FORT LAUDERDALE – Democratic-backed school board candidates fared slightly better Tuesday than candidates backed by Governor Ron DeSantis.
In July, DeSantis put together an initial list of 23 statewide recommendations for the 2024 elections. Of these candidates, six won Area codes On Tuesday, 11 candidates lost while six others advanced to a runoff that will be decided in the general election in November. The Florida Democratic Party finished the primary with seven of 11 endorsed candidates elected, two lost and two others going to a runoff.
Two conservatives appointed by DeSantis to the Broward School Board appear to have lost their seats to challengers, according to preliminary results.
DeSantis appointed Torey Alston to serve on the Broward board in 2022 after the governor removed four elected board members from office after a grand jury accused them of mismanagement and dereliction of duty. DeSantis appointed Daniel Foganholi to serve on the board in 2023 after a voter-selected candidate was unable to take office due to a prior criminal conviction.
When the county’s voters had the opportunity to decide on Tuesday, they chose settle both political appointments.
From 100% of Broward precincts, Maura McCarthy Bulman received 51% of the vote, Foganholi 20%, and a third candidate, Chris Canter, received 28%.
Rebecca Thompson, endorsed by the Florida Democratic Party, received 66% of the vote, while Alston received 34%.
The three elected incumbents running for their seats on the Broward Board of Supervisors, Debbi Hixon, Jeff Holness and Sarah Leonardi, each won their respective races by margins of over 40%.
In Miami-Dade County, DeSantis-backed incumbent Mary Blanco defeated three other candidates, but will face Democratic-backed Max Tuchman in a runoff election.
The results were similar to other school board elections in the state.
In Hillsborough County, Democratic-backed school board members Nadia Combs and Jessica Vaughn each received more than 50% of the vote, defeating governor-backed Layla Collins and Myosha Powell. Incumbent council member Jessica Vaughn received 58% of the vote, compared to 41% for DeSantis-backed Myosha Powell.
In Duval County, DeSantis-backed Melody Bolduc defeated Sarah Mannion, backed by the state Democratic Party.
In Pinellas County, unofficial results show that current school board president Laura Hine and incumbent Eileen Long retained their seats. Hine received 69% of the vote, while DeSantis-backed challenger Danielle Marolf received 30%. Long received 54% of the vote, while DeSantis-backed Erika Picard received 45%.
DeSantis’ opponents said the results were a setback for his conservative education agenda.
The Associated Press and News Service of Florida contributed to this report.
CBS Miami-Dade County
