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Oregon school board elections, 2015
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A total of 13 Oregon school districts among America's largest school districts by enrollment held elections in 2015 for 44 seats. All of the elections were scheduled on May 19, 2015.
Here are several quick facts about Oregon's school board elections in 2015:
- The largest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was Portland Public Schools with 46,748 K-12 students.
- The smallest school district by enrollment with an election in 2015 was David Douglas School District with 10,818 K-12 students.
- Seven districts were tied for the most seats on the ballot in 2015 with four seats up for election in each.
- Two districts were tied for the fewest seats on the ballot in 2015 with two seats up for election in both.
The district listed below served 270,159 K-12 students during the 2012-2013 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.[1] Click on the district name for more information on the district and its school board elections.
| 2015 Oregon School Board Elections | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| District | Date | Seats up for election | Total board seats | Student enrollment |
| Beaverton School District | 5/19/2015 | 3 | 7 | 39,691 |
| Bend-La Pine Schools | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 16,586 |
| David Douglas School District | 5/19/2015 | 3 | 7 | 10,818 |
| Eugene School District | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 17,029 |
| Gresham-Barlow School District | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 12,185 |
| Hillsboro School District | 5/19/2015 | 3 | 7 | 21,158 |
| Medford School District | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 13,394 |
| North Clackamas School District | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 17,048 |
| Portland Public Schools | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 46,748 |
| Reynolds School District | 5/19/2015 | 4 | 7 | 11,415 |
| Salem-Keizer Public Schools | 5/19/2015 | 3 | 7 | 40,360 |
| Springfield School District | 5/19/2015 | 2 | 5 | 11,066 |
| Tigard-Tualatin School District | 5/19/2015 | 2 | 5 | 12,661 |
Trends in Oregon school board elections
- See also: School boards in session: 2015 in brief
The 2015 school board elections in Oregon's largest school districts had fewer candidates run per seat than the 2015 average in the largest school districts across the United States. The state's school board elections also had a higher percentage of unopposed seats compared to the U.S. as a whole. Newcomers fared nearly equally well in the U.S. and in Oregon. They took 38.64 percent of seats on the ballot in Oregon, and they took 40.77 percent of school board seats nationwide.
The following sections analyze competitiveness and incumbency advantage in Oregon's school board elections. These districts did not utilize primary or runoff elections. Winners only had to receive a plurality, or relative majority, of votes to secure a seat. All of the school board elections held in the state in 2015 were nonpartisan.
Details of the data discussed here can be found in the table below.
Competitiveness
In 2015, an average of 1.64 candidates ran per seat up for election in Oregon's largest school districts, and over half—59.09 percent—of the seats were unopposed. An average of 1.72 candidates ran per seat in elections held in the largest school districts nationwide. A total of 35.97 percent of those seats were unopposed.
Incumbency advantage
A total of 93.10 percent of incumbents who ran for re-election in Oregon in 2015 retained their seats. There were 44 seats on the ballot that year, and 29 incumbents filed to run for re-election. Twenty-seven of those incumbents were successful in their attempts to keep their seats. Seven of those winners defeated challengers to win another term; the other 20 won re-election unopposed.
A total of 82.66 percent of incumbents kept their seats in school board elections across the country in 2015, and 40.45 percent of them ran unopposed. The map below details the success rates for incumbents who ran in the 2015 school board elections that were held in the largest school districts by enrollment in the U.S.
The map above details the success rates of incumbent who ran to retain their school board seats in the largest school districts in each state. States depicted in gray did not hold school board elections. |
Data table
The table below displays the statistics for school board elections in Oregon's largest school districts in 2015.
| Oregon school board elections, 2015 | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Total | Incumbents | ||||||||
| Seats up | Candidates | Candidates/ seat |
Unopposed seats | % unopposed | % seats won by newcomers | Sought re-election | Unopposed | Retained | % retained | |
| 2015 | 44 | 72 | 1.64 | 26 | 59.09% | 38.64% | 29 | 20 | 27 | 93.10% |
State profile
| Demographic data for Oregon | ||
|---|---|---|
| Oregon | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 4,024,634 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 95,988 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 85.1% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 1.8% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 4% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 1.2% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 4.1% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 12.3% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 89.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 30.8% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $51,243 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 18.4% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Oregon. **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. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in Oregon
Oregon voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.
Pivot Counties (2016)
Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, two are located in Oregon, accounting for 0.97 percent of the total pivot counties.[2]
Pivot Counties (2020)
In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Oregon had two Retained Pivot Counties, 1.10 of all Retained Pivot Counties.
More Oregon coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in Oregon
- United States congressional delegations from Oregon
- Public policy in Oregon
- Endorsers in Oregon
- Oregon fact checks
- More...
Academic performance
| Education terms |
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| For more information on education policy terms, see this article. |
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- See also: Public education in Oregon
NAEP scores
- See also: NAEP scores by state
The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The chart below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during the 2012-2013 school year. Compared to three neighboring states, students in Oregon scored below those in Washington, about on par with those in Idaho and above those in California. The best scores in the state were earned by fourth graders in math, with 40 percent scoring at or above proficient.[3]
| Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Math - Grade 4 | Math - Grade 8 | Reading - Grade 4 | Reading - Grade 8 | |
| Oregon | 40% | 34% | 33% | 37% |
| California | 33% | 28% | 27% | 29% |
| Idaho | 40% | 36% | 33% | 38% |
| Washington | 48% | 42% | 40% | 42% |
| United States | 41% | 34% | 34% | 34% |
| Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables" | ||||
Graduation, ACT and SAT scores
The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Oregon and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[3][4][5]
In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT and 1,498 out of a possible 2,400 for the SAT.[6]
Oregon schools reported a graduation rate of 68.7 percent, second-lowest in the country in 2013.
In Oregon, more students took the SAT than the ACT, earning an average SAT score of 1,539.
| Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Graduation rate, 2013 | Average ACT composite, 2013 | Average SAT composite, 2013 | ||||
| Percent | Quintile ranking** | Score | Participation rate | Score | Participation rate | ||
| Oregon | 68.7% | Fifth | 21.5 | 34% | 1,539 | 49% | |
| California | 80.4% | Third | 22.2 | 26% | 1,505 | 57% | |
| Idaho | N/A | N/A | 22.1 | 49% | 1,364 | 99% | |
| Washington | 76.4% | Fourth | 22.8 | 21% | 1,537 | 60% | |
| United States | 81.4% | 20.9 | 54% | 1498 | 50% | ||
| **Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally. Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express" ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores" The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013" | |||||||
Dropout rate
- See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states
The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades 9–12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Oregon was lower than the national average at 3.2 percent in the 2010-2011 school year. The dropout rate was higher than the national average at 3.4 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[7]
See also
| Oregon | School Boards | News and Analysis |
|---|---|---|
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External links
- Clackamas County Elections
- Jackson County Elections Office
- Lane County Elections
- Linn County Clerk's Office
- Multnomah County Elections Division
- Washington County Elections
Footnotes
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed April 21, 2015
- ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ ACT, "2012 ACT National and State Scores," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT Scores by State 2013," October 10, 2013
- ↑ StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
- ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data File, School Year 2010-11, Provision Version 1a and School Year 2011-12, Preliminary Version 1a," accessed May 13, 2014
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