Conservative parents, many driven by the insane lockdowns and long-lasting school closures implemented by leftist Democrat-run school boards during the COVID-19 pandemic, were moved to run for their local boards and, in November, many of them won.

According to two parental rights organizations that endorsed numerous successful candidates, conservatives have gained control of at least nine school boards in six states, namely Michigan, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Jersey, and Florida. These conservative majorities represent a shift in power on these school boards, the Daily Wire reported.

Although conservative parents in some districts were unable to secure a majority on their school board, those who were successful are now causing difficulties for the progressive majority, the outlet continued, going on to highlight several parents — moms and dads — who won their races.

Laurene McCoy, who is a mother, wife, and pastor, successfully ran for a position on the school board of the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District, which is located approximately 200 miles north of Los Angeles. She stated that she chose to run for the school board because she noticed concerning developments in the district when the pandemic began, such as declining test scores and an increase in school violence. Prior to this, she admitted that she had not been particularly interested in her local school board, the Daily Wire reported.

“We’ve got full-time jobs. We’ve got so many things to do, but it’s so important that we get involved right now, because if we don’t, we’re gonna lose our children,” McCoy told the outlet.

The gender identity issue was a bridge too far for her, she said.

“Everybody’s entitled to believe and do and live their personal lifestyle the way that they want,” she told the Daily Wire. “The problem for me comes when you bring that in school and my children become confused.”

“I’m not okay with my children having to be forced to be in a locker room with somebody of a biological different gender than they are,” she added. “I definitely believe in science and biology, that God made men, men and God made women, women. They’re already going through puberty. They’re going through so many other things. It’s already weird. So why would we put them in a situation where it has to be super weird?” she said.

In Florida, meanwhile, two conservative candidates flipped the Pinellas County Schools board near Tampa. Mom-of-three Stephanie Meyer was one of the two candidates.

In her role as a board member, McCoy made it a priority to ensure that school board meetings were available online. She was successful in persuading her fellow board members to reinstate the livestream for the public comment section of Pinellas County school board meetings, which had previously been turned off during this portion.

“That really is a disservice to families because families might find out about issues that are going on at their child’s school that way. Or maybe that parent is also having the same issue and then they can work together to get a resolution,” she told the outlet

“I think it really is an opportunity for us to regain the trust of the public,” she said. “It’s an easy and simple way for us to show the public that we do want to hear what they have to say and that we aren’t in the business of hiding grievances that families and taxpayers may have against this government organization.”

Prior to her candidacy for the school board, Meyer quit her job at a Fortune 100 company to become a social studies teacher and college professor in Pinellas County, her hometown where she also attended public school. Over time, declining grades and student behavioral issues caused her to lose confidence in the quality of education in the district, and she became hesitant to send her own children to those same schools. Additionally, Meyer argued that teachers were being pressured to prioritize issues such as race in their instruction, she told the outlet.

“We’ve just seen such a huge shift in our public school system and the fundamental ideals behind it,” she noted. “We want our kids to grow up and become responsible, equipped adults. We don’t want this time that they spend in a K-12 classroom eight hours a day being wasted with political rhetoric and ideological garbage.”