Trustees still have real local power: they help set board priorities, approve budgets, shape policies and programs, and can work with educators and the community to push for change. We’ve seen that work when WRDSB trustees listened to educators about classroom evacuations, supported data collection, and used that information to push for action. But trustees can also make choices that affect what happens in our schools—from debates over books and flags to decisions about where board priorities and resources are focused. And these elections can be incredibly close: in 2018, just 35 votes separated the fourth- and fifth-place candidates in Kitchener. The people at that table matter, and so does who we choose to put there.