Op/Ed: Do elections still matter?

Posted by ChaddsFordLive on October 29, 2023

My multi-year pursuit of transparency and accountability for misconduct by public school officials in the Unionville-Chadds Ford District is a microcosm of something that is playing out across the country. This isn’t a left/right issue. Partisan politics are incredibly tedious. If you don’t realize by now that both major political parties (at every level) are hopelessly corrupt, you haven’t been paying attention. The real issue is that public officials - from the highest office to the most local - have forgotten their place.

On Nov. 7, people in this community will vote for a school board that is responsible for managing tens of millions of dollars, and for making serious decisions that affect children and families in this community. Yet, most people don’t even know who they are and won’t show up to vote. If you aren’t familiar with the incumbent members of the board who are running for re-election, you should look them up.

Based on their conduct over the last few years, the incumbent members of this school board (Republican and Democrat) have apparently decided that it’s their intentions that matter most — the law be damned. A vote for any incumbent school board director is an endorsement of that behavior.

The incumbent Republican candidate was hand-picked by this school board to replace a person whom Republican leaders promised would be a voice for conservative families who have no representation on the board. While I personally believe he is a good man, he sat silently by while every other member of the board approved the expenditure of tens of thousands of taxpayer dollars in an effort to conceal serious misconduct in the district. Should Republican voters elect him simply because he puts an R next to his name, even if he lacks the courage to be the lone voice defending parental rights and the rule of law?

Likewise, the three incumbent Democrats running for re-election are each very nice, capable women who clearly have an admirable heart for service. But if they can’t be trusted to follow the law when doing so would expose serious misconduct that occurred on their watch, should any parent in this district (Republican or Democrat) believe they will do the right thing when the going gets tough?

A very small number of voters will elect the next UCFSD school board, so theoretically every vote matters. If those of us who show up at the polls can’t hold even local public officials accountable, we shouldn’t be surprised when officials at the highest levels lie, cheat, and steal. The only way elections still matter is if people use their votes to send a clear message to our leaders. I’m concerned that Unionville-Chadds Ford voters are about to send the wrong message. I hope I’m wrong.