Service + Solidarity Spotlight: Union-Backed Candidates Triumph in New York State’s School Board Races

Working people across the United States have stepped up to help out our friends, neighbors and communities during these trying times. In our regular Service + Solidarity Spotlight series, we’ll showcase one of these stories every day. Here’s today’s story.

Pro-public school candidates overwhelmingly won their elections to serve New York state’s suburban and rural school districts on Tuesday. Sixty members of New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Education Association (NEA), were elected to school boards in every corner of the state. The large majority of candidates who ran on manufactured outrage around far-right cultural issues handily lost in Monroe County and the Capital Region school districts. NYSUT also reported that 99% of school budgets were approved.

“Under the banner Public Schools Unite Us, we saw a wave of pro-public education school board members elected Tuesday who we know will put students first at every board meeting,” said NYSUT President Andy Pallotta (AFT). “We’re proud to see how many educators stepped up this year to support candidates or run for office themselves.”