Sunday, February 20, 2022

Who are the Republicans running for Metro Nashville School Board in the May 3rd Primary Election? Yes, there is a Republican primary.

by Rod Williams, Feb. 16, 2022- We have an election coming up on May 3rd. Don't feel bad if you didn't know it; it snuck up on me too. May 3rd is a primary for municipal offices and Davidson County is such a Democratic Party town, that Republicans never even field candidates. In effect, it has always been the case that whoever wins the Democratic Party primary for Sheriff, Register of Deeds, Trustee, Clerks, local judgeships, and a bunch of other offices, wins the election. In the General Election, the winner of the Democratic Primary usually ran unopposed.

Not many people get very excited about who is the Assessor of Property or Register of Deeds. Only the Court House crowd really cares. Lawyers may care about who gets a judgeship, but for the most part, these constitutional offices generate little interest. Most people could not name the current holder of the offices. About the only exception is the office of sheriff. At times, the office of sheriff is a high profile position but the other positions, not so much.

Davidson County Republicans never have a primary for these local offices, so usually, May 3rd is a Democrat event and Republicans ignore it. This year, however, there will be a Republican primary. The reason for this is that the State legislature passed legislation this year authorizing local political parties to run candidates for school boards under a party label. The parties chose to do so, so on May 3rd there will be a Republican primary. Unfortunately, most offices will not have Republican contenders. So, the winner of the Democratic primary will continue to run unopposed in the general election. The only exception is that there are some Republicans running for school board.

I supported the change in the state law that makes partisan elections for school boards possible but have concerns. My primary concern, in the case of Davidson County, is that Republicans will nominate embarrassing candidates. Since there is no vetting process except the primary, we may end up with unqualified candidates. It would be better to not have a Republican nominee than an ignorant, uneducated, conspiracy theory nut-job candidate. If not that kind of candidate, we may get candidates who in a moment of discontent with the current issues around education, on a wimp decided to run, but who are really too busy to do the job and whose interest is shallow. They may be achievers in their field but not really want to devote the time and energy it takes to fulfill the duties of a school board member. I hope we have great candidates, but I don't know much about them.

Note that vetting by a primary only works if there is a contest and voters can choose the better candidate. If there is only one candidate, with one vote that person is the party's nominee. Unless more partitions are submitted tomorrow, several of the districts will have one Republican contender, so that will be our candidate.

If you were thinking about running for school board, you have waited too late. The deadline for submitting a qualifying petition is noon February 17; tomorrow. Below is the list of those who have picked up qualifying petitions as of February 11. I have highlighted the Republican candidates.

The only one of these, that I know anything about is Mark Woodward. He is a member of the Davidson County Republican Party Executive Committee serving as recording secretary. Here is what I know about the candidates, including a search of social media and the internet. Please be aware that in some cases, it may be someone with the same name and not the candidate.

Christi Baeuerie

Christi Baeuerie (Dist 2): "I am an entrepreneur, a philanthropist, teacher and an artist. I am a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10KSB Babson Entrepreneurial program. In 2017 I was awarded WBEC South Rising Star. I am CEO and Managing partner of nomADic genius, LLC where we provide innovative mobile billboard marketing, advertising and promotional programs for Fortune 500 companies, as well as small businesses in the southeastern and central region. ... I have been a singer, songwriter and actress for most of my life. ... 2015 I was involved in setting a Guinness World Record singing the National Anthem with schools throughout the country ... (link) Note: This person is from Nashville and the name is not a common name, but it may be a different Christi Baeuerie. I can not find any mention of her as a candidate for school board or much to indicate she is active in civic affairs.

Janeen Kingma (Dist 2): Just this. See this link.

Todd Pembroke(Dist 2) : I assume this is the same guy. He is a Farmer's Insurance Agent in Brentwood and lives in Nashville. Facebook.

Mark Woodard

Todd Pembroke

Mark Woodard (Dist 2): A member of the Davidson County Republican Party

Executive Committee serving as recording secretary. Facebook

Steve Chauncy (Dist 4): Steve Chauncy ran in a special election to the Metropolitan Nashville Board of Education to represent District 4. Chauncy lost in the special general election on November 3, 2020. Dr. Steve Chauncy for MNPS School Board Facebook page. Dr. Chauncy served as the principal at Antioch High School.

Kelli Phillips

Steve Chauncy
Kelli Phillips (Dist. 4): "I'm a Nashville native, a mother of 3, and a believer in the need to change our school system now! Who better than a parent to start that change! I believe in common sense, not politics! Donations appreciated!" (Facebook link). She has videos and other information on the Facebook page.

Pegi Levine (Dist 8): No information discovered.

Note that there is not a Republican candidate running in District 6 but fortunately Fran Bush is running for reelection as an independent. In my view, she is the only responsible commonsense member of the current school board. I am pleased she is seeking reelection, does not have Republican opposition, and is not running as a Democrat.

If you are a Republican candidate, please send me a link to your website or your press release.

Below is more information about the May 3rd election.