No matter how the election turns out, the Hamilton County Board of Education will get three new members on Thursday.
The largest race is for the District 9 seat, where six candidates are vying to represent the eastern end of the county.
Current District 9 member Chester Bankston is running for a spot on the County Commission. Marchetta Cannon, Mike Evatt, Karen Farrow, Caleb Long, Gary Potter and Timothy Stephenson all hope to succeed him on the school board.
Board Chairman and District 8 member Kenny Smith also is running for County Commission, and Dean Arnold, Andrew Mullins and David Testerman are competing for his East Ridge seat.
Longtime District 6 board member Janice Boydston announced earlier this year she would not seek re-election, and Joe Galloway and Gary Patterson are vying to be the next District 6 representative.
Incumbents Jeffrey Wilson and Everett Fairchild are running again for their District 5 and 3 seats, respectively. While Wilson is running unopposed, Fairchild has three competitors: Marty Haynes, Ken Smith and Tony Westendorf.
Through the course of the campaign, many candidates have stressed the need for new leadership both on the board and at the school system.
The winners of the nonpartisan race will be sworn in sometime in September before they start their official duties, schools spokeswoman Danielle Clark said.
Board terms are four years. Board members earn a yearly salary of $10,372.70 and are eligible to pay the employee rate for school system insurance benefits, Ms. Clark said.
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