Victoria's school board is all-new, and the only incumbent who ran got 8.1% of the vote

The new Greater Victoria School Board has no one left from the old one. Angela Carmichael, the only former trustee to run again, finished with 8.1 per cent of the vote in the Victoria ward.

This was the first election under a ward system. Voters cast ballots by electoral area instead of district-wide, filling nine seats across seven areas. Trevor Barry, who put music education at the top of his list, won the most votes of 24 candidates.

"It was a little surreal," said Barry, who is active in the Victoria Confederation of Parent Advisory Councils. "It hasn't quite set in as a reality yet."

The board they inherit is still unsettled. In late August, about a week before the school year started, several senior staff took medical leave. Returning trustee Ann Whiteaker said the outgoing board has stayed "tight-lipped," and the new members are coming in mostly in the dark. "We're going to take some time, figure out what's going on," she said.