Cody Holt wouldn’t change a thing about his re-election run for the Elgin Area School District U-46 school board – except the losing part.
Holt fell short on Tuesday, finishing well behind President Donna Smith, board member Veronica Noland and newcomer Melissa Owens.
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But he insists he won’t be silenced.
“I plan to become more involved in building the Republican Party,” he told the DuPage Policy Journal. “In this election, the Democrats and special interest groups did a better job of outworking us at the grassroots level.”
The 25-year-old Holt built his campaign around a platform of permanently freezing property taxes and increasing school choice. Throughout his campaign, he insisted most of the voters he talked with agreed with his tough stances on taxes and spending.
He also voted "no" on a recent resolution calling for a levy increase in the district, at least partly leading to an advisory referendum on the ballot in the Village of Wayne that asked voters whether the Elgin School District should be required to seek voter approval before increasing annual property taxes.
“I just think the unions and special interest groups were more amped up for this election and so they came out in greater numbers,” he said. "Maybe, it was the Trump factor."
What that means for Holt over the long haul remains to be seen.
“I don’t know if I’ll be seeking office again,” he said. “But I do know that in some way I plan on becoming even more involved in local politics.”
With all precincts in Cook, DuPage and Kane counties counted, Holt had 5,654 votes to Owens’ 9,723, Smith’s 9,314 and Noland’s 9,111.
Smith, 59, has served on the board since 2001, while Noland, 50, first elected in 2013, is an alumna of the district's Hispanic Parent Leadership Institute.
Owens, 48, is chairwoman of the U-46 Citizens' Advisory Council.
Holt was elected to the board in April 2015.
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