Sometimes doing nothing is the same as doing something. On Monday night, the Austin ISD board of trustees failed to reach a consensus on how to fill late trustee Robert Schneider‘s vacant seat. So now their hands are tied, and they must simply appoint his successor for the next year – a victory for the board members who wanted that result all along.

The board split exactly down the middle. Trustees Jayme Mathias, Paul Saldaña, Julie Cowan, and Edmund Gordon all wanted to appoint a replacement for the next year, then place the seat on the ballot in the November 2016 elections; board president Gina Hinojosa and Trustees Kendall Pace, Ann Teich, and Amber Elenz wanted a special election this November.

With both motions failing on a 4-4 vote, the failure to reach a decision meant the appointment supporters won the day because of timing. To get a special election on the ballot, the board had to make the decision that night. So by default, it has to be an appointment, leaving the district in the awkward position of having an unelected member making major decisions for over a year. Elenz warned her fellow trustees, “There’s always going to be someone shouting foul that they are not elected.”

The discussion of appointment vs. election came down to two issues that the board chased in circles for over an hour (as Trustee Teich put it, “I feel like I’m back on a high school debate team.”) First was the philosophical discussion about democratic process, with appointment backers arguing that pushing the election back to 2016 will mean a higher turnout. Then there was cost, as Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir informed trustees that putting District 7 on the ballot this November would cost AISD $123,000, and an extra $237,000 if there were a run-off.

Gordon suggested speeding the appointment process up by giving the post to Yasmin Wagner, the candidate Schneider beat last year. But it was clear no one had actually asked Wagner whether she wanted it. The board neither ruled this option in or out; instead, the full board deferred to its public engagement subcommittee to develop a selection process for approval late this month.

This article appears in August 14 • 2015.

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The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.