Schools and taxes take center stage in east metro elections

Schools and taxes took center stage in east metro elections Tuesday as school board candidates from Mounds View to Hastings vied for office while Stillwater school district voters and a few other areas considered millions in tax levies.

With about a third of the votes counted, four candidates running as an informal slate in south Washington County and calling themselves the "Vote 4 Common Sense" campaign was narrowly losing. The candidates said the board needed conservative voices and had expressed concerns about mask mandates, critical race theory, finances and class size.

According to early returns in White Bear Lake, two of four candidates who ran a shared campaign — Bill Mahre and Luke Michaud — were leading a field of 14 vying for one of four school board seats. Their campaign said it was time for more diversity on a school board they said was run by teachers or union supporters. The district saw voters approve a $326 million referendum two years ago.

Among the communities voting on tax levies or referendums, partial returns showed Stillwater voters approving the renewal of a school levy and raising it by $2.7 million, bringing the total to $11 million to $12 million a year.

A second levy question seeking $47 million for technology upgrades over 10 years also appeared headed for approval by a slim margin, with 40% of the votes counted. The proposals have roiled the Stillwater district, where a school board vote to close three elementary schools in 2016 ignited a bitter fight.

The school board races came amid a year of unprecedented strain on school leaders, as COVID-19 precautions and social media flare-ups about critical race theory drove tensions. Dozens of incumbents statewide either quit before their terms ended or declined to seek re-election.

Political offices on east metro ballots included the mayor's job in White Bear Lake, where Dan Louismet and Don Mullin hoped to succeed Jo Emerson, who is retiring after 12 years in office.