Our Constitutional Republic was designed with local government being a key framework and building block for its success.

As many have seen over the last two years, even local School Board races are critically important for voters and parents.

One of the most common questions we have gotten over the last months has been: Who do I vote for in local races, especially for School Board? 

To try and help you make a more informed decision when voting, we are happy to announce the first results from our local Houston County School Board Candidates Survey. 

We contacted our local candidates for La Crescent, Caledonia and Houston School Board and asked them to answer five of the top questions sourced from the community and national discussions as it relates to School Boards. These questions are topics which School Board members across the country are having to vote "Yes" or "No" on as it relates to making policy and enforcing rules in the Schools.

1. Do you oppose all curriculum that incorporates the teaching of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), Critical Race Theory (CRT), and Social Emotional Learning?
2. Will you oppose a COVID-19 vaccination mandate for students and school staff?
3. Will you oppose a mask mandate for all students?
4. Will you oppose policies that allow boys who identify as girls to use the same bathrooms and locker rooms as girls?
5. Do you support biology-based eligibility standards for participating in boys sports and girls sports?

You will find the results in the table below, along with the publicly registered information from the candidate's filing for their phone number. If you have questions on responses from a candidate, we encourage you to reach out to the candidate and further the discussion. 

We would also like to commend the courage of those candidates that answered the survey questions and were willing to provide transparency to voters. 

If you are looking for a full resolution PDF copy of the results, you can find one here.

Note for Spring Grove School District, as there were only 3 seats being filled by 3 potential candidates, we choose to not extend the survey to those candidates. If you live in Spring Grove School District, we encourage you to engage with your candidates with these topics. 

Voting in-person on November 8th is the best option to ensure your vote is properly counted. Alternatively, you can also early in-person vote by stopping into the courthouse in Caledonia between now and Nov. 7th during normal business hours. 

However, if you can't make it to the courthouse and can't vote in-person on November 8th, be sure to request and vote via Absentee ballot via USPS!

You can request your absentee ballot here.

If you do vote absentee, you should also track your ballot status to ensure your ballot is sent and received back to the Auditor's office.

To vote early, in-person, at the Courthouse, simply show up during regular business hours and follow the Vote Here signs:

Houston County Courthouse

304 S Marshall St Rm 116

Caledonia, MN 55921

If you have any other questions, please contact the Houston County Auditor Office at 507-725-5803.

Here is the "What's on my ballot" where you can see exactly which races are on your ballot.