Steve Burns
WMAL.com
ANNAPOLIS — (WMAL) With Montgomery County now a majority-minority county, Democratic Delegate David Moon wanted to answer what he thinks is an important question. Should the voices of minority parents be heard on the School Board?
“When one in three public school students have non-citizen parents, shouldn’t those parents have some say in the elections that govern school policies?” Moon told WMAL. “Everybody who focuses on school policy in Montgomery County is talking about the racial and ethnic achievement gap we have in test scores. I think if you want to talk about getting parent involvement, the School Board Elections seem like a very logical place to start that conversation.”
Moon’s bill would allow the Montgomery County Council to control voter qualifications in local races only, a right all cities in Maryland already have. Moon said the County Council already voted unanimously to endorse his bill.
“Montgomery County is in a very unique situation compared to the rest of the state. It’s been widely discussed that we’re now a majority-minority county, but unlike other jurisdictions, we’re not really dominated by any one group,” Moon said. “The bill wouldn’t actually make any changes. The County Council would have to put forth a bill to change voter qualifications, but I think it’s an important conversation to have.”
Other cities throughout Maryland already have similar laws on the books, allowing 16- and 17-year-olds, convicted felons, and legal aliens to vote, among others. Moon said his bill only gives that same right to control voter eligibility to the County that Maryland cities already enjoy.
“When you have such a large percentage of parents in Montgomery County Public Schools who are non-citizens, most of them legally here, it raises some questions about why shouldn’t they have a say in School Board races?”
Moon said he has heard opposition to the proposal, but attributes it to the “vitriol and the willingness to demonize certain communities coming out of the GOP Presidential race. It was only a matter of time before that sentiment began showing up in state and county politics.”
Copyright 2016 by WMAL.com. All Rights Reserved. (Photo: Montgomery County Public Schools)
