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Senate narrowly approves bill to make school board elections partisan after lengthy floor fight
Summary
Senate Bill 287 will permit partisan school board nominations and move contests into the primary process; it passed 26-20 after hours of debate about partisanship, the Hatch Act and local recruitment.
Senate Bill 287, filed by Senator Burns, advanced through a full floor debate and passed 26-20 on third reading. The bill would allow school board candidates to run with party labels and use the party primary process to nominate candidates; candidates may still run as independents where applicable.
Burns urged passage as a transparency measure, saying school board races are already political and that party labels help voters decide. "The current system is not fair. It's already political. It's already partisan," Burns said, arguing that party labels would help voters and increase participation.
Opponents said the…
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