Election Updates
Originally posted on http://dianeravitch.net/2013/11/06/election-updates/
by Diane Ravitch
The election yesterday produced mixed results for supporters of public education. We won some, we lost some. This is big progress. A few years ago, it appeared that the corporate reform crowd would have a free hand and would be able to buy school board seats wherever they chose.
As usual, a number of contests were showered with big money from corporate reformers. The Network for Public Education endorsed candidates who support public education. Of course, NPE was unable to match the spending of the corporate reformers; we don’t have any money, just the ability to give moral support and to help voters recognize which candidates really are trying to improve public education and which are flying under a false banner of “reform.”
Not all the results are definitive, but here are some updates.
All three of the candidates we endorsed for the Bridgeport Board of Education were elected. That means that the board will no longer be controlled by Mayor Finch and Governor Malloy. The people of Bridgeport have spoken, and they want something better for their children than the corporate reform agenda. Presumably, Paul Vallas will collect a sizable severance and