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    Washington school board elections, 2023

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    Washington was one of 10 states where Ballotpedia provided comprehensive school board election coverage in 2023.
    Learn more about our comprehensive coverage here.

    Elections[edit]

    The table below contains links to all school board elections within Ballotpedia's regular coverage scope in this state, which included all school districts in the 100 largest cities by population, the 200 largest school districts by student enrollment.

    Editor's note: Some school districts choose to cancel the primary election, or both the primary and general election, if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which primary or general elections were canceled. Please click through to each school district's page for more information.

    2023 Washington School Board Elections
    District Primary General Election General Runoff Election Regular term length Seats up for election Total board seats 2022-2023 enrollment
    Cheney School District 8/1/2023 11/7/2023 N/A 4 4 5 5,540
    Lake Washington School District 8/1/2023 11/7/2023 N/A 4 3 5 30,991
    Seattle Public Schools 8/1/2023 11/7/2023 N/A 4 4 7 51,238
    Spokane Public Schools 8/1/2023 11/7/2023 N/A 6 1 5 28,714

    Ballotpedia is covering all other school board elections in Washington, including those outside of our regular coverage scope. Use the links below to view all covered elections in Washington.




    Academic performance[edit]

    See also: Public education in Washington

    BP-Initials-UPDATED.png The sections below do not contain the most recently published data on this subject. If you would like to help our coverage grow, consider donating to Ballotpedia.

    Education terms
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    NAEP scores[edit]

    See also: NAEP scores by state

    The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The table below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Compared to three neighboring states (Idaho, Montana, and Oregon), Washington had the highest percentage of students score at or above proficient in all categories.[1]

    Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013
    Math - Grade 4 Math - Grade 8 Reading - Grade 4 Reading - Grade 8
    Washington 48% 42% 40% 42%
    Idaho 40% 36% 33% 38%
    Montana 45% 40% 35% 40%
    Oregon 40% 34% 33% 37%
    United States 41% 34% 34% 34%
    Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables"

    Graduation, ACT and SAT scores[edit]

    See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

    The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Washington and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[1][2][3]

    In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.[4]

    Washington schools reported a graduation rate of 76.4 percent during the 2012-2013 school year, second highest among its neighboring states.

    In Washington, more students took the SAT than the ACT in 2013, earning an average SAT score of 1537.

    Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013
    State Graduation rate, 2013 Average ACT composite, 2013 Average SAT composite, 2013
    Percent Quintile ranking** Score Participation rate Score Participation rate
    Washington 76.4% Fourth 22.8 21% 1537 60%
    Idaho N/A N/A 22.1 49% 1364 99%
    Montana 84.4% Third 21.3 72% 1595 25%
    Oregon 68.7% Fifth 21.5 34% 1539 49%
    United States 81.4% 20.9 54% 1498 50%
    **Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally.
    Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express"
    ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores"
    The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013"

    Dropout rate[edit]

    See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

    The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Washington was higher than the national average at 4 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 3.8 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[5]

    State profile[edit]

    State profile[edit]

    Demographic data for Washington
     WashingtonU.S.
    Total population:7,160,290316,515,021
    Land area (sq mi):66,4563,531,905
    Race and ethnicity**
    White:77.8%73.6%
    Black/African American:3.6%12.6%
    Asian:7.7%5.1%
    Native American:1.3%0.8%
    Pacific Islander:0.6%0.2%
    Two or more:5.2%3%
    Hispanic/Latino:12%17.1%
    Education
    High school graduation rate:90.4%86.7%
    College graduation rate:32.9%29.8%
    Income
    Median household income:$61,062$53,889
    Persons below poverty level:14.4%11.3%
    Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
    Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Washington.
    **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

    Presidential voting pattern[edit]

    See also: Presidential voting trends in Washington

    Washington voted for the Democratic candidate in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

    Pivot Counties (2016)

    Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Washington, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[6]

    Pivot Counties (2020)

    In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Washington had four Retained Pivot Counties and one Boomerang Pivot County, accounting for 2.21 and 4.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

    More Washington coverage on Ballotpedia

    Pivot Counties[edit]

    Pivot Counties[edit]

    See also: Pivot Counties by state

    Five of 39 Washington counties—12.8 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

    Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
    County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
    Clallam County, Washington 2.76% 0.38% 3.30%
    Cowlitz County, Washington 13.32% 4.44% 11.15%
    Grays Harbor County, Washington 6.99% 14.11% 14.56%
    Mason County, Washington 5.81% 7.09% 8.66%
    Pacific County, Washington 6.74% 11.52% 14.07%

    In the 2016 presidential election, Hillary Clinton (D) won Washington with 52.5 percent of the vote. Donald Trump (R) received 36.8 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Washington cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 73.3 percent of the time. In that same time frame, Washington supported Democratic candidates for president more often than Republican candidates, 53.3 to 43.3 percent. The state favored Democrats in every election between 2000 and 2016.

    Presidential results by legislative district[edit]

    The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Washington. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[7][8]

    In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 34 out of 49 state House districts in Washington with an average margin of victory of 25.4 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 30 out of 49 state House districts in Washington with an average margin of victory of 32.1 points.
    In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 15 out of 49 state House districts in Washington with an average margin of victory of 13.9 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 19 out of 49 state House districts in Washington with an average margin of victory of 14.9 points.

    Additional elections[edit]

    See also: Washington elections, 2023

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    Battleground election[edit]

    Richland School District[edit]

    See also: Richland School District, Washington, elections (2023)

    Ballotpedia identified the November 7, 2023, general election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.

    Incumbent Jill Oldson, Chelsie Beck, and Katrina Waters were elected to the Richland School District school board in Benton County, Washington, on November 7, 2023. Three districts were up for regular election: Position 3, Position 4, and Position 5.

    The district had approximately 14,100 students during the 2022-2023 school year.[9]

    Voters recalled three of the board's five members on the same day as the board's primary on August 1, 2023.[10][11] Kari Williams, one of the three members removed from office, ran in November for Position 4. Recall supporters said that the board members violated the Open Public Meetings Act; violated district policies, procedures, and code of ethics; and voted to make masks optional while a statewide mask requirement was in place.[12] All three board members denied any wrongdoing.[13] To learn more about the recall, click here.

    The Washington Education Association (WEA) PAC endorsed Chelsie Beck (Position 3), Katrina Waters (Position 4), and incumbent Jill Oldson (Position 5). WEA "recommends and helps to elect pro-public education, pro-labor candidates to office."[14]

    The Benton County Republican Party endorsed Nino Kapitula (Position 3) and Gene Nemeth (Position 5).[15]

    Chelsie Beck and Nino Kapitula ran for Position 3. Beck was a chemist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.[16] She said, "My goal is to work with parents, students, and school staff to understand the needs of all students and work to support them. ... I understand that there is a limited budget. In my job I have experience managing multi-million-dollar budgets."[17] Kapitula was the director for project development and design for Providence Land LLC.[18] She said, "We should have the right to know what is being taught in the classroom, fully transparent about teaching and learning materials. ... I will work to close the gap between parents and teachers to rebuild a broken trust."[18]

    Katrina Waters and Kari Williams ran for Position 4. Waters was a laboratory fellow and chief scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.[19] She said, "... I have 25 years of experience working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams and serving on federal advisory boards. I .... understand transparency and accountability. ..."[20] and "I will work to ensure that Richland School District meets the needs of all students and staff, ensure fiscal responsibility, lobby for sufficient funding and effective use of taxpayer money."[21] Williams previously worked as an elementary school teacher.[22] She said she would "continue to champion her initiative to overcome COVID learning losses by prioritizing every child reading on grade level. ... [and] support our community’s family values as she pushes the district to keep our classrooms a place where all children feel safe to learn and where the instruction is focused on teaching our children how to think — not what to think."[22]

    Incumbent Jill Oldson and Gene Nemeth ran for Position 5. Oldson was elected to the board in 2018. She said, "I believe the parent/guardian has the ultimate say in their child's education. ... My core values include mental health, special education, academic success, transparency, accountability, fiscal responsibility, and local control."[23] Nemeth was the facility operations and maintenance group lead at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.[24] He said he was "committed to ... student achievement and special education, advocating for parent rights, implementing measurable goals, spending more time monitoring goals, increasing transparency and accountability ... , listening to educators and what they need to succeed, ensuring all stakeholders, including students, are engaged in the plan to achieve excellence, and tying budget priorities to student outcomes."[25]


    Battleground election[edit]

    Seattle Public Schools[edit]

    See also: Seattle Public Schools, Washington, elections (2023)

    Ballotpedia identified the November 7, 2023 as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.

    Incumbent Liza Rankin, incumbent Lisa Rivera Smith, Evan Briggs, and Gina Topp won four of the seven seats on the Seattle Public Schools School Board in Washington in the general election on November 7, 2023. Two candidates ran for each of the four seats up for election, for a total of eight general election candidates.

    School board directors were elected to represent one of seven districts, and candidates were required to live in the district they would represent. In the primary, voters in each district nominated their district's candidates for the general election. On the general election ballot, all Seattle voters could vote for one candidate in each district.[26] Each winning candidate was elected to a four-year term.

    Seattle Public Schools had approximately 51,000 students as of the 2021-22 school year and was the largest school district in Washington. As of October 2023, Washington was one of 41 states with state laws providing for nonpartisan school board elections.

    Two incumbents in the four districts ran for re-election: Rankin in District 1 and Rivera Smith in District 2. The incumbents in Districts 3 and 6 did not run for re-election.

    Candidates focused their campaigns on issues including declining enrollment, potential school closures, school safety, mental health services for students, equity of student outcomes, and board representation. The district's enrollment fell by more than 8% between the 2019-2020 and 2021-2022 school years and the district was facing a projected budget deficit of $104.4 million in the 2024-25 school year.[27][28] The district also experienced a school shooting that resulted in the death of a student in November 2022.[29]

    Incumbent Rankin, who first assumed office in 2019 and was the vice president of the board, and Debbie Carlsen ran in District 1. In an interview with KUOW about the election, Rankin said, "I will continue to prioritize eliminating barriers to education for marginalized students and families and provide direction to the district in policy that is based on the vision and values of our communities."[30] Carlsen, also in an interview with KUOW, said, "To ensure our schools are fully funded, the board needs an independent party to examine the district’s spending, so we can show our state legislators that the state is not fulfilling its paramount duty of fully funding K-12 education."[30]

    Incumbent Rivera Smith, who first assumed office in 2019, and Christina Posten ran in District 2. In an interview about the election, Rivera Smith said, "As a former reporter, I think that I came into this job really with an emphasis on communication and transparency."[31] Posten said that her experience as a former Seattle School Board employee gave her a unique perspective, and said, "We need to determine at each school in each neighborhood how the schools themselves are working together where the discretionary dollars are being spent."[32]

    Briggs and Ben Gitenstein ran in District 3. In an interview with KUOW, Briggs said, "If elected to the school board, I am committed to ensuring transparency and responsible financial management."[33] Gitenstein, also in an interview with KUOW, said, "My number one priority will be returning the school board to its role of effective oversight of the District."[33]

    Topp and Maryanne Wood ran in District 6. In an interview with KUOW, Topp said that her main priority was to, "Improve equity in education for all students, regardless of their background, so that every child has the opportunity to succeed."[34] Wood said that her priority was to, "Halt and dial back huge capitol expenditures for what I call 'mega schools.'"[34]

    In June 2023, the board voted 5-2 to adopt a Student Outcomes Focused Governance (SOFG) model. According to the board's website, the model "sets goals for student outcomes, based on the community’s vision for the district, and guardrails, based on the community’s values for how the vision will be achieved." The SOFG model was developed and promoted by the Council of the Great City Schools. At least two candidates in the November 7 general election, Ben Gitenstein and Debbie Carlsen, criticized the change.[35][36] Both incumbents up for re-election, Liza Rankin and Lisa Rivera Smith, voted in favor of adopting the new governance model.[37]

    According to The Stranger, a Seattle newspaper, Gitenstein "complained about the SOFG model eliminating opportunities for broader policy conversations with the public."[35] Carlsen, on their campaign website, said, "At the beginning of the pandemic, the school board voted in a new governance model, with little community engagement, that has lessened the board’s ability for oversight and accountability."[38] On the occasion of the vote to adopt the new governance model, Director Rankin said, "Part of this vote to me is the mutual commitment to building a better structure because the real root of the problem was inconsistent or inequitable access to information that the Board needs and that the public needs and wants."[39] Director Rivera Smith, speaking about the need for communication between the board and the district superintendent under the new governance model, said, "It is important for us to have that holistic view of our district beyond just the goals and guardrails."[39]

    See also[edit]

    Washington School Boards News and Analysis
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    Footnotes[edit]

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables," accessed May 13, 2014
    2. ↑ ACT, "2012 ACT National and State Scores," accessed May 13, 2014
    3. ↑ Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT Scores by State 2013," October 10, 2013
    4. ↑ StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
    5. ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data File, School Year 2010-11, Provision Version 1a and School Year 2011-12, Preliminary Version 1a," accessed May 13, 2014
    6. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
    7. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
    8. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
    9. ↑ The Center Square, "Voters favor ousting three Richland School Board members for COVID masking vote," August 2, 2023
    10. ↑ KEPR, "RSD Board Recall on the Ballot for August Special Election," May 23, 2023
    11. ↑ Richland School District, "Board Members," accessed July 22, 2022
    12. ↑ The Wenatchee World, "Judge tosses out 1 charge in Richland School Board recall," June 14, 2022
    13. ↑ KEPR, "Richland School Board members to appeal recall decision to Supreme Court, attorney says," May 11, 2022
    14. ↑ Washington Education Association, "2023 Endorsements," accessed September 26, 2023
    15. ↑ Benton County Republican Party, "Endorsements," May 25, 2023
    16. ↑ LinkedIn, "Chelsie Beck," accessed September 25, 2023
    17. ↑ issuu, "Chelsie Beck," accessed September 25, 2023
    18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 issuu, "Benton County Official Local Voters' Pamphlet," June 14, 2023 (page 14)
    19. ↑ LinkedIn, "Katrina Waters," accessed September 25, 2023
    20. ↑ Katrina Waters Richland School Board Position 4, "Excerpt from Interview with the Tri-City Herald," accessed September 25, 2023
    21. ↑ Katrina Waters Richland School Board Position 4, "Leadership for the Richland School District," accessed September 28, 2023
    22. ↑ 22.0 22.1 issuu, "Kari Williams," accessed September 25, 2023
    23. ↑ issuu, "Jill Oldson," accessed September 25, 2023
    24. ↑ LinkedIn, "Eugene Nemeth," accessed September 26, 2023
    25. ↑ issuu, "Gene Nemeth," accessed September 25, 2023
    26. ↑ Ballotpedia staff, "Phone call with King County Election Services," October 25, 2023
    27. ↑ The Seattle Times, "Budget cuts, school closures top issues in Seattle School Board election," July 17, 2023
    28. ↑ The Urbanist, "Seattle Public Schools Unveil Plans for Sweeping Cuts and Lasting Austerity," October 11, 2023
    29. ↑ KIRO 7 News, "Suspect arrested after fatal shooting of student at Ingraham High School," November 9, 2022
    30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 KUOW, "Seattle School Board primary: District 1 candidates talk funding, equity, and priorities," July 25, 2023
    31. ↑ YouTube, "Lisa Rivera Smith Seattle Schools Pos.2 Endorsement Interview 36th District Democrats 2023 Primary," May 21, 2023
    32. ↑ YouTube, "Christina Posten Seattle Schools Pos. 2 Endorsement Interview 36th District Democrats 2023 Primary," May 21, 2023
    33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 KUOW, "Seattle School Board primary: Meet the District 3 candidates," July 24, 2023
    34. ↑ 34.0 34.1 KUOW, "Seattle School Board primary: District 6 candidates have different approaches to fixing budget shortfall," July 25, 2023
    35. ↑ 35.0 35.1 The Stranger, "The Seattle School Board Wants to Stop Micromanaging the District," June 21, 2023
    36. ↑ Debbie 4 Seattle Schools, "Issues," accessed October 10, 2023
    37. ↑ Seattle Public Schools, "June 7, 2023 – Regular Board Meeting," June 7, 2023
    38. ↑ Debbie 4 Seattle Schools, "Issues," accessed October 13, 2023
    39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 YouTube, "Seattle School Board Meeting June 7, 2023," June 7, 2023
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