On November 3, voters in 36 states will choose a governor (Stone et al., 2026). Most of them will be thinking about prices, taxes, and control of Congress. Very few will be thinking about the person who negotiates and signs their state's school budget. That is exactly who they are choosing.

Education Week reviewed all 50 states, and the governors' races are only the start. Eight states will elect a state superintendent. Nine states and the District of Columbia will fill 44 state board of education seats. Seventeen states will vote on 34 ballot measures that touch schools or the money behind them (Stone et al., 2026). Over the next three weeks, this series covers who leads, who pays, and what changes in the classroom. Underneath all of it sits one question: who decides?

Start with California, because it shows how fast the ground can move. Under a policy passed with the state budget, the California Department of Education moves under a governor-appointed education commissioner starting next year, leaving the elected state superintendent with little authority over schools (Vilcarino, 2026). Californians will still elect a superintendent. That person will simply hold far less authority than the title suggests.

That is why the Education Commission of the States' 50-state comparison of K-12 governance belongs in every leader's bookmarks. It maps how each state's constitution and statutes divide authority among the governor, the legislature, the chief state school officer, the state board, and local boards (Kuwayama et al., 2026). The same election means very different things depending on which model your state follows.

This isn't every race on the ballot. It's the ones I would be watching closely.

Oklahoma. The state superintendent's seat is open. Republican Robert Franklin, a 44-year educator, faces Democrat Jennettie Marshall, a former Tulsa school board member (Martinez-Keel, 2026). Oklahomans have chosen the Republican candidate for this office in every general election since 2010 (Martinez-Keel, 2026). Franklin, though, marks a sharp departure from former superintendent Ryan Walters, who drew national attention for ordering Bibles into classrooms without the authority to do so (KOSU, 2026). Whoever wins, the office changes direction.

Georgia. Three-term incumbent Richard Woods faces Democrat Lydia Powell, a Henry County educator. Woods survived a primary runoff after fellow Republicans criticized the state's results, including third-grade reading proficiency of 35% (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2026).

Idaho. Incumbent Debbie Critchfield faces Democrat Becky Sundin Mitchell, the 2018 Idaho Teacher of the Year, and Constitution Party candidate Teresa Roundy (Corbin, 2026; KMVT, 2026).

State boards. Texas voters will fill eight of 15 State Board of Education seats. Ohio fills five of 11, Nebraska four of eight, and Michigan two of eight (Ballotpedia News, 2026a).

The structure itself. New Mexico voters will decide whether to repeal the requirement that school elections be held separately from partisan elections (Center for Politics, 2026). Alabama voters will decide whether two or more county school boards can combine into a single multi-county board, with the state board required to study the impact first (Ballotpedia News, 2026b).

Conservatives make a fair argument here, and it has some merit. When results lag, voters want someone they can hold accountable, and a clear line of authority makes that easier. Georgia shows the instinct cuts across party lines: Republican legislators went after their own incumbent over test scores (Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2026). California's consolidation, meanwhile, came from a Democratic governor (Vilcarino, 2026). Concentrating authority is not one party's project.

I believe in accountability. I spent 35 years answering for results. But I have also watched what happens when authority drifts away from the people closest to students. Decisions get faster and simpler at the top, and harder to live with at the school site. A governor can sign a mandate in an afternoon. A principal spends the next two years making it work for children it was never designed around.

Across this ballot, the pattern holds. More of what happens in your district gets decided somewhere else. Some of those shifts may turn out to be right. All of them deserve your attention before November 3, not after.

Open your state's profile in the ECS comparison and find out who actually holds authority over your budget, your standards, and your accountability system. Then look up your ballot in Education Week's state-by-state guide. Know who is asking for that authority before you hand it over.

Atlanta Journal-Constitution. (2026). Georgia schools superintendent candidates 2026: Who's running. https://www.ajc.com/education/2026/04/8-candidates-vie-to-be-georgias-next-schools-superintendent/

Ballotpedia News. (2026a, January 23). These 2026 state elections will shape K-12 education policy. https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/01/23/these-2026-state-elections-will-shape-k-12-education-policy/

Ballotpedia News. (2026b, April 10). Alabama voters to decide constitutional amendment establishing a process for the consolidation of county school boards into multi-county boards. https://news.ballotpedia.org/2026/04/10/alabama-voters-to-decide-constitutional-amendment-establishing-a-process-for-the-consolidation-of-county-school-boards-into-multi-county-boards/

Center for Politics. (2026). Elections, taxes, transgender policy, and more: The November ballot measures to watch. Sabato's Crystal Ball. https://centerforpolitics.org/crystalball/elections-taxes-transgender-policy-and-more-the-november-ballot-measures-to-watch/

Corbin, C. (2026, October). Idaho Republicans hold fundraising lead over Democrats in every statewide general election race. Idaho Capital Sun via East Idaho News. https://www.eastidahonews.com/2026/10/idaho-republicans-hold-fundraising-lead-over-democrats-in-every-statewide-general-election-race/

KMVT. (2026, February 26). Former Idaho Teacher of the Year enters race for state superintendent. https://www.kmvt.com/2026/02/27/former-idaho-teacher-year-enters-race-state-superintendent/

KOSU. (2026, August). Mazzei claims GOP nomination for Oklahoma governor, voters consider state questions and more. https://www.kosu.org/oklahoma-election-results-august-2026

Kuwayama, H., Bloomquist, L., Nicholson, S., & Perez, Z., Jr. (2026, February 19). 50-state comparison: K-12 governance. Education Commission of the States. https://www.ecs.org/50-state-comparison-k-12-governance-2026/

Martinez-Keel, N. (2026, August 25). Robert Franklin wins GOP runoff for Oklahoma state superintendent. Oklahoma Voice. https://oklahomavoice.com/2026/08/25/robert-franklin-wins-gop-runoff-for-oklahoma-state-superintendent/

Stone, M., Wright, E., & Vilcarino, J. (2026, September 24). EdWeek's guide to the 2026 elections: Where education is on the ballot. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/edweeks-guide-to-the-2026-elections-where-education-is-on-the-ballot

Vilcarino, J. (2026, July). The elected superintendent in this state will have little power over schools. Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/policy-politics/the-elected-superintendent-in-this-state-will-have-little-power-over-schools/2026/07

The Evolving K-12 Market: A Strategic Guide for Edupreneurs

Last fall I wrote that 78% of K-12 purchasing decisions take six months or longer, and that the smart money starts engaging six to twelve months before a budget is final. Put that next to this week's issue. The governor, superintendent, or state board member elected on November 3 will shape the budgets and priorities districts buy against for the 2027-28 school year, which means the sales cycle you are in right now runs straight through this election. If you serve districts, read the ballot the way you read an RFP.

"Systems Thinking and Organizational Transformation"

In Chapter 4, Systems Thinking and Organizational Transformation, I draw on Milbrey McLaughlin's research on policy implementation and write that "what's designed at the top can look very different when it reaches the classroom." That line sits at the center of this week's issue. When governance shifts toward a governor's office or a statewide ballot measure, the distance between the people writing the rule and the people carrying it out gets longer. The section "Creating Policy That Doesn't Fight Itself" adds Paul Manna's work on federalism, which shows how misalignment between local, state, and federal actors undermines even well-intended reform.

This week: Read "Creating Policy That Doesn't Fight Itself" and "Change Moves at Different Speeds" in Chapter 4. Then ask yourself: if a new state leader changes direction in January, which of your district's commitments will feel it first, and who in your system will carry the adjustment?

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