Hopkins Board of Education Trustee Ian Gibson was returned to office by appointment of the school board Monday night. He was appointed over two other candidates.
Gibson lost his bid for re-election in the Nov. 5 general election in a three-way race for two open seats. He received 2,182 votes, but lost to incumbent Karen Ryan, who had 2,379 votes and former Michigan State Rep. Steve Johnson, who polled 2,434.
However, Johnson after the election failed to sign the “acceptance of office” paperwork within 10 business days after the election results were certified (as required by state law).”
State election laws insist that “each school board member-elect shall file an Acceptance of Office with the school board secretary within 10 business days after notification of election to the school board by the school district Election Coordinator.”
Johnson, who was a state representative for six years (from 2016 to 2022 in District No. 72, apparently failed to complete that task in the time allotted
The school board last month adopted a resolution to declare vacant the seat won last month by Johnson and to invite anyone in the district who is eligible to submit an application by Jan. 8 to fill the vacancy.
Johnson posted on Facebook, “We had the board meeting tonight. With complete disregard for the voters, the Hopkins School Board decided to appoint the guy we beat in the election.
“Regardless of your political position, we can all agree that it’s wrong to appoint someone who actually lost the election over the person who won the election.
“The Board made it clear multiple times that they believe the voters are a problem they have to deal with and not their boss. Truly a shameful day for the school board and a terrible example for the students.
“One of the questions they asked in the interview was what would I do to help pass a bond in the future. No question of how we would work to live within a budget. They plan to go for another bond in 2026 and stick future generations with debt.
“I assure you we will have more to say about this in the future.”
