Incumbent Bill Enriquez was elected on Saturday to a second full term as a trustee of Place 6 at the Abilene ISD School Board by a margin of 114 votes.
Despite the close results, Enriquez was excited about the victory and the opportunity to return for another term to work for the children and parents of Abilene.
“I just want my supporters – and my financial supporters – to know how much I appreciate them and how ready I am to hit the road for the next four years and continue to work with all of my board members. administration,” Enriquez said.
“I think we’re all the same. We all have the same goal, and that’s to provide a great education for our children.”
Based on an uncertified tally, Enriquez received 2,253 votes (51.3%), compared to 2,139 votes (48.7%) for challenger Justin Anderson.
While awaiting the results, Enriquez spent more than two hours Saturday night gathering his campaign signs at polling places, he said.
In the early vote, Enriquez held a slim lead with 1,268 (51.8%) votes to Anderson’s 1,179 (48.2%).
After years of volunteering in various school roles, including twice as PTA president, Enriquez was named to the board in January 2017 to fill the position vacated by Stan Lambert, who resigned after being elected representative. of State.
Enriquez was elected to his first full term Place 6 in 2018, winning 53% of the vote to 47% for challenger Kelvin Kelley, a former AISD board member.
Priorities for a new mandate
Enriquez said his goal going forward will be “to try to catch up with those kids after the loss of education to COVID. Not just Abilene ISD, but the entire state of Texas and the entire nation is suffering from COVID.” And so we’re going to use our financial resources to try to bring those students up to speed.”
Another priority will be “to try and do something about these discipline issues that we have”, he said.
Retaining certified staff and recruiting new teachers are also high on his to-do list, Enriquez said.
“So we have a house full of things that we have to work with,” he said.
After:Justin Anderson: Challenger Candidate for Abilene ISD Place 6 School Board
Motivate others
First-time political candidate Anderson, who has been monitoring the results from home, said he hopes the close race will motivate others to pay more attention to school board activities.
People reached out to Anderson about how to track district finances, test scores and even library books online, as he did to discuss the issues, he said.
“I’m nobody. I’m just a retired veteran, stay-at-home dad,” Anderson said, showing that “anybody in the audience can come out and challenge these people. You don’t need to be someone in society.”
He said he would continue to monitor school district activities for the sake of his children.
“Maybe by pointing out these things, people — parents and citizens of Abilene — will take a more direct approach,” Anderson said.
Laura Gutschke is a generalist journalist and food columnist and manages the online content of the Reporter-News. If you enjoy local news, you can support local journalists with a digital subscription to ReporterNews.com.