The big money promoting privatization in Denver tried to capture the Denver school board, but was defeated by candidates endorsed by the Denver Classroom Teachers Association.
Chalkbeat Colorado reported:
Denver school board candidates backed by the teachers union won all four open seats Tuesday, unofficial election returns show, making it likely the board’s current balance of power will hold.
Eleven candidates were vying for four seats on the seven-member Denver school board.
Union-backed candidates won by commanding leads in three of the races and a solid lead in the fourth, according to unofficial returns. Two of the three incumbents who ran for reelection, Michelle Quattlebaum and Scott Esserman, lost their seats.
Teachers union-backed board members have controlled the board of Colorado’s largest school district for the past six years. Members who support charter schools and other education reform strategies gained a bigger foothold in 2023 and had a chance to flip the board majority this year.
Now, the board will continue to be composed of four members who were endorsed by the teachers union and three who were backed by reform interests.
Denver Classroom Teachers Association President Rob Gould called the early returns on Tuesday a victory of “people over money.” Like in past elections, reform groups were on track to outspend the teachers union, according to the latest campaign finance reports.
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I think Heather Cox Richardson may be correct. She feels the vibe in the country is rather like the vibe that produced the Progressive Era, with the increasing hostility to big money and corruption. These elections that seem to diminish the importance of big contributions suggest a bit of a change in the public imagination.
LikeLiked by 1 person
More people are starting to realize the ultra-wealthy do not always have the best interest of the public at heart. After experiencing the lies of the current administration and reading some of the disastrous charter school accounts from groups like NPE, many people are starting to understand the true intentions of billionaires and corporations instead of blindly accepting their claims.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Which is the reason why “big money” and Trump want to cripple or get rid of labor unions. They also want to get rid of the 1st Amendment and put a stop to peaceful demonstrations like “NO KING” days.
They do not want 74% of the people to have a voice. I’m not counting the 15% of the working class, who are Trump loyalist MAGA hate cult members, which was once known as the KKK.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Always happy to read some good news (& this is VERY good news!) for a change.
LikeLike
I was pointed to this article about private equity by someone on Bluesky who responded to my comment that there ought to be laws against private equity, as it damages so much of the common good.
Katie Porter, who is a protege of Elizabeth Warren, is running for the governorship of California. The private equity industry is gearing up for a big fight. Adam Schiff, who won against Porter for the Senate, has received donations from the private equity industry. Notable is the involvement of this industry in charter schools:
https://commonsense401kproject.com/2025/11/08/why-private-equity-sees-katie-porter-as-a-strategic-threat-as-california-governor/
LikeLike
I think we have learned in the past 20 years that for-profit industry never puts the public first.
LikeLike
Our union holds a “Meet the Candidates Night” for school board elections that is moderated by our country president. Of the six candidates who ran for three spots this past election, three were incumbents. One of them is a Moms for Liberty supported member and has openly accused LGBTQA+ individuals as being part of a nefarious group. She also has posted memes on social media celebrating guns in schools much to the horror of staff members. She was not reprimanded because it was her right of “free speech” to post such a thing as the board president said. She got re-elected, barely. Another incumbent was part of the negotiating team trying to outsource/privatize our custodial staff. We fought and we won to keep them in our bargaining unit, but not before they took vacation days away from the custodians. She got re-elected. The third incumbent is an ally of ours, but was beaten by a candidate who I used to teach back when he was in middle school and who tied himself to the coattails of the incumbent who was ready to take our custodians away. He professed he would not be opposed to privatization if the situation warranted it—this, in front of the association hosting the event.
As a union, we do not get involved in endorsing school board candidates because we feel it would be a conflict-of-interest to support our future bosses. They sign our checks. Yet, in the case of this year’s election, it would have behooved us to put our support behind the other three candidates. All three of them are parents in the district, they are level-headed, one has a degree in education, another has a degree in education and a doctorate in public policy, and the third is a reasonable and caring individual who has always been able to keep the radicals at bay. Now with these three on the board along with two others who are like-minded, there is a majority of conservative, right-wing leaning individuals who may not have the best interests of the students and staff in mind. Is it time for us to start endorsing?
LikeLike
Yes!
LikeLike