ST. LOUIS — Voters defeated conservative candidates across the St. Louis region Tuesday in a sweeping rebuke of right-wing efforts to gain control of local school boards.
Two progressive candidates won Tuesday night, blocking conservatives from controlling all seven school district board seats.
None of the 13 candidates endorsed by right-wing radio talk show host Marc Cox won their races after campaigning against what he called a “woke agenda” in schools.
Retired teacher Carolie Owens and pastor Steven Blair won two open seats in Francis Howell, where a conservative majority has moved to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programming in the St. Charles County district over the last three years.
Owens and Blair defeated retired U.S. Navy Officer Sam Young and small business owner Adriana Kuhn, marking the first losses for Francis Howell Families, a conservative political action committee founded in 2021. The local teachers' union and competing PAC Francis Howell Forward supported Owens and Blair.
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When final results came in around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, a crowd of about 100 people at the O’Fallon, Missouri Elks Lodge flew out of their seats and started to cheer during a watch party sponsored by the Tri-County Labor Club. They high-fived and hugged. Some cried.
The victory signaled a turning point for Francis Howell. After two elections that favored conservative candidates, those fed up with the partisan politics of the board felt the district could now move forward.
“The people of St. Charles County support public schools,” said Ted House, former Democratic state senator and co-founder of the political action committee St. Charles County Families for Public Schools. “We know we represent the majority who like their teachers and support their schools.”
"The school board election is the main reason I came out today," said Vic Conlin, who educates his son Seamus, 9, on voting before he fills out his ballot on election day on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, at Mary Emily Bryan Middle School in Weldon Spring. Seamus is student at Independence Elementary in the Francis Howell School District.
In the Lindbergh School District, the conservative St. Louis County Family PAC raised close to $20,000 in support of two losing candidates, David Kirschner and David Randelman. The winners, incumbent Megan Vedder and newcomer Rachel Braaf Koehler, were endorsed by the Lindbergh teachers’ union.
Candidates who campaigned as conservatives also lost in Ft. Zumwalt, Mehlville, Parkway, Rockwood, St. Charles City and Wentzville.
Brad Welsh, a business manager, and David Biesenthal, a teacher, won in their second try at Wentzville board seats after receiving contributions and endorsements from the Wentzville teachers’ union.
Incumbents failed to keep their board seats in at least two school districts. Rachel Goltzman and Julie Francois in Maplewood Richmond Heights were defeated by newcomers Jenny Schmidt and Trent Colbert who ran on improving morale and teacher retention in the district.
Write-in candidate Pamela Lyss-Lerman won a seat on the Clayton School Board, which drew intense scrutiny in January after backing out of a deal to buy the headquarters of footwear company Caleres for $20.9 million. Leo Human beat out incumbent board member Jason Wilson for the other seat.
School district funding initiatives passed easily in Lindbergh, Orchard Farm, Riverview Gardens, University City and Valley Park.
View life in St. Louis through the Post-Dispatch photographers' lenses. Edited by Jenna Jones.
