Nashville school board members to county parties: Don't push for partisan elections in 2022

All nine members of the Metro Nashville Board of Education are asking Davidson County Democrats and Republicans to refrain from calling for partisan school board elections next year.

In an email to both parties' executive committees, the school board members said partisan elections could "have a deeply negative impact on the effectiveness of the board" and "inhibit [their] ability to manage the governance and operations of Metro Schools."

During a special session in late October, Tennessee lawmakers approved legislation that allows county parties to hold partisan school board elections. Some GOP lawmakers originally pushed to require partisan elections, but the legislation was watered down, leaving it optional by the time it was sent to Gov. Bill Lee's desk.

Many current school board members in the state's larger urban and suburban school districts — especially politically divided areas like Williamson or Hamilton counties — opposed the bill, citing concerns that it would put politics over education and deter some quality candidates from putting their names in the hat.

Previously: Partisan school board election bill draws bipartisan concern from the local to state level. Here's why.

Nashville school board members argue fewer "regular parents and members of the community" would run in partisan races.

"Partisan school board elections will discourage everyday people who simply want better schools from being involved in or running for school board," according to the email obtained by the The Tennessean and sent by board member Freda Player-Peters on behalf of the entire board Monday.

"If candidates are forced to focus on a party line, fewer regular parents and members of the community will run. School board seats will attract polarizing candidates with the desire to use the position for political purposes or as a stepping-stone to something else."

Board members also argued that primary elections could "double the amount of time, money, and effort needed to run."

"When partisan school board races become more expensive, it will require excessive fundraising and open the door to money from special interests controlling candidates," the email said. "Partisan school board elections will discourage everyday people who simply want better schools from being involved in or running for school board."

The Davidson County Democratic Party is set to meet virtually Wednesday to take up the issue of whether to hold primary elections, chairperson Tara Houston said in an email.

The potential vote will be made by the executive committee, which consists of 53 voting members. The party "does not believe this law was passed in good faith," Houston said in an email response to the school board. But the party is also waiting to see what its Republican counterpart will decide.

Most Metro Nashville school board members would likely run as Democrats in a partisan election, but if the Democratic Party chooses not to hold primaries, the Republican Party could field Republican candidates with no direct Democrat opposition.

Houston has reached out to the Davidson County Republican Party to discuss a mutual agreement not to hold primaries in 2022, according to Axios Nashville, which first reported the local Democratic Party was taking up the issue.

She acknowledged in her email to school board members that there is "a lot of anxiety around this."

The Republican Party is also expected to take up the issue this week, according to Houston, but the Davidson County GOP chairman didn't immediately return a message seeking comment.

On Nov. 12, Lee signed the legislation, which took effect immediately. According to the law, a local county party executive committee had 30 days to direct, in writing, a county election commission to hold a primary for the November 2022 school board races.

Partisan school board elections: Gov. Bill Lee signs bill greenlighting partisan school board elections in Tennessee

Board members also argued that since Metro Council and Nashville mayoral races aren't partisan, school board races should remain nonpartisan as well.

Four Nashville school board seats will be up next year, including Districts 2, 4, 6 and 8.

Board members who would be up for reelection in 2022 include Rachael Anne Elrod, John Little, Fran Bush and Gini Pupo-Walker. Little, who took over the District 4 seat in 2020 after the death of Anna Shephard, has confirmed he plans to run for reelection.

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Meghan Mangrum covers education for the USA TODAY Network — Tennessee. Contact her at mmangrum@tennessean.com. Follow her on Twitter @memangrum.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville school board members want local parties to reject partisan races