UPDATE: While Jennifer Moore earned more votes, Bonnie Hauser is requesting a runoff election if Moore’s vote totals do not reach a state-required threshold in the certified results. More information about a potential runoff election between Moore and Hauser can be found here.
Below is the story published on Election Night, March 5, prior to the call for a potential runoff.
Two incumbents and a newcomer are projected to win seats to the Orange County Schools Board of Education Tuesday night, as Carrie Doyle, Wendy Padilla and Jennifer Moore distanced themselves from the field with the final precincts reporting.
Doyle, who is an incumbent that’s served one four-year term on the board, was the leading vote-earner in the race of seven candidates with more than 18 percent of the vote. Padilla, a first-time candidate, came next with nearly 17 percent and Moore — also a one-term incumbent — earned around 16.5 percent. Bonnie Hauser, the third incumbent in the race, fell short of Moore by around less than 400 votes to place fourth. Cindy Shriner (14.6 percent), Michael Johnson (13.5 percent), and Kevin Alston Jr. (4.3) brought up the rest of the ballot.
The trio of Doyle, Padilla, and Moore aligned themselves relatively early in the election cycle and earned endorsements from groups like INDY Week and the Orange County Association of Educators. The trio of Hauser, Shriner and Johnson did not campaign together, but were grouped as a slate primarily by the political action groups like the Friends of Orange County Schools.
Padilla described her reaction Tuesday night as surreal, saying she thought it was taking a while to sink in that she won. Once sworn in, the small business owner will become the first Latina elected to the county school board. During the election cycle, Padilla often described her campaign as “for the community.” After the votes came in, she said she felt affirmed by the decision to run with the goal of bringing new, progressive perspectives to the school board.
“Change may be concerning and scary to some, but I think we need to be open to change, and change is growth,” said Padilla. “As the community shows they want change and they want to grow in a different direction, I’m here to provide that.”
As incumbents, Doyle and Moore might not represent change on the surface – but their wins reflect support for their stances among what’s been a divided school board since the last round of elections. Doyle was the top vote-earner on Tuesday, with Moore in third place – and the other incumbent, Bonnie Hauser, coming in fourth just short of retaining a seat. The trio of Hauser, Cindy Shriner, and Michael Johnson – who were endorsed as a slate by the political action group Friends of Orange County Schools – trailed by hundreds of votes.
Doyle said Tuesday she is excited to continue growing in a second term, and said one of the clearest things she learned from her first four years is that equity and academic excellence are not “an either-or choice.”
“We have to provide educational opportunities and high-quality instruction and we have to center students,” she said. “And I think we’ve demonstrated in the last four years on the board, with [former superintendent] Dr. Felder’s leadership and our strategic plan, that implementing that perspective is effective. You can see that with all our [academic] growth. I want to continue in that direction, and I know the three of us [winning candidates] also want to continue in that direction.”
Moore told Chapelboro she’s looking forward to another four years to serve the community – and among her ongoing top issues is doing whatever is possible at the district level to ensure educators feel supported and receive what they deserve.
“Our teachers, our assistants, our staff – they work very hard, and a lot of them work a part-time job,” she said. “It concerns me, their rate of pay, and so [improvement is] something I will continue to advocate for.
“Honestly, I just feel very blessed,” Moore added about her projected re-election. “I thank everyone for their support, believing in me, and allowing me to continue to serve my community and the public.”
Once results are certified, Padilla will join Doyle and Moore — plus other board members Anne Purcell, André Johnson, Sarah Smylie and Will Atherton — at the end of the academic year. Hauser is slated to continue on the board until then, closing out her lone four-year term.
To see other local results, and select statewide results, from Tuesday’s 2024 primary elections, visit the Chapelboro Election Results page.
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