomers and incumbents share the victories in Iowa's largest school district elections
September 9, 2015
Iowa school districts held elections for their school boards on September 8, 2015. In the 10 largest school districts by enrollment in the state, there were a total of 41 seats up for election with 68 candidates vying for those seats. Incumbents accounted for 25 of the 68 candidates. Twenty-one of the incumbents won re-election to their seats.
In the Dubuque Community School District, one open seat still does not have a winner. The race for the four seats saw three incumbents winning re-election to their seats while two candidates tied for the fourth seat left open by incumbent Otto Kreuger. Candidates Timothy Pope and Lisa Wittman each received 1,586 votes. The final results will be determined once the absentee ballots are counted. Any absentee ballot postmarked by September 5, 2015, and received by September 10, 2015, will be counted. As of September 8, 2015, there were 48 absentee ballots that had not been verified. The Dubuque County supervisors will verify the votes on September 11, 2015. If the vote total for one candidate is within 1 percent of the other candidate's vote total, the candidates can ask for an official recount.[1]
In the state's largest district, Des Moines Public Schools, only one incumbent ran for the four seats up for election. No incumbents ran in the race for five available seats in the Iowa City Community School District.
Spotlights
Sioux City: Greenwell's "green" loses
The Sioux City Community School District election saw the largest amount of money flowing though it, primarily due to candidate Daniel Greenwell, who reported over $22,000 in contributions as of September 3, 2015. This is two and a half times more than the contributions of any other candidate in the top 10 largest districts by enrollment in the state of Iowa and over six times more than the contributions of any other candidate running in his race. Greenwell was defeated in the election by incumbents Mike Krysl, Michael McTaggart and Jackie Warnstadt and newcomer David Gleiser.[2][3]
Iowa City: School closure opponents win three seats
No incumbents ran in the race for five seats on the Iowa City Community School District Board of Education. Ten candidates ran for four seats with four-year terms, and three candidates ran in a special election for a two-year term seat left open by resigning board member Tuyet Baruah.
The district's facilities master plan, which called for the closing of an elementary school, garnered a significant amount of attention from the candidates in this election.[4] In 2013, the board completed a facilities master plan that called for renovations, additions and construction of new buildings throughout the district. One of the most controversial aspects of the plan was the proposed closing of Hoover Elementary. The plan called for a new Hoover Elementary School to be finished in 2017, with the full transition from the old building to the new school set to take place in 2019. The plan called for the building to be located farther away from its current location at the center of the community.[5]
Every candidate in the election weighed in on the issue. The advocacy group Save Hoover endorsed candidates who spoke out against the closing of the elementary school. Three of the four candidates endorsed by Save Hoover won seats on the board. The founder of the group, Christopher Liebig, was one of the endorsed candidates who won a seat.[6][4]
Candidates
Note: An (i) next to a candidate's name indicates incumbent status.
*As of September 9, 2015, these candidates had the same number of vote totals. The final vote totals are to be verified on September 11, 2015.[7]
See also
- Iowa school board elections, 2015
- School board elections, 2015
- Analysis of incumbency advantage in the 2014 school board elections
Footnotes
- ↑ The Herald Online, "Incumbents re-elected to Dubuque School Board; challengers tie for fourth seat," September 8, 2015
- ↑ Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board, "Daniel Greenwell," accessed September 6, 2015
- ↑ Woodbury County, "Election Results," accessed September 8, 2015
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Save Hoover, "Compilation: The School Board Candidates Respond to the Hoover Question," August 16, 2015
- ↑ KCRG, "Hoover Elementary parents seek more information on reasons for closing school," June 17, 2015
- ↑ Johnson County Auditor's Office, "School Election Results," accessed September 8, 2015
- ↑ The Herald Online, "Incumbents re-elected to Dubuque School Board; challengers tie for fourth seat," September 8, 2015
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