After state Republicans passed a law changing the way Racine Unified school board members are elected, it appears that some incumbent Democratic school board members against incumbent Republican school board members.
New districts with assigned seats are required after a state law went into effect, and Republican lawmakers say the new model gives residents in Caledonia, Mount Pleasant and Sturtevant a voice on the Board of Education. The move is widely considered a measure to appease folks living in the villages who are pushing for an independent school district or districts.
The way the maps were drawn will result in three incumbents losing their seats next year as several board members live in the same districts, according to a story by the Journal Times. All nine seats will be up for the spring election on April 5. To date, 17 people have filed papers indicating that they want to seek election for the jobs.
If all of them filed the necessary paperwork, incumbents Dennis Wiser and John Joetz, Mike Frontier and Pamela Handrow, and Julie McKenna and Kim Plache would face each other in three separate races. McKenna and Frontier are the only ones who have returned completed packets, but the deadline for filing the papers is Jan. 5.