GARFIELD COUNTY, Colo — Voters in Garfield County's school district RE-2 ousted a board member who advocated for adopting a conservative set of social studies standards in a special recall election Tuesday.
Tony May was removed from his position as school board member in a vote of 57.3% in favor to 42.1% opposed. In the vote to name his successor, Scott Bolitho won in a landslide, with 91% of the vote over the write-in option.
May challenged the legality of the recall process on a technicality related to a petition’s filing timeline back in March.
The recall petition arose from controversy surrounding a conservative social studies curriculum championed by May. An effort to adopt the standards fell flat in October 2023 after the Re-2 school board voted to stick with the state-approved curriculum.
The board's 3-1 decision to adopt the state standards came after months of debate over the American Birthright Standards (ABS), which promote patriotism, Christianity, and American exceptionalism. In the heated public comment, many speakers were concerned about the impacts ABS would have on the quality of their children's education – and voiced strong opposition to May, who was board president.
ABS was rejected by the Colorado Board of Education in October 2022.
May resigned as president months later in December, due to what he called the "political climate" that he said hit the school board.
"[I] want to bring down the temperature of this board, and I think the only way to do that is stepping down as President," May said in a Dec. 13 board meeting.
The subsequent recall petition was deemed sufficient in February with 2,441 signatures. In accordance with procedure, May had the option to resign or face a special election, which could have occurred as late as 2025.
May and his allies have said the recall was "disrespectful" and politically motivated.
"We're not trying to bring extreme politics either way," Willow Broztman with the Coalition for Responsible Education in RE-2 said. "The goal was to get them out."
In a statement to 9NEWS May said in part, "As for the recall, I’ve been severely punished for loving America, and I am not ashamed or embarrassed."