LAKEWOOD — Voters overwhelmingly chose to recall three members of the Jefferson County school board Tuesday night and elected two others to form an entirely new board in Colorado’s second-largest school district.
In neighboring Douglas County, three incumbents — Kevin Larsen, Richard Robbins and Craig Richardson — who claimed seats on the school board as part of a reform push several years ago lost in their re-election bids.
Susan Harmon, a Lakewood attorney who was chosen by Jefferson County voters to replace ousted member John Newkirk, said Tuesday’s results show that “maybe the tide is turning” in terms of school district politics.
“It sends a large message that you need to be responsive to your constituents, your teachers and your community,” Harmon said.
Both races were being watched closely for clues as to what might happen with ongoing public education reform efforts in Colorado.
Conservative board members during their years in control tied teacher pay to new evaluations, advocated for more conservative spending, and, in turn, strained relations with unions in both districts.
WATCH: Jeffco voters overwhelmingly choose recall
After years of discontent from teachers and parents, voters this year rejected conservative board members who were elected in years when less attention was paid to school board politics.
David Ray, who beat Robbins in Douglas County, said the newly elected board members don’t oppose reform per se but didn’t approve of the way it was being implemented by the seven-member board.
Julie Williams, one of the Jefferson County school board members who was recalled Tuesday, said the election was taken over by “the liberal agenda and union bosses.”
“It’s hard to fight the lies,” she said after conceding defeat. “I will continue to fight for our kids, for stopping Common Core and the over-testing of our kids.”
As of 10 p.m., the Jefferson County recall effort held a resounding 64 percent to 36 percent lead. The Douglas County winners held a 58 percent to 42 percent margin in each of their races, as of 9 p.m.
The hotel ballroom where recall supporters were watching results got loud and full in the final minutes before polls closed, with the crowd erupting into chants of “We are Jeffco.”
Ken Witt, the head of the Jefferson County board, conceded his race around 7:30 p.m.
“It’s time to come together around the board members that are elected,” he told the anti-recall crowd.
WATCH: Behind The Headlines: Jefferson County School Board Recall
Much of the drama in this year’s campaign has centered on Jefferson County, where a long-standing dispute between the conservative board majority elected two years ago and a large contingent of teachers, parents and students culminated in the launch of a recall effort.
Williams, Newkirk and Witt raised the ire of thousands in the district when they hired a new superintendent from Douglas County, proposed a review of updates to the advanced placement U.S. history curriculum, hired a board attorney and instituted a new performance-based teacher compensation plan.
Witt defended his record and that of his colleagues Tuesday. He cited a new school that the board approved to build and equal funding for charter schools among their accomplishments.
“We’ve implemented some great reforms that will have lasting impacts,” he said.
Two board members often at odds with the majority — Jill Fellman and Lesley Dahlkemper — bowed out of re-election bids earlier this year. With Amanda Stevens and Ali Lasell winning those seats, the new board that will convene after the election will be all fresh faces.
In addition to Harmon’s victory, attorney Brad Rupert was elected to replace Williams and former Jefferson County teacher and principal Ron Mitchell was selected to replace Witt. All were recruited by parent leaders and were supported by the Jefferson County teacher’s union.
WATCH: Jeffco ousted school board members react
But Harmon said voters need not be worried that the new board will act as a bloc vote or virtual rubber stamp.
“We definitely don’t see eye to eye on everything,” she said. “I’m looking forward to really respectful conversations.”
Superintendent Dan McMinimee, who was hired by majority board members in 2014, issued a statement Tuesday welcoming the new board and thanking those who were recalled.
“We hope that our Jeffco community can heal its rifts and reunite to focus on ensuring that every Jeffco student is well-equipped and prepared to excel in his or her college life or career,” McMinimee said.
In Douglas County, the campaign echoes themes that have been in play since 2009. That’s when voters picked a conservative majority to guide their school district.
WATCH: KUSA-Channel 9 makes “a correction and an apology” about Jeffco schools recall report
But results from the 2013 election affirmed the reform agenda espoused by the board, with all four incumbents winning re-election. This time, the result was the exact opposite, with Ray, Wendy Vogel and Anne-Marie Lemieux beating three incumbents.
Vogel said she and her new colleagues would bring “rich discussion and diversity of thought” to the board. She hopes that with the new configuration, there won’t be an intractable 4-3 split.
Larsen, the board president who lost Tuesday, said the three challengers managed to get their message out more effectively than he and his colleagues did.
“For them, it’s been several years of effort to take pieces of information and paint a picture,” he said. “They were able to tap a nerve.”
