KASB releases 2015 school board election data

(My colleague KASB Researcher Ted Carter crunched the numbers for this report and contributed to this blog. You can follow his work at the KASB Research Blog, and follow him on twitter: @retrac_ted. Also thanks to KASB advocacy and research assistant Debbie Dyche.)

Nearly 500 new school board members took office on July 1 after being elected in April. Another 664 board members were reelected. This is the last year school board members will be elected in the Spring.  The Kansas Legislature moved local elections from April of odd-numbered years to November of odd-numbered years, beginning in 2017.

KASB has posted this year’s School Board Election Results as reported by our members; along with data going back to 1997. This data can be found on the main data page at www.kasb.org/data.  You can find this year’s results and historical data for each school district, as well as statewide and for districts grouped by high school activities league, KNEA uniserv area and KASB region.

Below is a map showing Kansas school districts and the number of new board members elected this Spring. Not all districts are listed because of space. If the district you are looking for is not shown, click here for an interactive map and hover over the dot closest to your district. The district number and number of new members will pop up.

The 664 board members re-elected this year is highest number since at least 1997. Over the past 20 years, the number of school board members seeking and winning reelection has been trending upward, with fewer new board members elected. However, with 487 members elected this year plus 372 members elected two years ago, at least 43 percent of the 1,995 elected school board members have served two years or less.  Not included are board members appointed to fill vacancies since 2013.

This year, most boards had four of seven positions on the ballot. (Some districts had additional positions open to fill vacancies.) Next year, most boards will have three of seven positions. Kansas board members serve four year terms.

The recent controversies facing public education and concerns about funding, state mandates and employee relations have not caused more members to leave board service. The 364 board members not seeking reelection was the lowest for a year when four spots are on the ballot since 1999.

There was no evidence voters were more dissatisfied with their local boards. The 95 members who were defeated in either the primary or general election was slightly higher than four years ago, but was lower than every other comparable year since 1997.

Here are the statewide numbers since 1997:

Kansas

	2015	2013	2011	2009	2007	2005	2003	2001	1999	1997
Positions up for Election	1,151	906	1,176	907	1,149	888	1,127	891	1,127	547
Positions - No Opposition	493	343	350	231	341	324	362	315	288	0
Positions - No Candidates	62	57	54	28	66	46	44	36	13	188
Positions - Primary Required	48	38	41	24	105	84	144	156	167	500
Total Candidates	593	347	542	237	657	332	614	492	656	581
Current Members - Not Up for Re-Elections	773	1,092	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Current Members - Not Filing	364	301	439	346	397	277	379	300	345	202
Current Members - Defeated in the Primary	1	3	3	3	8	8	6	7	25	6
Current Members - Defeated in the General	94	68	79	71	110	71	115	93	150	64
Current Members - Re-Elected	664	534	655	487	634	532	627	491	607	276
New Board Members Elected	487	372	521	420	515	356	500	400	520	271
Total Winners	1,151	906	1,176	907	1,149	888	1,127	891	1,127	547
Board Members - Male	1,224	1,367	1,368	1,370	1,357	1,375	1,359	1,343	1,337	853
Board Members - Female	638	631	623	600	579	557	562	579	584	365

Here are some highlights of 2015 school board elections:

• 1,151 positions were up for election. Of these,
• 664 were won by existing board members and
• 487 were won by new board members
• 493 candidates ran unopposed, and
• 62 positions had no candidates run
• 48 positions required a primary election
• 1 current member was defeated in the primary elections, and
• 94 were defeated in the general elections
• 773 current board members were not up for re-election
• 364 board members did not file for re-election

For more details, and to see similar data for previous years, please visit the KASB website. Questions can be directed to Ted Carter, research specialist, at tcarter@kasb.org.