School board elections in Delaware take place Tuesday, and getting residents to vote could again be an issue.
There will be elections in the Appoquinimink, Colonial and Red Clay School Districts in New Castle County, Lake Forest School District in Kent County and Delmar, Woodbridge and Indian River School Districts in Sussex County.
Jill Itzkowitz is chair of the League of Women Voters’ election committee. She says with only seven districts holding school board elections instead of the usual 16, a lot less people are running.
"And there's usually like 47 candidates, and this year there's less than 20 so there's not many races. It's very strange with this year's school board elections," said Itzkowitz.
Itzkowitz notes that will drive voting numbers down.
She says the lack of candidates also limits discussion of issues.
"We do like to see competitive races,” said Itzkowitz. “It's not a good thing for democracy to have only one person running, and if you care about the issues then you want candidates and you want them to talk about their beliefs."
She adds finding candidates can be tough because of the time commitment required to serve on a school board and board meetings becoming more contentious.
You do not need to be registered to vote to participate in a school board election - just a district resident.
And Itzkowitz notes polling sites are different from primary and general election polling sites, so check the elections or school district website before you vote.
Polls are open Tuesday from 7am to 8pm.
