Despite disappointing results after last Tuesday’s midterm elections, parents fighting for educational freedom and closer involvement in their children’s schooling achieved significant victories in school board races around the nation.
Ever since the school shutdowns during the covid-19 pandemic, when parents nationwide became aware of critical race theory and transgender ideology efforts being pushed on their children in the classroom, conservative voters, especially parents, have become directly involved in education policy and local elections. As a result, many parent-sponsored conservative candidates to local school board positions won races during the midterms, even in unlikely states such as Maryland and Michigan which traditionally vote Democrat.
A number of the candidates who won positions in their county school boards were backed by grassroots organizations, mostly led by activist parents, such as Moms for Liberty, Defense of Freedom Institute, and Minnesota Parents Alliance. Angela Morabito, spokeswoman for the Defense of Freedom Institute described the enthusiasm for education rights and freedom to Fox News.
“Parents are fired up, and they’re winning, even in blue states,” Morabito added. “Conservatives flipped school boards in Michigan and Maryland, and more than 40 candidates backed by parental rights groups notched wins in Minnesota.” (Fox News)
In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., endorsed six school board members, all of whom won their runoff elections.
Nationwide, many first-time candidates won election to school boards. And in Florida, all six DeSantis-endorsed candidates on the November ballot won their school board elections. For the year, 24 of the DeSantis-backed candidates were victorious. (The Daily Signal)
These conservative victories at the local school board level are projected to significantly impact policy in the near future. A case in point is DeSantis-endorsed Sarasota County school board member Bridget Ziegler, who won her race in August. She has become an advocate for parents’ right to direct involvement in their children’s education. Ziegler currently works for the Leadership Institute, a conservative organization that educates and trains young conservatives to become involved in politics. She has become involved with school board elections nationwide.
Even though Ziegler’s election took place in August, she’s continued to play an active role in school board elections nationwide as the Leadership Institute’s director of school board programs. (The Daily Signal)
