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Florida's schools could get even more partisan after November
Florida's schools could get even more partisan after NovemberTALLAHASSEE, Florida — Floridians will vote on a ballot measure this November that would add party labels to local school board races for the first time in decades, potentially supercharging what have already become contentious contests across the state.
These offices have been under increasing scrutiny since the pandemic, when the lessons and content taught to students became a front and center issue that grabbed the attention of parents and policymakers. Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies view winning control of school boards as key to reshaping the state’s education system, something GOP leaders have been chipping away at over the last few years. And it isn’t just in Florida — there have been increasingly fierce fights over school board seats across the country, from swing counties in Pennsylvania to Republicans trying to gain a toehold in blue California.
DeSantis waded into 30 school board contests in 2022 with endorsements and fundraising help — a near unprecedented level of involvement for a governor in these local elections — and won nearly all of them. This year, facing more organized opposition from Democrats and the state’s largest teacher unions, DeSantis had a mixed record in school board contests in August — with a handful of races still to be decided in November.
Now, voters will have a chance to decide whether they want to officially scrub the nonpartisan veneer off these contests that have already seen significant involvement from the parties, possibly reversing a choice from 1998 to strip away party labels for local school leaders.
These offices have been under increasing scrutiny since the pandemic, when the lessons and content taught to students became a front and center issue that grabbed the attention of parents and policymakers. Gov. Ron DeSantis and his allies view winning control of school boards as key to reshaping the state’s education system, something GOP leaders have been chipping away at over the last few years. And it isn’t just in Florida — there have been increasingly fierce fights over school board seats across the country, from swing counties in Pennsylvania to Republicans trying to gain a toehold in blue California.
DeSantis waded into 30 school board contests in 2022 with endorsements and fundraising help — a near unprecedented level of involvement for a governor in these local elections — and won nearly all of them. This year, facing more organized opposition from Democrats and the state’s largest teacher unions, DeSantis had a mixed record in school board contests in August — with a handful of races still to be decided in November.
Now, voters will have a chance to decide whether they want to officially scrub the nonpartisan veneer off these contests that have already seen significant involvement from the parties, possibly reversing a choice from 1998 to strip away party labels for local school leaders.