Ballot positions picked for school board races

The Pulaski County Election Commission drew ballot positions Friday for the new Jacksonville/North Pulaski School Board despite a legal challenge raised by a local civil-rights lawyer.

On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge D. Price Marshall Jr. scheduled a July 20 hearing at the request of attorneys for black students in the decades-long Pulaski County school desegregation lawsuit.

State Rep. John Walker, D-Little Rock, and Robert Pressman of Lexington, Mass., told the judge they needed to discuss "urgent" concerns on matters -- including the forthcoming Sept. 15 election of School Board members for the Jacksonville/North Pulaski School District and the compliance of the new district's backers with the desegregation obligations in the Pulaski County Special School District's desegregation Plan 2000.

The attorneys for black students known as the Joshua Intervenors want seven single-member election zones for the new district rather than five zones plus two at-large zones.

Bryan Poe, director of elections in Pulaski County, said Friday that the election will be business as usual.

"On advice of counsel, we will continue to follow the deadlines set forth in the election law until we are told to do otherwise by court order," Poe said.

Using the traditional "squirrel cage," Election Commissioners Leonard Boyle Sr. and Kevin Gorman drew positions for three Jacksonville/North Pulaski School District zones as well as one North Little Rock School District Zone. The results for the top spots on the ballots were:

• Jacksonville/North Pulaski, Zone 1, Marcia Anne Dornblaser. She is running against Richard L. Moss.

• Jacksonville/North Pulaski, Zone 3, Jerald Reichenback. Jim Moore and write-in candidate Barry Roper are also running for the seat.

• Jacksonville/North Pulaski, Position 2, At Large, Celeste M. Williams. Ronald McDaniel is her opponent.

• North Little Rock School District, Zone 2, Tracy Steele. His opponent is Alicia Walton.

Unopposed candidates are:

Jacksonville/North Pulaski

• Position 1, At Large: Daniel Gray.

• Zone 2: Carol D. Miles.

• Zone 5: Dena Toney.

• Zone 4: LaConda Watson.

North Little Rock School District

• Zone 3: Darrell Montgomery, listed by the commission as a write-in candidate.

• Zone 7: Richard "Luke" King.

Metro on 07/11/2015

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