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School boards in session: opposition in 2015
 Election Analysis |
Methods of election Opposition Non-incumbent success rates |
Success rates |
Analysis of incumbency advantage in the 2014 school board elections |
School board elections, 2015 |
The 2015 school board elections had a higher percentage of unopposed seats on the ballot and a smaller average number of candidates run per seat compared to the 2014 school board elections. A total of 35.95 percent of seats were unopposed in 2015, compared to 32.59 percent in 2014. The 2015 elections saw an average of 1.72 candidates run per seat, while the 2014 elections had an average of 1.89 candidates run per seat.
The following sections analyze the rate that school board seats were unopposed in 2015 and the number of candidates who ran per seat on the ballot. These calculations are compared by state and by district enrollment.
Methodology
In 2015, Ballotpedia covered school board elections in the top 1,000 school districts in the United States by enrollment. Of those districts, 440 held school board elections. These elections took place in 32 states. The 18 states where the largest districts by enrollment did not hold elections in 2015 were Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia and Wyoming. These states are not included in this report.
The elections in the 2015 scope were not equally divided across states. The range runs from a high of 218 school board seats on the ballot in Texas to a low of one seat on the ballot in Mississippi. The comparisons made in the report are not representative of each state as a whole; rather, they demonstrate the relative election trends among the largest districts of each state, with varying sample sizes in each location. To mitigate the unequal representation by state, this report also looks at election trends by enrollment size. School districts were compared by eight enrollment ranges, with the largest enrollment size at over 100,000 students and the smallest enrollment size below 10,000 students.
For more information on Ballotpedia's methodology for this report, check out the methodology in Ballotpedia's 2015 school board election analysis.
Unopposed seats
A total of 495 school board seats—35.95 percent of all seats up for election—saw no opposition in 2015. Every seat on the ballot was unopposed in over 20 percent of school districts—99 in total—that held elections in 2015. Unopposed seats were more likely to go to incumbents than challengers. A total of 40.45 percent of incumbents ran unopposed in their bids for re-election, compared to the 7.33 percent of non-incumbents who were unopposed.
Analysis by state
The map above details how many school board seats were unopposed in the largest school districts in each state. States depicted in gray did not hold school board elections. |
Mississippi had the highest percentage of unopposed seats in 2015. It had only one seat on the ballot, and only one candidate filed to run for it. Oklahoma had the next highest unopposed rate with 85.71 percent of its 16 seats seeing no opposition. Montana had the third-highest rate; three of the four seats on the ballot were unopposed in that state.
Only Nebraska had no unopposed seats in 2015. All three of its seats saw opposition. North Carolina had the second-lowest percentage of unopposed seats, with only 6.25 percent of its 16 seats on the ballot seeing no opposition. The third-lowest rate of unopposed seats occurred in Missouri, where 10.53 percent of the 38 seats on the ballot were unopposed.
The map to the right details the percentage of school board seats that were unopposed in each state in 2015. More details about the number of seats that were unopposed as well as the percentage of incumbents and non-incumbents who were unopposed in each state can be found in the table below.
| Unopposed seats in the 2015 school board elections (by state) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Total enrollment | Districts holding elections | Seats up for election | Total candidates | Unopposed seats (#) | Unopposed seats (%) | Incumbents running unopposed (%) | Non-incumbents running unopposed (%) |
| Total | 10,322,036 | 440 | 1,377 | 2,375 | 495 | 35.95% | 40.45% | 7.33% |
| Alaska | 80,652 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 4 | 50.00% | 57.14% | 0.00% |
| Arkansas | 85,040 | 6 | 11 | 16 | 6 | 54.55% | 55.56% | 14.29% |
| California | 1,453,222 | 46 | 122 | 245 | 28 | 22.95% | 25.56% | 3.23% |
| Colorado | 663,315 | 21 | 65 | 115 | 20 | 30.77% | 36.11% | 8.86% |
| Connecticut | 127,693 | 9 | 41 | 74 | 9 | 21.95% | 17.39% | 9.80% |
| Delaware | 62,469 | 5 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 25.00% | 50.00% | 0.00% |
| Idaho | 97,639 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 7 | 50.00% | 50.00% | 13.33% |
| Illinois | 409,548 | 24 | 82 | 139 | 24 | 29.27% | 38.98% | 1.25% |
| Iowa | 146,562 | 10 | 41 | 68 | 8 | 19.51% | 20.00% | 6.98% |
| Kansas | 174,722 | 7 | 28 | 52 | 8 | 28.57% | 27.27% | 6.67% |
| Louisiana | 71,054 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 25.00% | 33.33% | 0.00% |
| Massachusetts | 126,853 | 9 | 51 | 76 | 13 | 25.49% | 28.57% | 7.32% |
| Minnesota | 172,892 | 9 | 33 | 56 | 6 | 18.18% | 17.39% | 6.06% |
| Mississippi | 9,518 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 100.00% | 100.00% | N/A* |
| Missouri | 307,680 | 18 | 38 | 73 | 4 | 10.53% | 8.70% | 4.00% |
| Montana | 11,145 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 75.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
| Nebraska | 36,943 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0.00% | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| New Hampshire | 26,243 | 2 | 19 | 36 | 8 | 42.11% | 40.00% | 9.52% |
| New Jersey | 274,059 | 18 | 58 | 114 | 10 | 17.24% | 19.51% | 2.74% |
| New Mexico | 198,128 | 8 | 20 | 41 | 6 | 30.00% | 28.57% | 7.41% |
| New York | 207,170 | 16 | 44 | 73 | 11 | 25.00% | 25.00% | 8.89% |
| North Carolina | 186,101 | 4 | 16 | 41 | 1 | 6.25% | 8.33% | 0.00% |
| Ohio | 320,378 | 19 | 46 | 80 | 16 | 34.78% | 38.89% | 4.55% |
| Oklahoma | 258,524 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 85.71% | 91.67% | 25.00% |
| Oregon | 270,159 | 13 | 44 | 72 | 26 | 59.09% | 68.97% | 13.95% |
| Pennsylvania | 238,994 | 18 | 91 | 161 | 29 | 31.87% | 38.60% | 6.73% |
| South Carolina | 21,097 | 2 | 9 | 13 | 1 | 11.11% | 0.00% | 20.00% |
| South Dakota | 37,227 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 20.00% | 20.00% | 0.00% |
| Texas | 2,723,097 | 80 | 218 | 369 | 106 | 48.62% | 54.12% | 7.04% |
| Virginia | 655,920 | 20 | 103 | 166 | 46 | 44.66% | 54.41% | 9.18% |
| Washington | 618,358 | 34 | 102 | 151 | 65 | 63.73% | 67.11% | 18.67% |
| Wisconsin | 249,634 | 12 | 34 | 47 | 13 | 38.24% | 32.00% | 22.73% |
| *Not applicable as no non-incumbents ran in this election. | ||||||||
Analysis by enrollment
Overall, school board seats were more likely to be unopposed in districts with the smallest student enrollments. Districts with a student enrollment between 10,001 and 20,000 had the highest percentage, with 39.20 percent of seats seeing no opposition in the 2015 school board elections. Districts with an enrollment below 10,000 students saw the second-highest percentage. In those districts, 38.10 percent of seats were unopposed.
The lowest percentage of unopposed seats was found in school districts with a student enrollment of 80,001 to 100,000. In those districts, 20.00 percent of seats were unopposed. Districts with an enrollment between 30,001 and 40,000 had the second-highest percentage with 24.64 percent of seats seeing no opposition.
The chart to the right details the percentage of school board seats that were unopposed in 2015 by student enrollment size. More details about how many incumbents and non-incumbents ran unopposed by enrollment range can be found in the table below.
| Unopposed seats in the 2015 school board elections (by enrollment) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enrollment size | Districts holding elections | Seats up for election | Total candidates | Unopposed seats (#) | Unopposed seats (%) | Incumbents running unopposed (%) | Non-incumbents running unopposed (%) |
| Total | 440 | 1,377 | 2,375 | 495 | 35.95% | 40.45% | 7.33% |
| Below 10,000 | 52 | 147 | 236 | 56 | 38.10% | 47.52% | 5.93% |
| 10,001 - 20,000 | 243 | 778 | 1,271 | 305 | 39.20% | 43.12% | 9.32% |
| 20,001 - 30,000 | 74 | 216 | 389 | 72 | 33.33% | 35.29% | 7.63% |
| 30,001 - 40,000 | 25 | 69 | 132 | 17 | 24.64% | 30.23% | 4.49% |
| 40,001 - 60,000 | 26 | 82 | 166 | 24 | 29.27% | 36.36% | 3.60% |
| 60,001 - 80,000 | 8 | 31 | 61 | 8 | 25.81% | 28.00% | 2.78% |
| 80,001 - 100,000 | 5 | 20 | 44 | 4 | 20.00% | 30.77% | 0.00% |
| Above 100,001 | 7 | 34 | 76 | 9 | 26.47% | 29.63% | 2.04% |
Candidates per seat
An average of 1.72 candidates ran per school board seat on the ballot in 2015. A total of 2,375 candidates ran for 1,377 seats. In 2014, an average of 1.89 candidates ran for each school board seat up for election. A total of 4,141 candidates ran for 2,189 seats that year.
Analysis by state
The map above details the average number of candidates who ran per school board seat on the ballot in the largest school districts in each state. States depicted in gray did not hold school board elections. |
In addition to having the lowest percentage of unopposed seats in 2015, Nebraska had the highest average number of candidates run per school board seat on the ballot. Eight candidates ran for three seats in that state, creating an average of 2.67 candidates per seat. North Carolina had the second-highest average with 2.56 candidates running per seat up for election.
Montana had the lowest average number of candidates run per seat in 2015. Only three candidates ran for four seats on the ballot, meaning less than one candidate ran per seat. Mississippi had the second-lowest average, with just one candidate running for the one seat on the ballot.
The map to the right details the average number of candidates who ran per school board seat on the ballot in each state in 2015. More details about how many candidates ran and how many seats were up for election in each state can be found in the table below.
| Average number of candidates per seat in the 2015 school board elections (by state) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Total enrollment | Districts holding elections | Seats up for election | Total candidates | Candidates per seat |
| Total | 10,322,036 | 440 | 1,377 | 2,375 | 1.72 |
| Alaska | 80,652 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 1.50 |
| Arkansas | 85,040 | 6 | 11 | 16 | 1.45 |
| California | 1,453,222 | 46 | 122 | 245 | 2.01 |
| Colorado | 663,315 | 21 | 65 | 115 | 1.77 |
| Connecticut | 127,693 | 9 | 41 | 74 | 1.80 |
| Delaware | 62,469 | 5 | 8 | 16 | 2.00 |
| Iowa | 146,562 | 10 | 41 | 68 | 1.79 |
| Idaho | 97,639 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 1.70 |
| Illinois | 409,548 | 24 | 82 | 139 | 1.66 |
| Kansas | 174,722 | 7 | 28 | 52 | 1.86 |
| Louisiana | 71,054 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 2.00 |
| Massachusetts | 126,853 | 9 | 51 | 76 | 1.49 |
| Minnesota | 172,892 | 9 | 33 | 56 | 1.70 |
| Mississippi | 9,518 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
| Missouri | 307,680 | 18 | 38 | 73 | 1.92 |
| Montana | 11,145 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0.75 |
| Nebraska | 36,943 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 2.67 |
| New Hampshire | 26,243 | 2 | 19 | 36 | 1.89 |
| New Jersey | 274,059 | 18 | 58 | 114 | 1.97 |
| New Mexico | 198,128 | 8 | 20 | 41 | 2.05 |
| New York | 207,170 | 16 | 44 | 73 | 1.66 |
| North Carolina | 186,101 | 4 | 16 | 41 | 2.56 |
| Ohio | 320,378 | 19 | 46 | 80 | 1.74 |
| Oklahoma | 258,524 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 1.14 |
| Oregon | 270,159 | 13 | 44 | 72 | 1.64 |
| Pennsylvania | 238,994 | 18 | 91 | 161 | 1.77 |
| South Carolina | 21,097 | 2 | 9 | 13 | 1.44 |
| South Dakota | 37,227 | 2 | 5 | 8 | 1.60 |
| Texas | 2,723,097 | 80 | 218 | 369 | 1.69 |
| Virginia | 655,920 | 20 | 103 | 166 | 1.61 |
| Washington | 618,358 | 34 | 102 | 151 | 1.48 |
| Wisconsin | 249,634 | 12 | 34 | 47 | 1.38 |
Analysis by enrollment
In the 2015 school board elections, larger school districts attracted more candidates on average than school districts with smaller enrollment sizes. Districts with an enrollment size of at least 100,001 students had an average of 2.24 candidates run per seat on the ballot, which was the highest average out of all of the enrollment ranges. The second-highest average was 2.20 candidates per seat, which was found in districts with an enrollment size of 80,001 students to 100,000 students.
The smallest school districts by enrollment had the lowest average number of candidates run for each seat on the ballot. School districts with a student enrollment size below 10,000 saw an average of 1.61 candidates run per seat, and districts with an enrollment size of 10,001 students to 20,000 students saw an average of 1.63 candidates per seat.
The chart to the right details the average number of candidates who ran per school board seat on the ballot in 2015 by student enrollment size. More details about how many candidates ran and how many seats were up for election by enrollment range can be found in the table below.
| Average number of candidates per seat in the 2015 school board elections (by enrollment size) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Enrollment size | Districts holding elections | Seats up for election | Total candidates | Candidates per seat | |
| Total | 440 | 1,377 | 2,375 | 1.72 | |
| Below 10,000 | 52 | 147 | 236 | 1.61 | |
| 10,001 - 20,000 | 243 | 778 | 1,271 | 1.63 | |
| 20,001 - 30,000 | 74 | 216 | 389 | 1.80 | |
| 30,001 - 40,000 | 25 | 69 | 132 | 1.91 | |
| 40,001 - 60,000 | 26 | 82 | 166 | 2.02 | |
| 60,001 - 80,000 | 8 | 31 | 61 | 1.97 | |
| 80,001 - 100,000 | 5 | 20 | 44 | 2.20 | |
| Above 100,001 | 7 | 34 | 76 | 2.24 | |
See also
| School Boards | News and Analysis |
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