Weld County RE-4 Election Results In: What It Means for Windsor

Correction: Aaron Smith beat Chris Perkins in the election for District A. The information in the first paragraph of "The District A Winner" is incorrect.

Elections were finalized for ballot issues and District A and C Director re-elections for Windsor, as well as Severance and West Greeley, on Tuesday (Nov. 2) night.

For both District A and C, the main question was who is going to be the voice for parents in who should have the best say for their students in how safety protocols are conducted during COVID.

Mask mandates have obviously been a huge conversation since schools started back up this fall, and it was something RE-4 candidates either spoke heavily on or remained strategically vague.

The District A Winner

For District A, Christopher Perkins brought in the most votes, but by a slim margin. He won with 50.52% of votes against Aaron D. Smith's 49.48% of votes.

According to a story from the Coloradoan, Perkins understands the division in the community with how mask mandates and COVID protocols have been conducted in schools, but he seems to air more on the side of the education system deciding what is best for the students.

Smith was running on the other side of the debate, leaning on a platform of parental choice.

The District C Winner

For District C, Lance Nichols won by a larger margin, his 56.83% of votes against Trent Lane Leisy's 43.17% of votes.

With Nichols's victory, he will continue in his role on the board.

While Nichols has self-labeled himself as not being the biggest fan of masks, he has mentioned his understanding of them when it comes to keeping students as the main priority.

His opponent, Leisy, was running on a platform of parental choice similar to Smith's.

The 4A and 4B Ballot Issues

Nichols was running with the understanding of expansion and investment into the RE-4 system. However, both ballet issues aimed towards a bond measure to expand schools and build two new elementary schools were not successful in the election.

According to a story from the Reporter-Herald, Nichols plans to reintroduce the bond to get it on the ballot again.

Currently, the Weld RE-4 district serves over 8,200 students in 2021-22, which is an 800 student increase from the previous year. The district has the potential to face overcrowding, a concern for several candidates, which was why the bond measure had so much pressure behind it during the voting process.