School Board Races Heating Up Across Florida: Candidate Qualifying Time Approaches

The deadline for candidate qualifying for school board races across Florida is quickly approaching, and tensions are running high in several key races.

In Hillsborough County, a heated dispute has erupted between two Democratic candidates who share similar views. The attacks have taken a personal turn, with one candidate even going as far as showing a decades-old arrest photo of the other during a forum.

Meanwhile, in Palm Beach County, incumbent Alexandria Ayala has thrown her support behind a candidate who entered the race shortly after Ayala announced she would not seek reelection.

In other news, Broward County schools will no longer automatically evacuate for bomb threats, Alachua County residents are considering their next steps after a vote to convert public schools to charter status, and the executive director of Florida A&M University’s Foundation has resigned over a questioned $237 million donation.

On the topic of race relations, segregation in Florida school districts has increased since the 1980s, and there is a racial gap among students who receive Bright Futures scholarships.

As the deadline for candidate qualifying approaches, the stakes are high in school board races across Florida. Stay tuned for more updates on these contentious races.