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The Tennessee Conservative [By Adelia Kirchner] –
Legislation giving county commissioners in Shelby and Knox County the authority to place school board elections on the same election cycle as other county races would allow 5 school-board seats in Memphis area to potentially be up for re-election 2 years early.
Senate Bill 1336 (SB1336), sponsored by Sen. Brent Taylor (R-Memphis-District 31), “requires elections for county boards of education to be held at the same time and on the same election cycle as elections for members of the local legislative body for the county; requires members of county boards of education to have the same staggered terms as members of the local legislative body for the county; requires members of a county board of education to have the same term limits as members of the local legislative body for the county.”
The legislation passed in the House of Representatives by an 87-5 vote and in the Senate by a 27-6 vote. It will soon be sent to Governor Bill Lee for his signature.
If the Governor signs SB1336 or allows it to become law without his signature, 5 Shelby County school board members elected in 2024 could potentially face an early re-election campaign in order to align the election of those seats up with the 4 other seats scheduled for re-election.
The 5 seats in question are currently held by Natalie McKinney, Stephanie Love, Tamarques Porter, Sable Otey, and Towanna Murphy.
On Monday, Chair of the Shelby County Board of Commissioners Michael Whaley indicated his intentions to propose exactly that at the board’s upcoming meeting.
Sen. Taylor has been fighting for intervention in the Shelby County School District and in bringing SB1336, argued that school board races in Memphis have about twice the turnout when held during the same election as county commission races.
“This will save counties money, and it will also ensure that increased voter participation will occur when you align the school board election with the county commission elections,” Sen. Taylor stated.
While SB1336 does give Shelby and Knox County commissioners more authority in this arena, some feel that they should also have the authority to call for the direct recall of school board members.
“We pay attention to what our state legislature and what our state leaders are saying, and when they say that they are waiting on us to bring a local solution but they don’t provide us the tools with which to enact that solution, that’s very frustrating because we have constituents that are asking us daily to do something about the state of our schools and we just simply don’t have a lot of tools,” Shelby County Commissioner Mick Wright said on the issue.
Additionally on May 1st, the Republican Party of Shelby County took a vote in favor of partisan school board races and the Mayor of Arlington, Mike Wissman, posted to social media to express his opposition.
“The Republican Party of Shelby County has an executive committee meeting tonight to vote on partisan school board races. As a Republican myself, and as a long-standing elected official in Shelby, I would attend the meeting tonight if I were allowed to speak on behalf of my colleagues. That doesn’t look like it will happen, which bothers me. The committee votes are already there to do this. Here are my thoughts on partisan school elections:
– I don’t care if others in the state are already doing this. Shelby Co is different, as we have 7 districts, compared to most only having a county district. The suburban districts are some of the best in the state and have good leadership…why change that? This WILL NOT change MSCS!
– I have talked with the other suburban elected leaders in various offices, and over 90% are adamantly opposed, with a couple on the fence. Remember, the suburbs make up the majority of republicans in the county.
– This could cost municipalities for additional elections, depending on their cycles.
– Most school board members make between $3000-7000 per year. Running one election is expensive, 2 adds to the cost.
– This will almost always guarantee an opponent in the general election, as now the parities will make sure they have candidates. This in turn brings agendas and outside money to local politics.
– In reality, everyone has values that align with one party or the other. But, in our suburbs, that works itself out or people learn to work together…for our children.
– Put it to a referendum. Let the voters decide, and if it passes, I can live with that. Political parties should not be deciding what is best for each individual community.
– In local elections, candidates need to earn their votes. And those votes are earned by being active in your community, not by being the most active in a party. I fear this is a way for people to find an easier route to get elected through a sample ballot, and not by a conversation and handshake.
In other words, leave our individual municipalities alone and let us decide what is best. Government works best when it’s closest to the people.”
However, others like former U.S. House of Representatives candidate Bob Hendry posted in support of the local GOP’s decision.
“Congratulations to Conservative Republicans in Shelby County!” wrote Hendry. “You did it! Now the work begins.”
About the Author: Adelia Kirchner is a Tennessee resident and reporter for the Tennessee Conservative. Currently the host of Subtle Rampage Podcast, she has also worked for the South Dakota State Legislature and interned for Senator Bill Hagerty’s Office in Nashville, Tennessee. You can reach Adelia at adelia@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
