As the DISD District 9 election heads to a Dec. 8 runoff, there are already signs that both camps are gearing up for the possibility that race – among other issues – will become a bigger factor than either side had hoped. The issue of race was largely muted during the general election, a factor that ironically may have contributed to its abysmally low turnout, which in turn may have contributed to the need for a runoff.

A number of observers have noted a subtle shift in the tone and dynamics of the race, a shift that reflects both the pared down field and a new urgency on the part of the two remaining candidates to distinguish themselves from their opponent. For Bernadette Nutall, this means playing up her roots in South Dallas and her ties to the African American community, while making it clear that she has more to offer than the color of her skin. For Sally Cain, this means reiterating the value of new ideas and the benefits to be gained from an outsider’s perspective.

Nutall’s efforts were given a boost by her winning the support of Juanita Wallace and Rossi Walter, her other two opponents in the general election, both of whom are African American. “I’ve met with both of them,” Nutall said. “We all talked and we felt [that] a common mission is that we want what’s best for our children. We’re coming together to work towards that common goal of making DISD the best district that we can.”

Thanks to the shifting demographics of District 9, which now includes parts of downtown Dallas, the election of a Black candidate is no longer the sure thing that it once was. In addition, certain facts about this particular race – most notably that it’s a runoff to a special election held at an unusual time of year for any election, let alone a school board race – has virtually everyone predicting levels of voter apathy and inattention that even the most savvy campaign is unlikely to overcome.

Not that Nutall isn’t trying. “I’m talking to the voters, helping them to understand why it matters,” she said. “We have to start being the conductors of our lives. Voting gives you that. Voting for constructive leadership, voting for someone who’s committed to the job, committed to the community, gives you that.”

The District 9 seat was created in the late 1970s, during a period of high racial conflict in Dallas. It was created, moreover, with the expressed aim of increasing minority representation on the board of trustees. The demographics of the student population remain overwhelmingly a majority-minority. But voters tend to be adults, and the voting behavior of White parents in the district has become a wild-card factor that could make itself felt in the election.

“I’m not worried that the seat will go to a White candidate,” said Rev. Zan Holmes of St. Luke “Community” United Methodist Church, who voiced his support for Nutall at a Nov. 17 rally at the DISD administration building. “I’m appealing to the people who live in the district, both Black and White, to say that Bernadette has the credentials to represent those students.”

Given that the turnout for the general election was less than 3,000 voters, there’s little reason to think that the turnout for the runoff will be much higher – and may be significantly lower. For Black and Hispanic voters, the historical pattern is for turnout in runoffs to be lower still.

Nutall is aware of what she’s up against, but is no less adamant about the need for full participation in the political process – no excuses. “I think if we don’t get out, rise up and get out and to vote, it’s our fault,” she said. “We have to take responsibility and get out and vote. We have to wake up and pay attention to what’s going on.”

“What’s going on,” is what some see as the possibility that the race for school board trustee of an historically underrepresented part of Dallas isn’t getting nearly the attention it merits, not even from those who will be most affected by its outcome.

But Hobie Hukill of Alliance/AFT cautions against trustees taking such a proprietary attitude toward their own districts. “[Nutall] seems particularly committed to the idea of including everyone who is affected by DISD,” Hukill said. “It’s not parochial, it’s not balkanized, if you will. Certainly District 9 is a critical component of DISD and there are a lot of problems specific to District 9 – historic neglect, things of that sort. But at the same time, she understands that what goes on in one area affects the whole district and the whole district, in turn, is going to affect individual [areas]. We like her approach that says ‘we’re going to take this as a whole, we’re going to make sure every kid in this entire district, DISD, gets what they need.’”

Echoing this theme, former DISD Administrator Sandra Malone believes that the focus should be on a candidate’s objective qualifications, not her racial or ethnic bonafides. “My association with Nutall was when she was a community liaison with the court-ordered learning centers,” Malone said. “I had left the school district at that point and I was engaged with the court as the desegregation auditor. Each time I went to visit [her] school I would usually have to have a conference with her and the principal. My recollection of the activities that she performed in that school was that they were a great benefit to the students, the community and their parents.”

This theme of community credentials was front-and-center at the Nov. 17 pro-Nutall rally in front of the DISD administration building. Local notables, including Holmes, former school board trustee Robert Price and former State Board of Education Representative Ruth Sorrells, appeared at the event.

“I found her to be very knowledgeable, very passionate and very eager to become involved,” said Sorrells. For Sorrells and others, a candidate “looking the part” is less important than whether “she was clearly qualified to do a good job for the community.”

Still, the fact remains that an African American has held the District 9 seat since its creation, and that Sally Cain, despite her residence in District 9 and track record as an educator, is viewed by Nutall supporters as an outsider who lacks deep roots in South Dallas. Cain, who could not be reached for comment, said in the Oct. 29 issue of The Dallas Examiner that “I’ve been to probably 1,000 schools in my lifetime. I’ve worked outside of the school district. I’ve worked at the state of Texas level. I understand all of the school finance [issues] and public policies around school accountability. I worked for the Department of Education. I understand strong leadership.”

Although Cain lacks the institutional support of groups like Alliance/AFT and the Dallas AFL-CIO (both of whom have endorsed Nutall), a number of prominent individuals have endorsed her, including DISD trustee Jack Lowe and former Mayor Laura Miller. And of course, there’s her husband, former state Senator David Cain. This helps to explain the 8 to 1 fundraising advantage she enjoyed during the general election ($22,500 to Nutall’s $2,718, according to filings with the Texas Ethics Commission), and with the fact that her name recognition exceeds that of your typical upstart candidate.

Through it all, one key question remains: will the two candidates manage to jointly overcome the racial dynamics, lack of interest, and fundraising disparities and have an honest debate about each other’s qualifications? A possible consequence of failing to do so may be the continued devolution of DISD politics into “my district”-style parochialism. “I think it’s degenerated over time into ‘Well, my school does this, my school does that,” says Hobie Hukill. “The board is there to guide, direct, and when necessary, criticize the administration and make sure the administration’s doing right by the entire district. They have very little control over what occurs in their specific areas.”

“We think the board needs to grow up and run the whole district, and not play these silly little games,” Hukill said.

Rev. Holmes concurs. “My appeal would be to whoever holds the seat to be sensitive to the needs and be a strong advocate to the students who live in that district. I want it to be someone who has that connection and that track record.”

And Nutall’s ultimate message to those fed up with the system: “We can’t just vent, we have to vote.”

Early voting for the Dec. 8 runoff is already underway and will continue through Dec. 4.

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