Republicans Appear To Be In The Lead Of The Methacton School Board Race

LOWER PROVIDENCE, PA — The Republican candidates for seats on the Methacton School Board appeared to be heading toward victory after Tuesday's elections, with two Democratic incumbent school directors possibly looking to be ousted from their positions.

Unofficial county election returns as of Wednesday morning, which were based on votes tallied from all in-person precincts, showed that Republican candidates Marissa Ruggiero Rocco, Greg Young and Jessica Bradbury secured more votes than the Democrats on the ballot, which included incumbents Elizabeth Drummond and Ralph Navarrete.

The unofficial results show that Ruggiero Rocco was the top vote-getter, with a total of 5,111 votes. She was trailed by Republicans Young and Bradbury, with 5,033 votes and 5,018 votes respectively.

Incumbents Cancro and Drummond received 4,807 votes and 4,483 votes respectively, according to the unofficial county results.

Democratic candidate Christine Steere had received 4,299 votes, and Ralph Navarrete, another incumbent Democrat, received 4,280, the lowest number of votes out of the candidates.

Cancro was the only individual to be cross-filed as a Democrat and Republican, and she appears to be the last person to win a seat; voters were choosing four school directors.

Cancro, Drummond and Navarrete had been part of a Democratic election sweep in Methacton back in 2017, when the three had ousted Republicans on the board at the time.

The Republican team, which dubbed itself 'Heart For Methacton School Board,' had run on a varied platform, highlighting issues such as a need to "prioritize academic, athletic and artistic achievement for our students while establishing an environment that recognizes their unique needs and support requirements," according to the group's website.

The group also said it looked to establish "budget transparency," and aims to perform a "deep dive" into past financials and reporting to understand why taxes in the district were raised during the past four years despite multi-million dollar surpluses.

The Republican team also said it wants to create an environment based on "educational collaboration, recognizing that the education of our children requires strong relationships between the parents, teachers and administration," according to the campaign site.

The Democratic team, which called itself 'CARE For Methacton School Board,' thanked their supporters and volunteers for coming out and giving their all.

"We are hopeful new members of the Methacton School Board will work together in the best interest of the Methacton community," the CARE team said in a joint statement provided to Patch on Wednesday by Drummond.

There were still mail-in ballots to be counted across Montgomery County, so these numbers may change once the final results are in. It was unclear when that would be. It was also unclear whether the additional mail-in ballots that are tallied would change the dynamic of the Methacton School Board race.

Patch will continue to bring you more information on this race and other races as final numbers begin to come in at the county level.