American Kaiser Justin Weitz links to an interesting article on a school board election endorsement in Florida:

The race (sorry) for the position features three candidates, of which the Star-Banner says that two are qualified. Kurt Kelly, the white candidate who the Star-Banner concedes is deserving of the job, is upset that this influential newspaper has endorsed Washington. Perhaps he is justified:

Washington is black. Too often diversity is disparaged as nothing more than political correctness. In this case, though, Washington not only would bring a missing perspective to this heretofore all-white board, but bring a noteworthy resume of professional and civic credentials, too.

On the face of things, this seems outrageous. If a white candidate received the endorsement because of his race, the NAACP and other civil rights groups would have a cow. But this is more justified, methinks. The district has never had an African-American on its school board, despite the fact that one-third of students are minorities. Frank Washington Jr. probably fills the need.

Color me not-outraged.

I don't know enough about the race to know if the endorsement is justfied. Maybe Kelly was more qualified and trumped by his race. Maybe they were equally qualified or their qualifications were so different that comparison isn't valid. Sometimes there are elections when you just don't know who to vote for. I run into them occasionally. When that happens, you find reasons to vote for someone that are somewhat silly. Are they rational? No. Are they valid? Technically they are not. Ideally, you would be able to interview both men personally and get a better feel. However, sometimes we're flying blind.

The Star-Banner apparently thought both men were equally good. Maybe they shouldn't have endorsed either candidate. Instead, they chose to for some of the flimsy reasoning all voters use when they are torn. They were honest and straightforward about their reasoning. If you disagree with their rationale, don't follow their advice. Pick Kelly because he is a Presbyterian or Washington because your kid knows his kid. The school board district is apparently blessed with two qualified candidates to choose from and a newspaper that is honest about their biases.

We should all be so lucky.