November 2023 Election results are in! Check out the outcomes of some of the races and ballot measures Whiteboard Advisors previewed last week.

Gubernatorial Races 

Incumbents won in Mississippi and Kentucky. 

  • Republican Gov. Tate Reeves fended off a challenge from Brandon Presley, earning another term as Mississippi’s governor.
  • Democrat Andy Beshear secured a second four-year term as Kentucky’s governor.

Swing State School Board Races

This year’s school board elections provided insight into voter views on hot-button “culture war” issues such as book bans, critical race theory, and transgender student rights. The American Federation of Teachers reports candidates endorsed by conservative groups, such as the Florida-based non-profit Moms for Liberty, lost 70 percent of their school board races. With the 2024 presidential election is a year away, the following state results shed further light on voter opinion.

  • Alongside with the Democratic takeover of Virginia’s General Assembly,  Democrat-backed school board members retained all 12 board seats in Fairfax County.
  • In Pennsylvania, Central Bucks County School Board voters elected five new Democratic board members. This changes the balance of power in Central Bucks, transitioning from a 6-3 Republican-majority board to a 6-3 Democratic majority.
  • In Colorado, Denver voters elected three new board members to the Denver Public Schools board, all of whom were endorsed by school choice advocacy group Denver Families for Public Schools. 

Education Ballot Initiatives

  • Nearly 70 percent of Colorado voters voted yes on Proposition II which will direct additional revenue generated from Proposition EE – $23.65 million to be exact – to go towards the state’s Universal Preschool efforts. 
  • New York passed Proposal 1, allowing small city school districts to match their large district counterparts and spend up to 10 percent of the value of their taxable property on school-related projects and maintenance. 

Finally, in Texas, all three education-related state ballot measures passed. The state will provide property tax relief for child care providers, create a $1.5 billion “broadband infrastructure fund” and give a cost-of-living raise to retired Texas teachers’ pension checks