EDUCATION

Here are the winners of suburban Milwaukee school board races: Waukesha, Menomonee Falls, Cudahy, Germantown, Greendale, Shorewood, more

Alec Johnson Cleo Krejci Rory Linnane
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Poll workers Ron Young and Charlene Olsen assist a voter at the city of Waukesha Parks, Recreation and Forestry Building polling station on April 2. In addition to local races, voters everywhere weighed in on two statewide referendum questions that asked about private funding in election administration and the role of election officials.

Voters in school districts across Wisconsin chose new school board members Tuesday. 

While there weren’t any school board members up for election in Milwaukee Public Schools this spring, there were dozens of contested school board seats in surrounding suburbs. Ahead of the election, political parties and political action committees spent over $300,000 to see their favored school board candidates elected in Wisconsin. 

Election Day live updates l Statewide election results l Local election results

Here are the results of key school board races.

Challenger Lissa Skogland, incumbent Michael Johnson win two seats on Cudahy School Board

Out of four candidates running for two seats on the Cudahy School Board, challenger Lissa Skoglund and incumbent Michael Johnson have won.

Johnson was the only incumbent running, as incumbent Laurie Ozbolt did not seek reelection. While challenger Ellen Price's name was on the ballot Tuesday, she had suspended her campaign before Tuesday to support Johnson and Skoglund.

Randy Hollenbeck, who finished third in the vote for the school board, also lost as in incumbent in the race for the city of Cudahy's Third District aldermanic seat to opponent Rob Haines.

Here are their unofficial vote totals:

Lissa Skoglund: 1,764

Michael Johnson (incumbent): 1,375

Randy Hollenbeck: 871

Ellen Price: 660

Write-in votes: 15

Incumbents Tom Barney and Tracy Pawlak win Germantown School Board election

Germantown School Board incumbents Tom Barney and Tracy Pawlak both fended off challengers April 2.

Fred Fleitz, a more progressive candidate backed by the teachers union, was specifically seeking to replace Barney, a conservative. Fleitz has accused the board of "censorship" and criticized its ban on teaching on human growth and development.

Jeff Voyer, who was specifically seeking Pawlak’s seat, had contrasted himself as taking a harder stance against critical race theory. Pawlak had also said he wasn’t a "fan" of the theory, a framework for understanding how certain public policies have caused or upheld racial inequality. 

The Germantown race didn’t see major spending by political parties, like some other districts did. Fleitz’s campaign got $400 from the county Democratic party, finance reports showed. 

The other five school board members, who hold staggered three-year terms, were not up for election this spring. 

Here are the vote totals, according to unofficial results shared Tuesday night:

  • Tom Barney (incumbent): 4,049
  • Tracy Pawlak (incumbent): 4,020
  • Jeff Voyer: 2,864
  • Fred Fleitz: 2,845

Union-backed Brian Bock and Kristin Settle win Greendale School Board election

Brian Bock and Kristin Settle have come out on top of the Greendale School Board election, ousting incumbent Mary Grogan and besting their other opponent, Elise Ciske. 

Candidates in Greendale were wary of aligning with either political party but Bock and Settle were both endorsed by the local teachers union. They also performed better in the primary election than Ciske and Grogan. 

Hot topics in the race included school funding; programs that promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI); and a decorum among the current school board members that many described as dysfunctional. 

All candidates agreed the district needs more state funding. All but Grogan also said they supported the referendum that was also on the ballot Tuesday. It asked voters to raise property taxes to increase funding for the school district, as district officials say funding has not kept pace with inflation. 

Here are the vote totals, according to unofficial results shared Tuesday night:

  • Kristin Settle: 2201
  • Brian Bock: 1957
  • Mary Grogan (incumbent): 1547
  • Elise Ciske: 1367

Incumbent Ellen Eckman wins Shorewood School Board election

Shorewood School Board incumbent Ellen Eckman has retained her seat, the only board seat up for election this year, as she defeated opponent Andrew Frey.

Here are the vote totals, according to unofficial results shared Tuesday night:

Ellen Eckman (incumbent): 2,288

Andrew Frey: 1,589

Write-in votes: 16

Jennifer Grant and Travis Langer win Menomonee Falls School Board races for a full Republican sweep

With Jennifer Grant and Travis Langer winning their races for the Menomonee Falls School Board, the board will be entirely made up of candidates who were endorsed by the Republican Party. 

Their opponents, Birkholz and Witt, were backed by the Democratic Party. The Republicans reported investing $1,483 in each of their candidates; the Democrats reported $8,512 for each of their candidates. 

Grant was the only incumbent in the race. Another incumbent, Keri Duce, decided to step down. She was the last board member who hadn’t been endorsed by WisRed, a political action committee connected to the Republican Party of Waukesha County. 

Here are the vote totals, according to unofficial results shared Tuesday night: 

  • Jennifer Grant (incumbent): 4,170  
  • Travis Langer: 4,007
  • Jessica Birkholz: 3,573  
  • John Witt: 3,407

Three incumbents Angela Bier, Maqsood Khan and Ann Sepersky win Franklin School Board seats

Franklin School Board incumbents Angela Bier, Maqsood Khan and Ann Sepersky won the three seats up for election on the Franklin School Board. Each will serve a three-year term.

They competed for reelection against three challengers in the April 2 election.

Here are their vote totals:

Maqsood Khan (incumbent): 3,089

Angela Bier (incumbent): 2,689

Ann Sepersky (incumbent): 2,541

Jaclyn Gaffney: 2,027

Angela Kallay: 1,969

Jon Peccarelli: 1,647

Sarah Blonsky and Quin Brunette win seats on the Whitnall School Board

Challenger Sarah Blonsky and incumbent Quin Brunette have won the two seats up for election on the Whitnall School Board this year.

Blonsky and Brunette, who supported each other’s campaigns and who were both supported by the Whitnall Resident Engagement Network, a group Blonsky co-founded, defeated opponents Sean Flynn and Rhonda Perry, who were both endorsed by the 1776 Project PAC and supported by the Milwaukee County Republican Party. Flynn and Perry supported each other’s campaigns.

Brunette was the only incumbent running, as incumbent Kevin Stachowiak did not run for re-election.

Here are the vote totals:

Quin Brunette (incumbent): 1,906

Sarah Blonsky: 1,905

Sean Flynn: 1,768

Rhonda Perry: 1,662

Incumbents Kelly Piacsek and Anthony Zenobia, along with challenger Eric Brooks, win seats on Waukesha School Board

Incumbents Kelly Piacsek and Anthony Zenobia, along with challenger Eric Brooks, have won the three seats up for election on the Waukesha School Board. Each will receive a three-year term.

Piacsek, Zenobia and Brooks, who were all supported by the Waukesha County Republican Party's WisRed initiative, defeated opponents Stephanie Byrne and Fidlin, who were backed by Blue Sky Waukesha, which defines itself as "a place for progressives, liberals and independents in crucial Waukesha County" and who were also recommended by the Waukesha County Democratic Party and Wisconsin Education Association Council.

Incumbent Patrick McCaffery did not run for re-election.

Here are the vote totals:

Kelly Piacsek (incumbent): 11,606

Eric Brooks: 10,656

Anthony Zenobia (incumbent): 10,267

Stephanie Fidlin: 9,073

Angelique Byrne: 8,690

Write-in votes: 214