Who changed the school board?

It's no secret that organized labor, led by the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, was the driving force behind the November election's seismic shift on the Cincinnati school board.

But with the help of recently filed campaign finance reports, we can put a fine point on just how dominant the teachers' union was. First, an election recap: The union-backed slate of Michael Flannery, Eve Bolton and Chris Nelms finished 1-2-3 by a wide margin, booting incumbent Rick Williams.

The Flannery-Bolton-Nelms campaign was run out of a joint campaign entity, The Committee to Elect a New School Board. All told, direct union contributions made up more than 80 percent of the committee's funding. Here are the numbers:

Total raised: $52,143.16
Direct contributions from labor: $41,800

Cincinnati Federation of Teachers: $19,800
Plumbers & Pipefitters & M.E.S.: $7,500
IBEW: $7,500
Laborers' Local 265: $5,000
AFSCME Ohio Council 8: $1,500
Cincinnati Sheet Metal Workers: $500

Top individual contributors were Democratic fundraising mainstays Stan Chesley ($1,000) and Daniel Ticotsky ($2,500), and retired teacher Marsha McSpadden Clarke ($1,000).

Meanwhile, Williams raised $11,425, with $9,000 coming from frequent Republican donors Craig Maier and Carl and Edyth Lindner.

He serves until Dec. 31. On Jan. 1, the union-backed candidates take over CPS.