FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – Broward County School Board members handpicked by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis have accepted the election results, while their challengers said they look forward to working with their new colleagues.

Five seats for the Broward County School Board were up for election in Florida’s primary election on Tuesday. Two Broward school board members, Torey Alston and Daniel Penha Foganholi Sr., who replaced DeSantis, were voted out of office.

Foganholi received 20% of the vote, behind Maura McCarthy Bulman, who received 51.2% for School District 1.

Alston received 33.9% of the vote while Rebecca Thompson received 66.1% of the vote for School District 2.

“I think the voters of Broward County have spoken,” Bulman said.

“The message is that our community’s voice matters,” Thompson said.

Allston and Foganholi were personally selected by DeSantis in 2022. After arriving, they quickly worked to fire then-Superintendent Vickie L. Cartwright, who ignored the governor’s order requiring masks during COVID-19.

Other school board members across the state hand-picked by the governor lost their district elections Tuesday night. DeSantis blamed teachers unions for the losses.

“They can present their candidates to some voters in one way or another, and that has been the case for a long time,” he said at a news conference in Sarasota.

Alston did not attend Wednesday’s school board meeting, but issued a statement that read, in part, “When I entered this bipartisan campaign, I knew the odds would be stacked against me if voters focused more on party affiliation than on qualifications and experience.”

Speaking during a press conference, Foganholi said he accepted the election results.

“If voters want a different path, they have the right to speak and I respect that voice,” he said.

Incumbent school board members Sarah Leonardi, Jeff Holness and Debra “Debbi” Hixon will remain on the board because they won elections in their districts.

Following their election victories, Bulman and Thompson said they were ready to work with the rest of the school board.

“I want to make sure we bring the voice of my community back to the district,” Thompson said.

“I just feel so honored to be here now and to have the support of my colleagues and the community,” Bulman said.

Thompson and Bulman will be sworn in in November.

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