Why School Board Elections Matter and What You Need to Know

News provided by

Mar 15, 2023, 09:00 ET

Nearly 70% of the nation's 13,500 public school districts have school board seats up for election in 2023.

MIDDLETON, Wis., March 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Ballotpedia is expanding its coverage of local school board races for 2023, offering reporters, researchers, and voters access to the information they need to understand and track these critical local elections. In addition to its comprehensive data on school board elections, Ballotpedia continues to expand its knowledge base and offers in-depth reports on the 2023 school board landscape, conflict issues and recall elections.

According to Ballotpedia Editor-in-Chief Geoff Pallay, "school boards are some of the most influential government bodies in our day-to-day lives, but are also some of the most overlooked in election coverage."

2023 School Board Election Overview

9,000 school districts across 35 states (69% of the nation's 13,500 public school districts, governed by 83,000 school board members) are holding regular school board elections in 2023.
In the districts with 2023 elections, approximately 24,100 school board seats are up for regular election in 2023. This represents 36% of the 66,831 total school board seats in those 35 states.

Ballotpedia's 2023 School Board Election Expansion

Ballotpedia's school board coverage in 2023 will expand to cover 8,750 school board seats in 3,211 school districts across 28 states. This includes comprehensive coverage in these 10 states: Colorado, Kansas, Minnesota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.

Ballotpedia's school board coverage in these states will include getting the name and a Candidate Connection survey for every school board candidate up for election and who is endorsing the candidate. Reporting will also include analysis about the prevailing school board election themes and relevant activities.

Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Connection

"Knowing who is running is half the battle," said Pallay. "What voters need to know is why candidates are running."

Ballotpedia's coverage provides essential context to school board races, combining the organization's rigorous research process with its successful Candidate Connection Survey. Ballotpedia created this candidate survey for candidates to share what motivates them on political and personal levels while also getting information to help voters better understand how their candidates think about the world and how they intend to govern—information they need in order to feel confident they're picking the best person for the role.

2023 School Board Conflict Issues

In recent years, Ballotpedia has tracked high-profile issues in school board elections, including race in education/critical race theory, responses to the coronavirus pandemic, and sex and gender in schools.

Since 2021, Ballotpedia has identified 1,998 school districts in 49 states where candidates have taken a stance on one of the above issues. The most commonly cited issue is "race in education/critical race theory," mentioned in 1,742 races, followed by "sex and gender in schools" in 1,394, and "responses to the coronavirus pandemic" in 1,384. Click here for an overview of school board elections where candidates took a stance on one or more of these issues.

"While these issues are still active in many parts of the country, our focus this year will be on the local, statewide, and national organizations that have taken more active roles in driving these debates," said Pallay.

"Some of these groups have been around for years, but others have formed very recently," Pallay said. "They provide a better idea of where a candidate might stand on the issues, which is why we will be tracking their activity throughout the year, and across the country."

2023 School Board Recall Elections

To date in 2023, Ballotpedia is tracking 10 school board recall elections in the U.S. Click here for Ballotpedia's coverage of school board recalls.

Inappropriate behavior, mismanagement of funds, conflicts with district administrators or teachers, refusing to listen to their constituents, and violating open meetings laws are some of the reasons listed on petitions seeking to recall school board members. Twenty-three states allow for the recall of school board members.

Between 2009 and 2022, Ballotpedia tracked an average of 28 recall efforts against an average of 66 school board members each year. A total of 20.1% of the school board members targeted by the efforts faced recall elections, and 10.6% of school board members were removed from office.

About Ballotpedia

Ballotpedia – the encyclopedia of American politics – is America's most trusted source of unbiased information on politics, elections, and policy. Founded in 2007, Ballotpedia has grown from a small group of dedicated volunteers to an essential resource for voters, media, and researchers. Ballotpedia is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving the public interest in creating an educated, engaged electorate, and building a strong, healthy democracy. For free access to more than 380,000 professionally authored articles, visit Ballotpedia.org.

SOURCE BALLOTPEDIA