Nora Rupert, a 16-year veteran on the Broward School Board who until Thursday afternoon was unopposed for re-election, will not be running for another term, her campaign consultant confirmed Friday.
Rupert filed to run for a fifth term on the board on May 10, 2024, and she had raised $16,525 for her campaign. She earned the endorsement of the Broward Teachers Union, which donated $1,000 to her campaign.
But with a noon Friday deadline looming to pay the $2,263 qualifying fee, Rupert was listed on the Broward County Supervisor of Elections website on Thursday as having filed but not qualified.
“Just left notary, have packet ready to qualify after doctor’s appointment,” she texted the South Florida Sun Sentinel at 2:21 p.m. Thursday, in response to a question about her status.
At that point, she was unopposed, as her only competitor, Felicia Shuman, dropped out in late May. But at 3:17 p.m. Thursday, Rupert got a challenger, Cynthia Dominique, a nurse and longtime district volunteer who chairs the District Advisory Council, a group that makes recommendations to the School Board.
At 11:29 a.m. Friday, another candidate, teacher Rochelle “Shelly” Soffer, entered the race.
Following the noon qualifying deadline, Rupert was listed only as filed, not as qualified.
“Nora did not qualify,” her longtime campaign manager, David Brown, confirmed to the Sun Sentinel at 12:30 p.m. Friday. He declined to state a reason. “You’ll have to ask Nora about that.”
Rupert could not be immediately reached for comment.
Rupert is the second incumbent on the board who will not be running for a new term. Lori Alhadeff announced in January that she won’t seek a third term for her District 4 seat in the northwestern part of the county and endorsed educator Sharry Kimmel. Longtime district volunteer Nicole Morst is also running for the seat and has been endorsed by three other School Board members, Sarah Leonardi, Jeff Holness and Debbi Hixon.
This is a developing story. Check back for more information.