The Morning After

Yesterday's primary elections yielded more than the usual number of surprises, and the Monday morning quarterbacking has already begun. One interesting analysis on the Maryland Politics Watch blog, points out the following:

Early Morning Analysis: Winners and Losers
Our early morning winners and losers analysis. It's a rough cut but here you go:

Winners:
1. Montgomery County Education Association (MCEA)
Love them or hate them, MCEA did well tonight in key races. Former President Bonnie Cullison is headed for a second place finish in District 19's delegate race. Teacher Eric Luedtke is winning the third delegate seat in District 14 even though he was not on the slate, he was outspent, and two of his mail pieces were sent to the wrong district!
     MCEA appears to be getting wins in other races in which they invested resources, including Craig Rice's big win in District 1 over former Planning Board Chair Royce Hanson and Sharon Dooley. Equally interesting, Hans Riemer won and Duchy Trachtenberg lost in the at-large contest. Sen. Nancy King is currently leading Del. Saqib Ali, though that contest remains close with all ballots not yet counted. Rona Kramer similarly trails Karen Montgomery by an even smaller margin......

Losers:
1. The Washington Post
The grand dame and maker and sinker of political reputations with a single editorial just didn't have the mojo this year. Leaving aside the failure of their numerous editorials to carry Adrian Fenty back to office on the other side of Western Ave., they didn't do too well in Montgomery either....

At the end of the day, it is the voters who decide elections. There are a lot of signs in yesterday's election returns that are encouraging for public education and educators in Montgomery County.
 
Voters ovewhelmingly supported the incumbent members of the Board of Education: a undeniable vote of confidence in our schools. Given that the current Board has strongly supported a collaborative approach to labor-management relations, voters clearly seem to be saying that they prefer it when the adults involved in public education work together to improve our schools, rather than fighting amongst themselves. As the Board begins its search for a new superintendent, this should signal support for a new superintendent who will carry on their vision of collaborative labor-management relations.
 
The victories of both Bonnie Cullison and Eric Luedtke in their delegate races also evidences the confidence voters have in our schools and our teachers. Both Bonnie and Eric are members of the MCEA Board of Directors. They have spent their careers advocating for greater public investment in education and greater support for our educators and students. The voters in Districts 19 and 14 chose them both - out of long lists of candidates; clearly indicating that they want elected officials who will be strong supporters of our schools.
 
Marc Elrich - another former teacher and MCEA activist - emerged at the top of the pack of the candidates in the County Council At-Large race. Marc's committment to the needs of our low-income and minority students is beyond question, and he is making a mark for himself as one of the smartest and most thoughtful elected officials in the county today. And in a hard fought race for State Senate in District 39, voters chose to re-elect Nancy King - a former member of the Montgomery County Board of Education - who is an influential advocate for our schools as Chair of the Senate Education Subcommittee.

Click here for the full election results.
 
In race after race, Montgomery County voters chose candidates who are strong advocates for public schools; demonstrating once again that ours is a county that wants our elected leaders to make our schools the best that they can be. As teachers, we are humbled by that support, and will do all we can to continue to improve the quality of teaching and learning in our schools.
 
Tom Israel, MCEA Executive Director.