FeedsIncumbents, challenger win terms
Inkster Schools voters split the difference between incumbents and newcomers during the school board election, while Westwood votes reelected incumbents.
Former councilwoman and mayoral candidate DeArtriss Coleman-Richardson and incumbent school board member Ruth Williams bested challenger Norma McDaniel and incumbent Hardy Robb for four-year terms on the Inkster School Board Tuesday.
And, Roderick Means and Hilliard Hampton III swept away challenger Mario Fundarksi to win the two open seats on the Westwood Community Schools Board of Education.
For the Inkster district, Williams came out with the most votes, earning 294, according to unofficial counts. Coleman-Richardson followed closely behind, with 239 votes. McDaniel earned 219 – only 20 fewer than the candidate who won the second seat – and Robb came in with 139.
In Westwood, Hampton and Means earned 153 and 135, respectively, and Fundarksi had 49. Dearborn Heights voters also gave the go-ahead to the incumbents, which means Hampton and Means will serve for another four years.
Coleman-Richardson said she’s glad voters are giving her a chance to try something different.
“I’m happy that my husband and I are making history for the second time in Inkster,” she said. “We’re going to try to work together as a team and get some things done at the schools.”
Coleman-Richardson and her husband, school board trustee James Richardson, were the first husband-and-wife pair to serve on the council and the school board, and now, they are the first married couple elected to the school board.
Williams, when contacted Tuesday, had no comment.
Hampton did not return calls seeking comment. Means was unavailable for comment Tuesday.
McDaniel, who felt slightly short on election day, said she is hopeful the district can move forward.
“We have to put our support behind those who were elected in the hopes the momentum will continue at the district,” she said.
Coleman-Richardson is a two-term Inkster city councilwoman, and ran for mayor last year – a post she ultimately lost. She is a retired social worker.
Williams will begin her second term on the board. She is the athletic director for Inkster Parks and Recreation.
Hampton is the owner of a clothing store in Dearborn, and Means is employed in the information technology department at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
The seven members of the Inkster School Board and the Westwood Board serve four-year terms and are elected at-large.
Board members are charged with the responsibility of setting policy for the districts.
The next four years are expected to be challenging ones for area schools. Per-pupil funding is still at risk because of the economic issues currently plaguing the state.
A comparatively small number of registered voters decided the election. Though turnout was expected to be low, only 684 ballots were cast.
Canvassers will hit the streets to finalize the count. Official results are currently available at www.journalgroup.com.
