Joseph Conrad Kearfott Burns was a candidate for District 7 representative on the Pittsburgh School District school board in Pennsylvania. Burns filed to run in the by-district primary election on May 16, 2017, but withdrew from the race. However, his name still appeared on the primary ballot.
Burns stated the following about his withdrawal to Vote School Board First!: "While I'm aware that the date to withdraw my name from the ballot has already passed, I will not be participating in any interviews nor any candidate forums. I have recently been accepted to Law School and I have chosen to attend beginning in September. So, I will not be able to further pursue a seat on the school board."[1]
Five of the nine seats on the Pittsburgh School District school board were up for by-district general election on November 7, 2017. A partisan primary election was held on May 16, 2017, leaving one candidate running per seat. These candidates could have faced independent candidates in the general election. However, no independent candidate filed by the August 1, 2017, deadline to get on the ballot.[2]
In her bid for re-election, District 1 incumbent Sylvia Wilson filed as a Democrat and faced no opposition in the primary or general election. Two candidates filed as Democrats for the open District 3 seat. Sala Udin defeated James Myers, Jr. in the primary election and advanced to the general election. Udin won the general election with no opposition. Official vote totals showed that the District 1 and 3 seats on the primary Republican ballots received 10 and 16 write-in votes, respectively. These numbers were not high enough to qualify any write-in candidates to appear on the general Republican ballots for the seats, so no Republican candidates appeared on the ballot.[3]
The District 5 incumbent Terry Kennedy cross-filed as a Democrat and Republican for re-election and was joined on the ballot by newcomer Ghadah Makoshi, who also cross-filed. Kennedy won both the Democratic and Republican nominations and proceeded to win the general election without opposition.
In her bid for re-election, District 7 incumbent Cynthia Falls cross-filed for another term on the board and faced Democratic challenger Joseph Conrad Kearfott Burns in the primary election. Falls won both the Democratic and Republican nominations and faced no opponent in the general election. District 9 incumbent Carolyn Klug filed as a Democrat for re-election, and was joined on the primary election ballot by challenger Veronica Edwards, who cross-filed in the race. Edwards defeated Klug for the Democratic nomination and won the Republican nomination as well. She advanced to the general election, which she won unopposed.[4][5][6]
Pittsburgh School District, District 7 Democratic Primary Election, 4-year term, 2017 |
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Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
Democratic | Cynthia Falls Incumbent | 72.52% | 1,961 | |
Democratic | Joseph Conrad Kearfott Burns | 26.74% | 723 | |
Write-in votes | 0.74% | 20 | ||
Total Votes | 2,704 | |||
Source: Allegheny County, "2017 Primary Election Official Results," accessed June 21, 2017 |
2017 Campaign Finance Deadlines in Pennsylvania[7] | |
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Date | Deadline |
May 5, 2017 | 2nd Friday Pre-Primary report due |
June 15, 2017 | 30-Day Post-Primary report due |
October 27, 2017 | 2nd Friday Pre-Election report due |
December 7, 2017 | 30-Day Post-Election report due |
School board candidates in Pennsylvania were required to report their campaign finance activity. Those who spent or received more than $250 in a reporting period had to file full reports. Those below the threshold had to file forms to declare they were exempt from reporting. Candidates could have, but were not required to, form committees to handle campaign finance transactions. They were not required to have separate bank accounts for campaign purposes.[8]
The table to the left details the four campaign finance deadlines in 2017.[7]
Pittsburgh School District elections in 2017 | |
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania | |
Election date: | Primary: May 16, 2017 General: November 7, 2017 |
Candidates: | District 1: Incumbent, Sylvia Wilson (D) District 3: James Myers, Jr. (D) • Sala Udin (D) |
Important information: | What's at stake? |