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Central Florida Public Media

Central Florida voters decide key school board races in tight elections

By Danielle Prieur

October 30, 2024 at 5:18 AM EDT

There’s a runoff in Volusia County for a seat on the school board. It's between longtime educator Carl Persis and newcomer Donna Brosemer.

Right now, school boards are nonpartisan seats, but of the five members on the board, three are registered Democrats and two are registered Republicans. Depending on who wins this race that political dynamic will change.

Volusia County: a model for what’s happening with school board races in Central Florida 

People in Volusia County have a lot to consider as they prepare to cast their ballots this November.

Parents have shown up at school board meetings to talk about how Black history is taught, book bans and school safety.

Anni Suadi who is a Volusia County parent said she’s voting for candidates who support inclusive classrooms, where kids with and without special needs can learn together. Her son has Down Syndrome.

“They're ignored, they're hidden. They're hidden in school, then they're hidden in the community,” said Suadi.

While Mom Anna Boyko is voting for candidates who oppose rezoning in Volusia County Schools. Rezoning has been proposed in the Ormond Beach area where she lives. She doesn’t want her daughter to have to switch elementary schools next year.

“Plucking children from an A school and placing them into a C school is unfair and unjust punishment that they did nothing to deserve. And neither did their parents,” said Boyko.

Volusia County is a microcosm of all the different forces at play in November’s school board races, and the issues that are at stake.

In District 4, incumbent school board member Carl Persis has been endorsed by the Florida Democratic Party. He’s worked in the district as a teacher and principal for 30 years, and has been on the board since 2016. He’s raised more than $113,000, according to campaign finance reports.

School board candidate Carl Persis. (1920x1440, AR: 1.3333333333333333)

He’s campaigning for improving school security and teacher pay, and is against book bans in the district.

“But Moms for Liberty, they come in and they say, well, we want that book off the shelf, and we don't want anybody's child to read it. So they're imposing their values on everyone's children, that's just not right. So we, I push, push back on that a lot,” said Persis.

While his opponent, Donna Brosemer, was endorsed by Governor Ron DeSantis. She was a policy analyst for 30 years. She has raised about $31,000.

She’s against sexually explicit books in schools, and for universal vouchers and a network of care providers districts could draw on to support student mental health.

School board candidate Donna Brosemer. (4032x3024, AR: 1.3333333333333333)

“The school district has taken on more of the responsibility for caregiving. And I think that for those students, we need to create more of a network of providers,” said Brosemer.

Despite these differences, including political affiliations, endorsements, and the amount of money raised, in the August primary, Brosemer and Persis were neck and neck.

Brosemer received 44% of the vote, and Persis got 40%, forcing them into a runoff.

Only about 22% of voters casted their ballots in that election. Experts and candidates are banking on more people voting in the General Election, as bigger ticket items like the presidency and several amendments are on the ballot, including whether school board races should remain nonpartisan.

School board races become political (and expensive) in Florida 

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis endorsed 23 school board candidates before the August election. In Central Florida alone, three of those candidates are currently in runoff races. In Volusia County, DeSantis-backed Donna Brosemer against Florida Democratic Party-backed incumbent Carl Persis.

In Brevard County, DeSantis-backed incumbent Matt Susin is facing newcomer Ava Taylor, endorsed by the left-leaning PAC Educated. We Stand. And in Osceola County, incumbent Scott Ramsey didn’t make the list of candidates DeSantis supported back in July but the governor did appoint Ramsey to the position just weeks before the August primary. Ramsey faces longtime educator Paula Bronson.

And when it comes to money, UCF professor Aubrey Jewett said more of it is being spent in school board races.

Take Volusia County school board candidate Carl Persis for example. He’s raised $113,000 to try and retain his seat. Jewett said this is the kind of money that was usually only raised by candidates running in larger schools districts.

“I'll say traditionally, school board races, you might spend a few tens of thousands of dollars, right? I mean, they usually were not big, high-profile affairs. Again, maybe in some of the bigger counties, like Miami-Dade or Broward or Orange or Hillsborough or something, occasionally you might see some more expensive races, but on average, they were pretty low-funded races,” said Jewett.

Jewett said the politicization of these races began during the COVID-19 pandemic, when more parents started to attend school board meetings amidst controversies over issues like masking and vaccines.

Soon, school board meetings that used to be virtually empty became grounds for state and nationwide culture wars.

“And then the LGBTQ issues, and then the book banning issues, school board races became very high profile, very hot button,” said Jewett.

How political should school boards be?

Across the state of Florida, General Election voters will decide whether they want school board races here to remain nonpartisan. It’s been that way in Florida since 1998.

National School Boards Association Director Verjeana McCotter-Jacobs said she’s thrilled to see more parents at school board meetings and involved in their kids’ education.

But politicizing these school board races even further might take the focus off schools and kids.

“School boards have a duty to serve every child in every community that they live in, and it should not have anything to do with the party that they belong to,” said McCotter-Jacobs.

McCotter-Jacobs who used to be the chair of Prince George's County Public Schools school board in Maryland said it’s essential that school board members take their politics and leave them at the door when they make decisions for students. She gave the example of her own district.

“We often have a school that's state-rated capacity is 400 students. And you’ve got 100 students there. That's not the best use of resources. Are you approving budgets that are based on the number of kids in the building, or the kids who are in that building? So those are critical decisions that have nothing to do with party. And we encourage boards to focus strictly on the children in their district and how to best serve them,” said McCotter-Jacobs.

Back in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis, and the legislature have supported Amendment 1 which would make school board elections partisan in the state.

Only registered party voters would have a say in these races, and candidates would be forthcoming with their own political affiliations, something DeSantis said is important.

“And so you can get good policies generated at the state level. If you have a school board that's trying to frustrate that, then it makes it really, really difficult. And I think that there's definitely a handful of school boards in this state that are certainly not with that program,” said DeSantis.

A University of North Florida poll conducted by the Public Opinion Research Lab found voters are split when it comes to Amendment 1. In order for it to pass, 60% of voters would have to support it in November.

Forty-one percent said they would vote “yes,” while 30% said “no."

PORL faculty director and professor of political science Dr. Michael Binder said in his analysis of the data, “The language in this ballot measure has some confusing ‘legalese’ which is likely adding to the uncertainty among voters. Nonetheless, this amendment from the state legislature looks doomed to fail.”