For years, Sarasota has been caught up in some of Florida’s fiercest school culture battles, many of them directly affecting LGBTQ+ students. But this year’s school board election delivered something different: a progressive shift, with young people playing a surprisingly important role in making it happen.
As first reported by ABC 7 Sarasota, Megan Tennimon and Beth Mayberry, two candidates who ran on more progressive platforms, won their respective nonpartisan races by more than 10 percentage points over opponents backed by the Sarasota County Republican Party. Their victories will join existing board members Tom Edwards and Liz Barker, creating a progressive-leaning majority on the five-member Sarasota County School Board.
For students who spent the campaign knocking on doors, spreading the word, and supporting candidates who promised a different approach to education, election night was a pretty big deal.
READ: Catholic School Ditches Pride Flags for a Rainbow “O”—Students Are Not Impressed
The Students Were Paying Attention
This wasn’t simply about picking new people for the school board. For Sarasota’s LGBTQ+ students, the candidates represented a possible change in direction on issues that have become deeply personal, and it has been for a while, not just in Florida, but across the U.S. as well.
The board has faced controversy over book restrictions, LGBTQ+ inclusion, immigration enforcement, and student protests. Tennimon and Mayberry campaigned on moving away from those recurring culture-war fights while putting greater attention on education, school funding, and the needs of students.
Young campaign volunteers clearly saw the election as an opportunity to have a say in what their schools could look like.
At an election-night gathering hosted by Sarasota County Democrats at Tamiami Tap, high school students celebrated as the results came in. The atmosphere reportedly became emotional as it became clear that the candidates they had supported were winning.
And that matters. Students don’t get to vote in every election, but they can still organize, campaign, and make their voices impossible to ignore.
LGBTQ+ Issues Were Part of the Battle
The stakes are particularly significant for LGBTQ+ students because Sarasota’s school board has previously taken positions that drew criticism from advocates.
During the conservative majority’s tenure, the board backed cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and approved measures involving student walkouts. It also changed portions of its anti-discrimination policies, including language relating to protections for students.
Those decisions came against the backdrop of Florida’s broader political fight over LGBTQ+ rights and what students are allowed to learn and discuss in public schools.
For queer students, these aren’t abstract political arguments. They can affect whether they see themselves represented in school materials, how protected they feel from discrimination and whether they believe school officials are actually listening to them.
READ: Principal of the Year Says Being Gay Cost Him His Job
A Familiar Conservative Name Is Leaving
The election also signals the departure of one of Sarasota’s most recognizable conservative school board figures: Bridget Ziegler. According to LGBTQ Nation, Ziegler, a co-founder of Moms for Liberty, did not seek another term and is scheduled to leave the board when her current term concludes in November 2026.
Ziegler was first elected to the Sarasota school board in 2014 and later became a prominent figure in Moms for Liberty, an organization known for opposing LGBTQ+ inclusive policies and certain books and curriculum materials.
Her tenure also became entangled in a highly publicized bisexual threesome scandal involving her husband, Christian Ziegler, and another woman. Christian Ziegler was later accused of rape by the woman involved in the threesome, when Bridget Ziegler was not around, but was ultimately not charged with rape after a police investigation. The incident generated intense criticism and accusations of hypocrisy and irony because of Bridget Ziegler’s connection to an organization that campaigns against LGBTQ+ content and inclusion. Christian Ziegler was later removed of his chairmanship of the Republican Party while Bridget was removed as a leader of Moms for Liberty.
Now, the political landscape she leaves behind looks considerably different.
One school board race remains unresolved, with Jimmy Glover and Heidi Brandt heading to a runoff. But regardless of that result, Sarasota’s young LGBTQ+ activists have already demonstrated something important: they aren’t waiting for adults to decide what their future should look like. They’re getting involved and helping decide it themselves.