FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — The Broward County School District is facing serious budget challenges and declining enrollment.
There are several Broward County School Board seats up for election this year.
In District 1, there are two people seeking the seat. They are in incumbent, Maura McCarthy Bulman, and her opponent, Carmen Gimenez.
Gimenez is a former candidate for governor and for mayor of Hallandale Beach.
“In my opinion, Gov. DeSantis is right when he mentioned that Broward County School Board is a disaster,” she said. “I represent two universities. The private University of Angola in the United States and Los Angeles University in Florida and Georgia, so I know what is the best way for our kids to be guided to have a bright future.”
Broward County’s District 1 includes Dania Beach, Hallandale Beach, Hollywood, West Park, and part of Miramar.
Gimenez is hoping to unseat Bulman, who was elected in 2024.
“It has been my greatest honor to represent District 1 on the school board for the past two years,” she said. “I’m running for a full year term to continue the work that I’ve started, improving our facilities, bringing programming to my schools, trying to get more enrollment.”
Bulman, an attorney, addressed the school district’s budget challenges and the board’s decision to close underenrolled school campuses.
“I think we’ve made some very difficult decisions this year, and we’re gonna have to keep doing that to be fiscally responsible, to right size the district, and to make sure that we are using the best care of our taxpayer dollars,” Bulman said.
Gimenez told Local 10 if elected, she plans to “modernize the district’s school bus transportation system” and discussed how she would address the budget shortfall.
“I’m going to talk to the state of Florida government party who is dedicated to give us funds to Broward Schools,” she said.
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