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Tuscaloosa City Schools elections (2013)

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2013 Tuscaloosa City Schools Elections

General Election date:
August 27, 2103
Table of Contents
About the district
Method of election
Election history
What was at stake?
Key deadlines
Additional elections
External links
See also
Alabama
Tuscaloosa County, Alabama ballot measures
Flag of Alabama.png

Eight seats on the Tuscaloosa City Schools Board of Education were up for general election on August 27, 2013. Incumbents James Minyard, Earnestine Tucker, Harry Lee, Marvin Lucas and Erskine Simmons won re-election to Districts 1, 2, 5, 6 and 7, respectively. Lee Garrison, Norman A. Crow and Cason Kirby won election to the board for the chair seat, District 3 and District 4, respectively. Major issues brought up during the election included poor academic performance and recovery from a 2011 tornado. Learn more about these issues here.

Cason Kirby's win over Kelly Horwitz is being contested in court. For more information, see allegations of voter fraud.

About the district

See also: Tuscaloosa City Schools, Alabama
Tuscaloosa City Schools is located in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

Tuscaloosa City Schools is located in Tuscaloosa County. Tuscaloosa, the county seat of Tuscaloosa County, is located northwest of the state capital, Montgomery. Tuscaloosa was home to 90,524 residents in 2010, according to the United States Census Bureau.[1] The district was the 12th largest school district in Alabama in 2013 and served 10,348 students.[2]

Demographics

Tuscaloosa outperformed the rest of Alabama in terms of higher education achievement in 2013. The United States Census Bureau found that 33.5 percent of city residents aged 25 years and older had attained a bachelor's degree compared to 22.6 percent for Alabama as a whole. The median household income in Tuscaloosa was $38,519 compared to $43,253 for the state of Alabama. The poverty rate was 26.3 percent compared to 18.6 percent for the entire state.[3]


Racial Demographics, 2010 [1]
Race Tuscaloosa (%) Alabama (%)
White 53.8 68.5
Black or African American 41.5 26.2
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.2 0.6
Asian 1.8 1.1
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander Z 0.1
Two or more races 1.1 1.5
Hispanic or Latino 3.0 3.9
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 52.6 67


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.

Method of board member selection

Seven members of the Tuscaloosa City Board of Education are elected by district to serve four-year terms while the chair is elected at-large to a four-year term. On August 27, 2013, there was a citywide election for eight school board seats. Incumbents Sena Stewart Cooper and Dan Meissner did not seek re-election for the District 3 and chair seats, respectively.[4]

Election history

2013

Candidates

District 1

District 2

  • Earnestine Tucker Green check mark transparent.png
    • Incumbent
    • Nurse Practitioner
    • Graduate, University of Alabama and Miles College

District 3

  • Norman A. Crow Green check mark transparent.png
    • President, D.T. Freight & Company
    • Graduate, University of Alabama

District 4

  • Kelly Horwitz
    • Incumbent
    • Attorney, Benedon & Serlin
    • Graduate, Northwestern University and University of Virginia
  • Cason Kirby Green check mark transparent.png
    • Attorney, Tanner & Guin
    • Graduate, University of Alabama

District 5

  • Harry Lee Green check mark transparent.png
    • Incumbent
    • Financial Advisor, Equitable Life Insurance
    • Graduate, University of Alabama
  • Joe Gattozzi
    • Property Appraiser, Gattozzi Valuations, Inc.
    • Graduate, University of Alabama

District 6

  • Marvin Lucas Green check mark transparent.png
    • Incumbent
    • Assistant Supervisor Lab/Phlebotomy Instructor, DCH Lab
    • Graduate, University of Alabama
  • John Lollar
    • Vice President, Robertson Banking Company
    • Graduate, Livingston University

District 7

  • Erskine Simmons Green check mark transparent.png
    • Incumbent
    • Warehouse Manager, JIT Services
    • University of Phoenix and University of West Alabama
  • Renwick Jones
    • Fund raising consultant
    • Graduate, Alabama State University and Auburn University

Chair

  • Lee Garrison Green check mark transparent.png
    • Vice President, Wells Fargo
    • Tuscaloosa City Council Member
    • Graduate, University of Alabama
  • Denise Hills
    • Research Geologist
    • Graduate, The College of William & Mary and University of Delaware

Election results

Incumbents retained four of the six contested seats on the board in 2013. Lee Garrison won the open chair seat against fellow challenger Denise Hills while challenger Cason Kirby defeated incumbent Kelly Horwitz in District 4.

Tuscaloosa Board of Education Chair, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngLee Garrison 51.2% 4,415
     Nonpartisan Denise Hills 48.8% 4,212
Total Votes 8,627
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.
Tuscaloosa Board of Education District 1, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngJames Minyard Incumbent 69.7% 864
     Nonpartisan Earnestine Young 30.3% 376
Total Votes 1,240
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.

Note: Cason Kirby's win over Kelly Horwitz was contested in court. For more information, see Tuscaloosa City School District, Cason Kirby voter fraud charges (2013–2016).

Tuscaloosa Board of Education District 4, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngCason Kirby 55% 399
     Nonpartisan Kelly Horwitz Incumbent 45% 327
Total Votes 726
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.
Tuscaloosa Board of Education District 5, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngHarry Lee Incumbent 63.5% 528
     Nonpartisan Joe Gattozzi 36.5% 304
Total Votes 832
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.
Tuscaloosa Board of Education District 6, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngMarvin Lucas Incumbent 51.9% 980
     Nonpartisan John Lollar 48.1% 909
Total Votes 1,889
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.
Tuscaloosa Board of Education District 7, 2013
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Nonpartisan Green check mark transparent.pngErskine Simmons Incumbent 64.1% 688
     Nonpartisan Renwick Jones 35.9% 385
Total Votes 1,073
Source: Fox 6 News These results are unofficial.

What was at stake?

Every seat on the Board of Education was up for election on August 27, 2013. Five incumbents were returned to the board including James Minyard in District 1, Earnestine Tucker in District 2, Harry Lee in District 5, Marvin Lucas in District 6 and Erskine Simmons in District 7. Lee Garrison defeated Denise Hills for the open chair seat. Newcomer Norman A. Crow won the District 3 seat without opposition and Kirby defeated incumbent Kelly Horwitz for the District 4 seat.

A total of 8,627 votes were submitted on August 27, more than doubling the 3,127 votes in the 2009 board election.[5]

Issues

Alabama Accountability Act of 2013

Heading into the election, Tuscaloosa City Schools had four schools listed as failing based on criteria in the Alabama Accountability Act of 2013. Under the provisions of the act, parents of students in these schools may transfer their children to either a non-failing school in the same school system, a non-failing public school in nearby school system that's willing to accept the student or a state-recognized accredited private school. Parents who transfer their children to a private school are eligible to claim a private school tax credit worth about $3,500 annually per child on their tax returns.[6][7]

Tornado recovery efforts

The district was also recovering from a tornado that tore through the city on April 27, 2011. Progress in rebuilding school facilities took time with the Alberta School of Performing Arts re-opening in April 2013.[8][9]

Influence of PAC money

Another factor in the 2013 board elections was the emergence of a political action committee (PAC) called Educate Tuscaloosa. The group founded by local businessman Michael Echols raised $108,250 between April 2013 and August 2013 to support board reforms with mailers criticizing the board’s failure to improve academic performance. A postcard sent by the PAC in April 2013 argued that the district was ranked 7th in Alabama in terms of funding but only 87th in the state for academic performance.[10][11] The PAC donated $14,200 each to the campaigns of Kirby, John Lollar and Renwick Jones. Joe Gattozzi received $15,200 from Educate Tuscaloosa by August 9 and Earnestine Young received $14,000 from the group. Every challenger except Lee Garrison and Denise Hills paid consulting firm Matrix LLC for campaign assistance and polling.[12]

PACs and individual contributors totaled $181,000 in donations in 2013, which exceeded the combined amount raised in the previous three election cycles. Candidates spent about $104,000 from campaign coffers between April 2013 and August 2013. Smaller contributions were made by NUCOR PAC ($11,000) and Pride PAC II ($3,000), which were also run by Echols.[12] The impacts of these donations were mixed as Young, Gattozzi, Lollar and Jones lost in the election while Kirby won the District 4 seat.

Allegations of voter fraud

On Election Day 2013, an influx of University of Alabama students at the Tuscaloosa City Schools District 4 polls raised concerns about attempts to attract votes through indirect incentives, including free drinks and limo rides to voting locations.[13] Additional complaints in District 4 centered on a single address where 10 voters had registered but none resided.[14] These allegations, along with Cason Kirby's narrow margin of victory (416-329), led defeated incumbent Kelly Horwitz to file a lawsuit.[15] In her suit, Horwitz stated:

Cason Kirby was declared the winner of the August 27, 2013 election for School Board District 4 of the city of Tuscaloosa, Alabama due to offers to bribe, bribery, intimidation or other misconduct calculated to prevent a fair, free and full exercise of the elective franchise.[16]
—Kelly Horwitz (2013)[17]


For more information on this ongoing story, see Tuscaloosa City School District, Cason Kirby voter fraud charges (2013–Present).

Key deadlines

The following dates were key deadlines for the Tuscaloosa City Schools election in 2013:[18]

Deadline Event
July 16, 2013 Qualification deadline for candidates
August 16, 2013 Voter registration deadline
August 22, 2013 Absentee ballot submission deadline
August 27, 2013 General election
September 3, 2013 Canvassing of the initial election results
October 3, 2013 Runoff election (if necessary)
October 15, 2013 Canvassing of runoff election results
November 4, 2013 School board members assume office

Additional elections on the ballot

Seven seats on the Tuscaloosa City Council and the mayoral election were on the ballot on August 27, 2013. Incumbent Walt Maddox won the mayoral race without opposition and three members of the city council were unopposed for re-election. City Council races in Districts 1 and 6 advanced to runoff elections held on October 8, 2013. Challenger Sonya McKinstry won more than 50 percent of the vote and defeated incumbent William Tinker in the District 7 race.[19]

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. 1.0 1.1 United States Census Bureau, "State & County QuickFacts: Tuscaloosa (city), Alabama," accessed October 9, 2015
  2. National Center for Education Statistics, "ELSI Table Generator," accessed April 22, 2014
  3. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Census
  4. AL.com, "Ousted Tuscaloosa school board member appeals dismissal of election challenge," November 25, 2013
  5. Tuscaloosa News, "Tuscaloosa City Board of Education: Garrison wins close school board chair race," August 27, 2013
  6. Tuscaloosa News, "Residents turn out to talk about city schools," accessed July 23, 2013
  7. AL.com, "Four Tuscaloosa schools on 'failing' list under Alabama Accountability Act," June 18, 2013
  8. Alabama's 13, "Tuscaloosa school destroyed by tornado begins rebuilding," April 24, 2013
  9. AL.com, "Tuscaloosa to mark 2nd anniversary of tornado with events this week," April 22, 2013
  10. MyFoxAL, " PAC raising money to back challengers in Tuscaloosa School Board elections ," August 2, 2013
  11. Save Tuscaloosa Schools, "Home," accessed August 15, 2013
  12. 12.0 12.1 Tuscaloosa News, "School board races being backed by cash," August 18, 2013
  13. AL.com, "Sorority offered free drinks to members to vote in Tuscaloosa City Board of Education race," August 28, 2013
  14. Fox 6, "Secretary of State's Office aware of voter fraud complaints in Tuscaloosa," August 27, 2013
  15. Tuscaloosa News, "Kirby files response to Horwitz lawsuit over school board election," September 10, 2013
  16. Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  17. AL.com, "Kelly Horwitz vs. Cason Kirby," September 6, 2013
  18. Tuscaloosa.com, "CITY OF TUSCALOOSA 2013 MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS CANDIDATE OVERVIEW" accessed July 24, 2013
  19. AL.com, "Incumbents in 3 contested Tuscaloosa city council races fizzle; 1 unseated, 2 head to runoffs," August 27, 2013