Ada County residents voted to keep the Meridian Library District Board ofTrustees as is. Incumbents Josh Cummings and Destinie Hart both retained their seats with large majorities in Tuesday’s election.
The Meridian Library District received national attention in February when a group called the Concerned Citizens of Meridian petitioned to dissolve it, claiming it allowed minors to access sexually explicit materials. Citing cost and lack of public support, the Ada County Board of Commissioners chose not to put the dissolution on the November ballot.
Hart was first appointed to the board last August to fill a vacancy. Yesterday, she was elected for a six-year term, winning against newcomer Xavier Torres who had signed the petition to dissolve the District.
“I'm hoping that the results tonight really send the message that Meridian voters just aren't interested in censorship. They're not interested in these extreme ideas,” Hart said.
Hart added she hopes the Concerned Citizen group will accept the results as the will of the voters. Trustees will meet Wednesday for their monthly meeting and it will be business as usual, according to Hart.
“And hopefully without the distractions that we've been seeing over the past several months we can just really get down to the business of growing our library district in a way that really serves our diverse community,” she said.
Attempts to reach Torres for comment were unsuccessful. Trustee Josh Cummings won against newcomer David Tizekke and will serve a four-year term.
Find all Ada County Election results here.
