Last week the city of Piedmont extended the deadline until August 14 for candidates to file for school board after the two incumbents, Hilary Cooper and Veronica Anderson Thigpen did not file for re-election.
As of Tuesday, August 13, only one of the six people who has taken out papers for school board, Michael Malione, has qualified for the ballot.
On Monday August 12, Max Roman, a Piedmont parent, Education Foundation board member, and one of the co-chairs of last year’s Spring Fling tossed his hat into the ring.
Depending on the circumstances, it would seem to be a disservice to the electorate for an incumbent to wait till the filing deadline to let it be known they are not running. It’s difficult to defeat an incumbent. But a known open seat would attract more qualified candidates.