“At Duanesburg Central School District, there are two openings, and no one will be on the ballot.
The open seats will go to the residents who receive the most write-in votes during the May 20 election. If there are no or not enough write-ins to fill the positions, current school board members can appoint people to the seats.
Bob Fiorini, one of two Duanesburg school board members not seeking re-election, said that once word got out that no one had filed petitions by the April 21 deadline, people started talking about launching write-in campaigns.
“There’s probably at least a few folks interested in doing the write-in campaign for it,” he said.
Schenectady board President Cathy Lewis said she wasn’t aware of any write-in campaigns in the Schenectady race.
The lack of school board candidates isn’t a regional or statewide trend, said Al Marlin, state School Boards Association communications manager.
He said the local shortage of candidates could mean people aren’t running because they feel their district’s school board is “doing a good job.”
Fiorini, who has served as board president for the past two years and whose his first three-year term expires June 30, said he feels comfortable stepping down because the district has ample reserves and has started the process of preparing a strategic plan.
It’s time for someone else to have a voice on the board, he said.
“I’ve got a very busy professional life, and I think being a school board member is a big commitment for folks,” said Fiorini, who runs a few businesses and does software development. “I think people recognize that, and that may be why we didn’t see anybody run this year.””
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Campbell, Ned. Schenectady Daily Gazette 8 May 2014.