The election of Sarasota County School Board member Bridget Ziegler to a full term offers the incumbent something she could not enjoy in the five months since her appointment to the body—a voter mandate. But she also enters the board in the minority of issues that played huge in the past few weeks of the election.

Among them, Ziegler supports restricted school vouchers, a position advocated by the Florida Federation for Children, which spent money on behalf of pro-voucher candidates throughout Florida. A day after her victory over challenger Ken Marsh, Ziegler said it was important to her to provide a different perspective on such policies. 

"All taxpayers, whether they choose to go to public or private schools, should be enabled in education in all facets," she said. Money from the state awarded for each child within a school district should be able to follow the child to whatever education opportunities are the best for them, whether than means staying in a public school or going to a private school program, she said.

That's a position at odds with the majority of the School Board, and part of why a majority of sitting members outwardly supported Marsh over Ziegler. But the election is in the past, according to School Board member Shirley Brown.

"I was the first one to congratulate her last night," Brown said. "We have to work together." Brown, who had backed Marsh, hopes Ziegler's positions on some issues evolve especially after she attends the Florida School Board Association meeting in September. Vouchers is one area where Brown ardently disagrees with Ziegler on policy.

"It takes dollars away from our schools, and I do believe we have got something in the constitution about funding for high-quality public schools," Brown said. The matter will likely come up when the board sets its legislative agenda for the coming year, and could also be a big part of School Board races two years from now. Right now, the Florida School Board Association is engaged in a lawsuit against the Step Up For Children voucher program.

Ziegler stressed she wants restrictions on vouchers but said in conversations with parents on the campaign trail that she was struck by the positive impact of vouchers on some students. "If parents choose this school because it appears to have a strong curriculum and matches with their values, I do not believe we have a right to tell them otherwise," she said.