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School board elections have proven once again that voters reject extremist education policies touted by groups like Moms for Liberty and politicians like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. Of the 23 candidates endorsed by Gov. DeSantis in Florida’s August school board races, only six won. Nearly twice that many — 11 — lost. The remaining six are headed into runoffs in November. In South Florida, two school board members appointed by DeSantis both lost their seats. In Pinellas County, one of Florida’s largest swing counties, two of the three candidates endorsed by Moms for Liberty lost. The third heads to a runoff.
Moms for Liberty has been building their case in Pinellas County by attending school board meetings where they read explicit passages from books and call educators “groomers.” The election results seem to suggest that the divisive rhetoric is losing its appeal across the state. Eileen Long, a Pinellas County school board incumbent who successfully fended off a challenger endorsed by DeSantis and Moms for Liberty, said the results “sent a message across this state and across this country that governors, number one, should not get involved.” She also emphasized that “people are sick and tired of the mean, nasty stuff that they pull.”
The statewide losses represent a distinct shift in the electorate’s mood and support of DeSantis and extremist education policies. In 2022, 25 of the 30 candidates DeSantis endorsed won their races.
Several individuals familiar with Moms for Liberty’s efforts have spoken out about why such a dramatic shift in support has occurred in the past 2 years. According to Jon Valant, from Brookings, the Moms for Liberty brand has become “more toxic as the organization has become better known.” A conservative activist in Pinellas County said that the group started as a good thing, but has “become a cult where you can’t question, can’t offer suggestions.” Others mentioned the extremist group members perpetuating false stories regarding children identifying as cats andasking for kitty litter in restrooms being unhelpful. As time continues to pass, voters agree more and more that they reject the groups divisive language, fearmongering, and anti-public education rhetoric.
Florida Public School Advocates Fight Back (and win school board elections!)
In Polk County: Sara Beth Wyatt, one of the youngest people ever elected to the Polk County School Board, easily won a third term in the recent school board elections. Her opponent was a home-school advocate, the founder of the anti-vaccination group Moms for Medical Freedom, and a recent President of Moms for America, a conservative group that supports eradicating the Department of Education.
In Orange County: Stephanie Vanos, a public-school advocate and attorney, secured 68% of the vote and won the Orange County School Board District 6 seat. Her opponent proudly denounced diversity, equity, and inclusion, and said she strongly agrees that education dollars should follow the child instead of being sent to public schools.
Events & Resources for Action
Red, Wine, and Blue provides resources to help voters understand how extremists are taking over school board elections, including a podcast episode titled The School Board Culture War.
Run for Something, an organization created in 2017 to recruit and support young progressives, last year launched its “50 State School Board Strategy,” an effort to go head-to-head with Moms for Liberty and other far-right groups “working to brainwash kids and kill public education.”