MELBOURNE -- A group credited for several wins in school board races across Florida is launching a new campaign to get remaining candidates on board before the November general election.
Moms for Liberty says it wants all candidates for public office to sign a statement that public school parents have a fundamental right to be involved in the classroom and education of their child. It calls on candidates to increase transparency, defend against governmental overreach and secure parental rights. Moms for Liberty was founded by two former Florida school board members, and has campaigned against school COVID restrictions and explicit content it identifies in school library books.
The groups co-founders, Tina Descovich and Tiffany Justice, said in a joint statement that the pledge "will help parents know which candidates to vote for in November." They also mentioned a prime target, teacher unions, saying "they've controlled school boards for decades" and that unions "continue to talk more about 'banning books' than reading books," pointed to declining reading scores since the pandemic and various COVID-related measures including remote learning and mask wearing.
Moms for Liberty has worked with Governor DeSantis to elect supporters to local school boards. Those results bore fruit in several counties August 23rd, when school boards in Miami-Dade, Sarasota and Duval flipped to conservative majorities or supermajorities.
Photo: Getty Images