Lech exits school board race, endorses Limbird

His name will still be on the ballot. But as far as Jim Lech is concerned, his campaign is over. Lech announced Monday afternoon that he is endorsing opponent Lee Limbird and asking voters to do the same.

The school board race for District 9 — which encompasses Bellevue and Belle Meade — has five candidates, plus one write-in.

At a Bellevue press conference attended by few journalists but many Limbird supporters, Lech said he faced a tough decision in choosing whether to endorse Limbird or Steve Hicks, another opponent. Though he knows that his name will still be on the ballot, Lech said he does not believe he will win.

Lech said he supports Limbird because of her experience managing very large budgets, her scientific experience and ability to assess data and studies, and her choice to educate her children at Metro Nashville Public Schools. Limbird worked for years as a high-level administrator at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Her children are now adults.

Limbird is pleased to have Lech’s support, she said, as well as his assistance with her campaign.

“I’m delighted, although I’ve lost a provocative competitor,” Limbird said. “There’s a lot of walking that has to be done. … Even for parents with kids in schools, there’s not a full awareness that this election is going on.”

Both Lech and Limbird said the endorsement was prompted by support of Limbird, rather than an attempt at making a statement in opposition to any of the candidates.

To date, Lech has made waves in the District 9 race for publicly taking issue with the high dollars raised by Limbird as well as Alan Coverstone. As of June 30, Limbird had raised $23,000 and Coverstone $32,000, according to figures from the Davidson County Election Commission. Those totals don’t reflect the $5,000 endorsements from the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Political Action Committee that both Limbird and Coverstone have been tapped to receive.

Lech said his endorsement does not mean that his position has changed.

“I’m not the only one who has a lot of problems with money and politics,” Lech said. “The candidates are playing by the rules. It’s the system that is broken. … The organizations that are playing games with the system need to be taken out of it.”

In addition to the public statements he has made as a school board candidate, Lech said he plans to work with the Metro Council to develop policy that might include legal limits of how much money can be spent on campaigns for local office.