Kansas City school board chair Pattie Mansur defeated by ‘underdog’ Tanesha Ford
Kansas City school board chair Pattie Mansur lost her reelection bid Tuesday night to newcomer Tanesha Ford, in a race that drew an unusually large amount of outside spending.
According to unofficial results with all precincts reporting, Ford won the at-large seat with 8,319 votes, or 56.3%, to Mansur’s 6,446 votes, or 43.7%.
In addition, two newcomers were vying for the seat in Sub-district 5, in the southeast part of the school district. Kandace Buckner won with 1,813 votes, or 50.7%, over Bruce Beatty’s 1,765 votes, or 49.3%.
Incumbents Rita Cortes and Manuel Abarca were uncontested.
Ford, executive director of Kauffman Scholars, as well as Buckner, were backed by the nonprofit Blaque KC, short for Black Leaders Advancing Quality Urban Education, which spent more than $100,000 in the two contested races, according to reports with the Missouri Ethics Commission.
Mansur, who was first elected in 2014, said that amount of money “is unprecedented for Kansas City Public Schools or for any public school race in the Kansas City metro area.”
“So it raises questions about what is happening that would produce this amount of investment in uncompensated public service roles,” Mansur said Tuesday night. “I ran a grassroots campaign. Every single dollar that I spent on my campaign is publicly accounted for and will be open and transparent.”
Ford previously described herself as the “underdog” in the race, taking on a well-known incumbent.
“This campaign was backed by people, real everyday people, who were willing to put their money where their faith was,” Ford said in an email Tuesday night. “I spent hours listening, learning and sharing with the community. I heard so much about what concerns you as teachers, parents, business owners and taxpayers (have). Many of you shared your thoughts about what you think is necessary to make KCPS the best fit choice. I heard you.”
Cokethea Hill, who formed Blaque KC, refused to say where the money originated, which led to suspicions about the nonprofit’s influence. Hill has said that the group’s goal is to improve the academic performance of Black public school students who have long lagged behind their white peers. She argued that questions about the organization’s motives are overblown and racist.
The nonprofit spent more than $100,000 on political consultants, mailed advertisements, radio spots, digital advertising and newspaper ads.
Mansur works as the communications and health policy director for REACH Healthcare Foundation, a health philanthropy in Merriam. During her campaign, she touted the steady progress that Kansas City Public Schools has made to improve student achievement, enhance curriculum and hire more teachers of color as it worked to regain state accreditation.
Ford campaigned on the message that the district lacked urgency when it comes to delivering a better education for students of color. She also said the school board should be more transparent in reporting data and communicating with parents.
“Our children are my priority, and I look forward to focusing on improving student outcomes for all students at all schools,” Ford said Tuesday.
In Sub-district 5, Buckner, a teaching coach for Kansas City Teacher Residency, also said that the district needs to “press turbo” to improve student test scores and graduation rates.
Her challenger, Beatty, is retired after working as a financial analyst for the city for 33 years. He argued that the district needs “stable leadership” to enhance student achievement and move the provisionally accredited district toward regaining full accreditation.
This story was originally published April 6, 2021 at 8:55 PM.
