Ron DeSantis Suffers String of Defeats in Florida School Board Races

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis suffered a string of defeats in school board races in several counties on Tuesday.

The Republican governor, who has sought to reshape his state's education system by regulating how schools deal with subjects such as race, sexual orientation and gender, threw his support behind 23 school board candidates last month.

A majority of those candidates lost their races on Tuesday.

Asked for comment, DeSantis spokesman Jeremy Redfern pointed to his post on X, formerly Twitter, celebrating the wins of DeSantis-backed candidates in Duval County.

"There were A LOT of uphill battles in historically blue districts today, but you don't shift the culture by only supporting winnable races," he wrote. "Flipping the Duval County School Board is a win for students and parents in a historically blue county."

In Pinellas County, three challengers endorsed by DeSantis and the local chapter of Moms for Liberty had hoped to flip the school board to a conservative majority. But school board Chair Laura Hine and another incumbent, Eileen Long, held off the DeSantis-backed candidates.

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Hine had 69 percent of the vote, while DeSantis-backed Danielle Marolf had 30 percent, according to preliminary results. Long had secured 54 percent of the vote, over the 45 percent won by Erika Picard, who was endorsed by DeSantis.

Ron DeSantis on February 19, 2024, in Daytona Beach, Florida. DeSantis saw his nominations suffer a series of defeats in school board races. Ron DeSantis on February 19, 2024, in Daytona Beach, Florida. DeSantis saw his nominations suffer a series of defeats in school board races. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

Much of the debate in the school races focused on parental rights, a movement that grew out of tensions over how to handle the pandemic in schools, but that is now centered on how children are taught about history, race and other subjects.

Long said the results were a rebuke of DeSantis' agenda.

"People want sanity. People want common sense. And people believe we should educate everyone," Long told The Associated Press. "The people have spoken."

In another race for an open seat on the Pinellas board, DeSantis-backed candidate Stacy Geier is set to face Katie Blaxberg in a November runoff after no candidate cleared 50 percent of the vote.

In neighboring Hillsborough County, two incumbents that DeSantis wanted voted out—Nadia Combs and Jessica Vaughn —held onto their seats. They fended off challenges from Layla Collins and Myosha Powell, both endowed by DeSantis.

In Sarasota County, Liz Barker defeated Karen Rose, an incumbent candidate endorsed by DeSantis.

And in Pasco County, DeSantis-backed Alison Crumbley, another incumbent, lost to Jessica Wright.

In Indian River County, incumbent Kevin McDonald, who was appointed to the board in April by DeSantis, lost to David Dyer. Meanwhile, incumbent Peggy Jones held onto her board seat despite a challenge from DeSantis-backed Robert MacCallum, another DeSantis-backed candidate.

DeSantis-backed Derek Barrs lost to Janie Ruddy in Flagler County. Nate Spera, another DeSantis-backed candidate, lost to incumbent Jennifer Anne Richardson in St. Lucie County.

Only six of the candidates backed by DeSantis won their races, although some are heading for runoff contests in November.

In Brevard County, DeSantis-backed John Thomas won his race against Amber Yantz, while the race between DeSantis-backed incumbent Matt Susin and Avanese Taylor is headed to a runoff.

DeSantis-backed candidates Tony Ricardo and Melody Bolduc also celebrated victory in Duval County. But incumbent Cindy Pearson is set to defeat Becky Nathanson, the former chair of Duval Moms for Liberty who was backed by DeSantis.

In Lee County, DeSantis-backed Bill Ribble won a seat on the school board and DeSantis-backed Melisa Giovanelli kept her seat. A race for a another seat will see DeSantis-backed Vanessa Chaviano face Sheridan Chester in a runoff.

And in Martin County, De-Santis backed incumbent Marsha Powers won her race.

Mark Cioffi, the DeSantis-backed candidate in Hernando County, is heading for a runoff after failing to clear 50 percent of the vote. Mary Blanco, a DeSantis appointee in Miami-Dade County, is also heading for a runoff in her race after not securing at least 50 percent of the vote.

Donna Brosemer, DeSantis' candidate for a seat on the Volusia County School Board, will go head to head against incumbent Carl Persis in a November runoff.

Update 08/21/24, 6:40 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.

Update 08/21/24, 8:50 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with comment from Jeremy Redfern.