In Tuesday’s St. Paul school board race, two incumbents held onto their seats even as a first-time candidate garnered the most votes.
With all precincts reporting Tuesday night, incumbents Jean O’Connell and John Brodrick along with newcomer Chue Vue won election to the seven-member board.
Among five board candidates on the ballot, the three had secured coveted endorsements by the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party and the St. Paul Federation of Teachers. With their election, St. Paul voters continued a streak of backing school board contenders who receive a DFL nod.
Vue won about 31 percent of the votes. O’Connell came in second with roughly 29 percent, and Brodrick garnered 25 percent. Greg Copeland and Terrance Bushard got 9 percent and 5 percent of the vote, respectively.
Vue, an attorney, highlighted his experience growing up in a low-income, refugee family and vowed to be an advocate for the district’s students of color.
“I’m really surprised and really honored,” Vue said. “Voters value diversity and a different perspective.”
O’Connell, a retired 3M executive and the current board chair, has been a staunch supporter of Superintendent Valeria Silva and her Strong Schools, Strong Communities overhaul plan. Brodrick, a retired St. Paul teacher, has been more prone to question the administration the board oversees.
Copeland, who chairs the St. Paul Republican City Committee, is a district critic who led an unsuccessful effort to defeat a district levy increase proposal in fall 2012. Bushard, a retired printing company owner, said his sole reason for running was to push for a new high school class on the federal debt.
The school board will tackle several important tasks this school year, from overseeing the district’s rollout of an ambitious technology plan to signing off on a continuation of Strong Schools, which expires in March. School board members in St. Paul make about $10,500 a year.
Mila Koumpilova can be reached at 651-228-2171. Follow her at twitter.com/MilaPiPress.
Source: http://www.twincities.com/elections/ci_24463225/st-paul-school-board-race-led-by-newcomer