Garfield County voters recall school board member who promoted ‘American Birthright’ curriculum
(Colorado Newsline) Voters in Garfield County, located in Colorado’s Western Slope, recalled school board member Tony May, according to unofficial results.
As of 10:00 p.m. Tuesday, nearly 58 percent of the 4,823 votes supported removing May from office. Voters also overwhelmingly chose Scott Bolitho, a longtime county resident, as May’s replacement. Bolitho’s was the only name that appeared on the ballot, though write-in candidates picked up 253 of the 3,097 votes.
Bolitho earned the endorsement of the Coalition for Responsible Education in RE-2, the parent-led nonpartisan organization that led the recall effort.
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May faced criticism from parents and community members in the small Garfield Re-2 school district after attempting and failing to pass the conservative American Birthright social studies curriculum. The standards, developed by the New York-based conservative coalition Civics Alliance, were rejected by the State Board of Education during a 2022 review of civics standards.
Garfield County is known for its conservative political leanings, particularly in local and national elections. Former President Donald Trump earned more than 50 percent of the vote in 2016 and 2020.
The county’s most famous politician, Republican U.S. Representative Lauren Boebert, often emphasized her local roots and experiences in the rural Western Slope in her political campaigns and public statements before moving to Weld County this year to run in Colorado’s 4th Congressional District.
May’s partisan beliefs found him at odds with the district’s Latino community when an email surfaced through a public records request about including Voces Unidas, a nonprofit that advocates for the Latino community in rural areas, in a Latino Youth Summit hosted by the district.
In the email, which was addressed to fellow board member Jason Shoup and superintendent Heather Grumley, May stated, “As you research The Voces Unidas group, you will find they are pro BLM and play the victim in identity politics. Alex Sanchez of Voces Unidas uses classic Noam Chomsky communist revolutionary tactics. This group believes in socialistic government overreach and advocates radical resistance to American law.”
Attempts to contact May Wednesday were unsuccessful.
According to a Voces Unidas statement, many of its members graduated from or are parents of students in the district and took issue with the fact that, on average, Latino students, which account for 54 percent of the district’s total, are 2.7 grades behind their white peers.
“As parents, alumni, voters and members of the community, Voces Unidas believes we have a responsibility to get involved and take an active role in our schools and local government. That includes elected officials accountable for taking concrete steps to address those disparities rather than prioritizing radical political agendas,” the statement said.
The Voces Unidas Action Fund, a separate 501(c)(4) nonprofit, joined the Coalition for Responsible Education in RE-2, hiring canvassers to collect signatures and providing information on accessing voters likely to support the effort.
According to the recall petition signed by nearly 3,000 community members, May misused his position to “marginalize, disregard and bully parents, staff and community members” he disagreed with. They also accused him of engaging in “highly partisan” actions that jeopardized long-standing relationships and fundraising efforts in the community.
“We look forward to closing this chapter and beginning the transitional period of our school board,” said Willow Brotzman, president of the Coalition for Responsible Education in RE-2. “This victory solidifies that our community does not want divisive politics played out in our school district. We formed this non-partisan coalition centered around the common goal of protecting the educators and the education of the children of Garfield RE-2. The Coalition is proud of what we have accomplished and looks forward to the progress that the board will make with their new member, Scott Bolitho.”
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