'The fever is breaking': DeSantis-backed school board candidates fall short in Florida

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign to expand his conservative education agenda in Florida schools didn't quite go the way he wanted on Tuesday.

Of the 23 school board candidates that DeSantis endorsed this cycle, preliminary results show more of them appeared to lose their election races than win them.

Unofficial vote tallies show 11 candidates backed by the governor lost on Tuesday, including some incumbents in conservative-leaning counties. Meanwhile, six of DeSantis’ preferred candidates won their races and six were poised to advance to a November runoff after no one in their contests cleared 50% of the vote. Those runoffs could still go in DeSantis' favor.

Speaking to reporters Wednesday, DeSantis acknowledged that efforts to make school boards more conservative were more successful two years ago, but said progress is still being made.

“Some of them that came up short, that’s going to be something they can build on for future election cycles,” DeSantis said. “If you look at where we were four or five years ago versus where we are now, there’s much more interest on these school boards in protecting the rights of parents.”

But critics of the Republican governor argued the results are a rebuke of his education agenda.

“We sent a message across this state and across this country that governors, number one, should not get involved,” said Pinellas County School Board member Eileen Long, who won re-election Tuesday.

Long, a career teacher, fought off a challenge by a candidate backed by DeSantis and the local chapter of Moms for Liberty in a closely watched race in what’s historically been one of the state’s largest swing counties, which includes St. Petersburg.

Like at school board meetings across Florida, activists aligned with Moms for Liberty in Pinellas have taken to reading aloud explicit passages from books, equating certain teaching materials to pornography and labeling educators as “groomers.”

“I think they’re losing their movement. I really do,” Long told The Associated Press. “People are sick and tired of the mean, nasty stuff that they pull.”

DeSantis built his national profile by leveraging culture wars and limiting what Florida schools can teach about systemic racism and gender identity. While his war on “woke” didn’t win him his party’s presidential nomination, he's still waging the fight in Florida schools — an effort that could have an impact on public education long after he leaves office.

But that campaign appeared to stumble Tuesday.

During the 2022 elections, 83% of DeSantis’ preferred candidates advanced, helping reinforce the state’s rightward turn in education. That’s compared to a 52% success rate for this election, according to preliminary tallies.

Still, the governor questioned why left-leaning candidates who held down seats in left-leaning communities should be heralded as a big victory.

“You’re now in a situation where someone’s celebrating on the Dem side that they held an area — a school board — in a blue district? Usually that would just be a fait accompli,” DeSantis said.

Tuesday’s results may be a sign that the parental rights movement is losing steam among primary voters in the state, according to University of Miami political scientist Matt Nelsen, who studies the relationship between local schools and democracy.

“I think perhaps what we’re seeing is the critical race theory fever is breaking,” Nelsen said. “Many parents want their kids to receive educational content that tells an inclusive account of American history.”

On Tuesday, DeSantis-endorsed candidates did notch some wins in Democratic-leaning Duval County, home to Jacksonville, where conservatives will have a majority on the board when new members are sworn in come November. The governor's picks also held down other races in reliably conservative parts of the state.

But there were also notable losses, including for an incumbent board member in Indian River County and the current chair of the board in Sarasota County, areas which are home to some of the founders of Moms for Liberty.

Meanwhile, the Florida Democratic Party backed far fewer school board candidates than DeSantis this cycle but saw more of them advance — 9 of the party’s 11 preferred candidates either won their races or will move on to a runoff.

___ Kate Payne is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues.