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Tacoma Public Schools elections (2015)
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Two seats on the Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors were up for general election on November 3, 2015. Since more than two candidates filed for Positions 2 and 4, a primary election was held on August 4, 2015.[1]
In the Position 2 primary, incumbent Catherine Ushka and Will Jenkins Sr. defeated challengers Robert Bearden and Antonio Wyatt. Ushka defeated Jenkins in the general election.
In the Position 4 primary, Andrea Cobb and Alisa Regala O'Hanlon advanced past David Carnahan in the race to replace Kurt Miller.[2] Cobb defeated O'Hanlon in the general election.
About the district
- See also: Tacoma Public Schools, Washington
Tacoma Public Schools is based in Tacoma, the county seat of Pierce County, in western Washington along the Puget Sound. The county was home to an estimated 831,928 residents in 2014, according to the United States Census Bureau.[3] Tacoma Public Schools was the third-largest school district in Washington in the 2012-2013 school year, serving 28,957 students.[4]
Demographics
Pierce County underperformed in comparison to the state of Washington in regards to higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 24.0 percent of county residents aged 25 years and older had earned a bachelor's degree or higher in comparison to 31.9 percent statewide. The median household income in the county was $59,204, compared to $59,478 for the state. The poverty rate was 12.4 percent, compared to 13.4 percent for the entirety of Washington.[3]
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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.
Voter and candidate information
The Tacoma Board of Directors consists of five members elected at-large to six-year terms. There was a primary election on August 4, 2015, and there was a general election on November 3, 2015, for Positions 2 and 4.[6]
Elections in Washington require candidates to pay filing fees equal to one percent of a position's annual salary. Board members in Tacoma can be reimbursed up to $4,800 for district activities but do not receive salaries, which eliminates the filing fee. Candidates were required to file nominating petitions by May 15, 2015, to qualify for the November ballot.[7][8]
Elections
2015
Candidates
Position 2
Catherine Ushka 
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Will Jenkins Sr. | ||
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Candidates defeated in the primary
| Robert Bearden | Antonio Wyatt | ||
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Position 4
| Andrea Cobb
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Alisa Regala O'Hanlon | ||
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Candidate defeated in the primary
| David Carnahan | |
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Election results
Position 2
| Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors, Position 2 General Election, 6-year term, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Catherine Ushka Incumbent |
65.8% | 21,791 |
| Will Jenkins Sr. | 34.2% | 11,344 |
| Write-in votes | 0% | 0 |
| Total Votes | 33,135 | |
| Source: Pierce County Auditor, "November 3, 2015 General Election," accessed November 13, 2015 | ||
| Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors, Position 2 Primary Election, 6-year term, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Catherine Ushka Incumbent |
54.7% | 12,052 |
| Will Jenkins Sr. |
21.7% | 4,770 |
| Robert Bearden | 16.9% | 3,713 |
| Antonio Wyatt | 6.2% | 1,374 |
| Write-in votes | 0.49% | 108 |
| Total Votes | 22,017 | |
| Source: Pierce County, Washington, "August 4, 2015 - Primary Election Pierce County Official Election Results," accessed August 20, 2015 | ||
Position 4
| Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors, Position 4 General Election, 6-year term, 2015 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Andrea Cobb |
61.6% | 20,546 |
| Alisa Regala O'Hanlon | 38.4% | 12,817 |
| Write-in votes | 0% | 0 |
| Total Votes | 33,363 | |
| Source: Pierce County Auditor, "November 3, 2015 General Election," accessed November 13, 2015 | ||
| Tacoma Public Schools Board of Directors, Position 4 Primary Election, 6-year term, 2015 | ||
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| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Andrea Cobb |
47.4% | 10,451 |
| Alisa Regala O'Hanlon |
40.8% | 8,983 |
| David Carnahan | 11.3% | 2,488 |
| Write-in votes | 0.49% | 107 |
| Total Votes | 22,029 | |
| Source: Pierce County, Washington, "August 4, 2015 - Primary Election Pierce County Official Election Results," accessed August 20, 2015 | ||
Endorsements
Andrea Cobb and Catherine Ushka were endorsed by The News Tribune.[9] Will Jenkins Sr. was endorsed by Tacoma Councilmembers Victoria Woodards and Anders Ibsen, in addition to the Tacoma Ministry Alliance (TMA).[10] Cobb was also endorsed by the following organizations and community members:[11]
- WEA – Tacoma Council
- The News Tribune
- Stand for Children Washington
- Pierce County Central Labor Council
- Pierce County Democrats
- Pierce County Young Democrats
- 27th, 28th and 29th legislative districts
- Karen Vialle, Tacoma School Board member
- Harold Moss and Mike Crowley, former mayors of Tacoma
- State Rep. Christine Kilduff (D-28b)
- Former State Rep. Rosa Franklin (D-29)
- Former State Rep. Larry Seaquist (D-26)
- Willie Stewart, former Tacoma School Board member
- Victoria Woodards and Anders Ibsen, Tacoma city council members
- Timothy Farrell, former Pierce County council member
- Bryan Yambe, Fife city council member
Alisa Regala O'Hanlon was endorsed by the following officials:[12]
- Kurt Miller, Tacoma School Board member
- David Boe, Marty Campbell, Ryan Mello and Lauren Walker, Tacoma city council members
- Connie Ladenburg, Pierce County council member
- State Sen. Jeannie Darneille (D-29)
- State Rep. Jake Fey (D-27)
- State Rep. Laurie Jinkins (D-27a)
Campaign finance
Candidates received a total of $35,206.59 and spent a total of $21,732.60 as of August 4, 2015, according to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission.[13]
| Candidate | Receipts | Disbursements | Cash on hand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Position 2 | |||
| Robert Bearden | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Will Jenkins Sr. | $4,371.91 | $1,106.83 | $3,265.08 |
| Catherine Ushka | $4,445.21 | $2,911.98 | $1,533.23 |
| Antonio Wyatt | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Position 4 | |||
| David Carnahan | $0.00 | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Andrea Cobb | $12,489.42 | $5,468.66 | $7,020.76 |
| Alisa Regala O'Hanlon | $13,900.05 | $12,245.13 | $1,654.92 |
The Washington Public Disclosure Commission is the regulatory body for campaign finance in Washington school board elections.
Candidates who raised and spent no more than $5,000 in aggregate and who did not receive more than $500 from any one contributor, including themselves, could participate in "mini reporting." These candidates were required to file a candidate registration statement and keep a record of their contributors and expenditures, but they were not required to report them unless they exceed the stated thresholds. In those cases, they were required to switch their filing status from "mini" to "full" reporting by August 31, 2015.[14]
Contributions to school board candidate committees were subject to the following limits:[14]
- State parties or caucus political committees (separately): $0.95 per registered voter from January 1 to December 31
- County and legislative district parties (combined): $0.50 per registered voter from January 1 to December 31
- Individuals, PACS, unions, corporations or other entities (separately): $950 per primary and general election
School board candidate committees were prohibited from receiving contributions from other candidate committees. No contributors except state committees of political parties could give more than $5,000 in aggregate in the 21 days prior to the election.[14]
Past elections
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What was at stake?
2015
Issues in the election
Minimum Wage Increase Measures
A $15 per hour minimum wage measure (Initiative No. 1) was on the ballot for Tacoma voters in Pierce County, Washington, on November 3, 2015. If approved, the initiative would immediately impose a $15 per hour minimum wage on all businesses that have annual gross revenues of $300,000 or more.[15] An alternative measure (Initiative No. 1B) to raise the minimum wage to $12 per hour was also on the ballot. Initiative No. 1B was designed to increase the city's minimum wage to $12 per hour by 2018.[16]
Ballotpedia survey responses
One of the seven candidates in this race participated in Ballotpedia's 2015 survey of school board candidates. The following sections display the responses to the survey questions from challenger Will Jenkins Sr.
Top priorities
When asked what his top priorities would be if elected, Jenkins stated:
| “ | My top three priorities are: Community collaboration, Increasing graduation rates and Lowering drop-out rates. My goals are to establish: (1) high expectations for all students, (2) increase transparency and community awareness within school board budgeting, levies, and bonds, (3) and most importantly to bring leadership, innovation and positive changes to Tacoma Public Schools (TPS). We need to bring back trust between communities and Tacoma School Board, bring back HOPE and belief in all actions. My objective is to bring together students, parents, teachers, administrators, school board members and advocates to create sustainable solutions that prevent low graduation and high drop-out rates.[17] | ” |
| —Will Jenkins Sr. (2015)[18] | ||
Ranking the issues
The candidates were asked to rank the following issues by importance in the school district, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. This table displays the candidates' rankings:
| Issue importance ranking | ||
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| Issue | Jenkins' ranking | |
| Expanding arts education | ||
| Expanding career-technical education | ||
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | ||
| Improving college readiness | ||
| Closing the achievement gap | ||
| Improving education for special needs students | ||
| Expanding school choice options | ||
Positions on the issues
Jenkins was asked to answer 10 multiple choice and short answer questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. A link to the his responses can be found below.
Key deadlines
The following dates were key deadlines for the 2015 Washington school board elections:[7][19]
| Deadline | Event |
|---|---|
| May 11-15, 2015 | Candidate filing period |
| May 18, 2015 | Deadline for candidates to withdraw |
| July 14, 2015 | Pre-primary campaign finance report due |
| July 27, 2015 | Voter registration deadline for primary election |
| July 28, 2015 | Pre-primary campaign finance report due |
| August 4, 2015 | Primary election day, if necessary |
| September 10, 2015 | Post-primary campaign finance report due |
| October 13, 2015 | Pre-general campaign finance report due |
| October 26, 2015 | Voter registration deadline for general election |
| October 27, 2015 | Pre-general campaign finance report due |
| November 3, 2015 | General Election Day |
| November 24, 2015 | Election results certified |
| December 10, 2015 | Post-general campaign finance report due |
| January 11, 2016 | End of election cycle campaign finance report due |
Additional elections on the ballot
- See also: Washington elections, 2015
In addition to school board elections, voters in Pierce County elected a state representative, charter review commissioners and Pierce Superior Court judges.[20] Those residing in the City of Tacoma elected city council members and one civil service position. Other offices that were up for election include fire protection district commissioners and Metropolitan Park District commissioners. Additionally, residents in Port of Tacoma elected commissioners.[20]
Tacoma residents also voted on two local ballot measures to raise minimum wage: the first was a $15 per hour minimum wage measure and the second was a $12 per hour minimum wage alternative measure. Finally, voters decided on six statewide ballot measures.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Tacoma + Public + Schools + Washington"
See also
| Tacoma Public Schools | Washington | School Boards |
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External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Washington State School Directors' Association, "Serving on your local school board," accessed May 26, 2015
- ↑ Pierce County Auditor, "Candidates Who Have Filed," accessed May 26, 2015
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 United States Census Bureau, "State & County QuickFacts: Pierce County, Washington," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 16, 2015
- ↑ Pierce County Elections, "Archived Elections," accessed August 5, 2013
- ↑ Tacoma Public Schools, "School Board," accessed February 5, 2015
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Clark County Elections, "2015 Elections Calendar," accessed January 23, 2015
- ↑ Snohomish County, "2014 Election Information Guide," accessed February 5, 2014
- ↑ The News Tribune, "Our picks for Tacoma School Board: Ushka, Cobb," July 12, 2015
- ↑ Will Jenkins Sr. for Tacoma School Board 2015, "Endorsements," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ Andrea Cobb for Tacoma Schools Position 4, "Endorsements," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ Pierce County, "Pierce County Official Local Voters' Pamphlet," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "Local Candidates," accessed August 4, 2015
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "Mini Campaign Reporting Disclosure Instructions," June 2014
- ↑ '15 Now Tacoma, "About the Prop 1 Initiative", accessed October 5, 2015
- ↑ Pierce County Elections Office, "Ballot Title for Initiative No. 1 and Initiative No. 1B", accessed October 5, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2015, Will Jenkins Sr.'s responses, September 22, 2015
- ↑ Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "2015 Key Reporting Dates for Candidates," accessed January 23, 2015
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Access Washington, "2015 candidates who have filed", accessed September 22, 2015
| 2015 Tacoma Public Schools Elections | |
| Pierce County, Washington | |
| Election date: | Primary - August 4, 2015
General - November 3, 2015 |
| Candidates: | Position 2: Incumbent, Catherine Ushka • Robert Bearden • Will Jenkins Sr. • Antonio Wyatt Position 4: David Carnahan • Andrea Cobb • Alisa Regala O'Hanlon |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
